Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia
Lillo, Larry
Theatre director and actor, born in 1946 in Kinuso, Alberta; died in 1993 in Vancouver British Columbia of AIDS. He studied at Royal Roads Military College, St. Francis Xavier University (BA), the University of Washington, the University of British Columbia (MA in directing).
He was co-founder, director and actor with Tamahnous Theatre (1971-81); artistic director, Grand Theatre, London (1986), and Vancouver Playhouse (1988-93). Under his leadership, Playhouse subscriptions rose from 5,800 (1988) to nearly 12,000 (1992/93). Among the many new Canadian works he directed were Sharon Pollock’s The Komagata Maru Incident, and John Gray's Rock and Roll and Health, the Musical.
He was winner of a Jessie Richardson Award and Dora Mavor Moore Award for his direction of Sam Shepherd’s A Lie of the Mind.
His partner, John Moffat, who died in 1995 in Vancouver, at age 39, was an award-winning actor. The John Moffat & Larry Lillo Award of $2000 is awarded annually to assist mature West Coast theatre artists to further their artistic development.
Last updated 2021-05-06
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