Rex Deverell

Deverell, Rex

Rex Deverell, playwright (b at Toronto 17 July 1941). With a degree in divinity from McMaster University, Deverell was pastor of a rural Ontario Baptist congregation before turning to playwriting in 1970. Two years later he began his association with Regina's Globe Theatre, where he was writer-in-residence from 1975-90. Deverell's numerous plays for children are distinguished by their concern with social issues. His best-known adult plays range from the gentle fantasy of 2 derelicts in Boiler Room Suite (1977), winner of the Canadian Authors Association Literary Award, to docudramas of Saskatchewan history, Medicare! (1979) and Black Powder: Estevan 1931 (1981). Recent works include Melody Meets the Baglady (1985), Fallout (1985) and Switching Places (1986), all children's plays, as well as Resuscitation of a Dying Mouse (1986) and Quartet for Three Actors (1987), for adults. Four of his plays have been collected in Deverell of the Globe.