Broadway wig designer Paul Huntley died on July 9, 2021, at the age of 88. He passed peacefully in London after a short illness. We at Stage Directions send our sincere condolences to Huntley’s colleagues, friends, and family. Earlier this year, The New York Times reported that Huntley made the decision to retire after working on hundreds of Broadway projects since coming to New York in 1972. His final project was Diana, which had begun previews before the pandemic forced its opening to be delayed. Here’s a video from the American Theatre Wing’s Working in the Theatre series on Huntley:
Here’s the description of the video from the American Theatre Wing: “Everyone knows that great wig work is important to the artistic process of creating theatre. But few know just how much work and skill go into producing the incredible design and execution of a wig. In this video, Paul Huntley, one of the most esteemed wig designers (and a past Tony Honoree), shares his career journey and spotlights the creative, economic, and technical processes of working in the hair and wig department. We enter his world through the Broadway production of A Bronx Tale, showcasing the interaction between designers and talent, resulting in one important goal – to complete the illustration of a character on stage.”
Huntley was born on July 2, 1933, in London, England. He had worked hundreds of Broadway shows, most memorably the original productions of Amadeus, Cats, Evita, Sweeney Todd, The Producers and Hairspray. Huntley received the Tony Honor for Excellence in Theatre in 2003 from the American Theatre Wing and he earned a Special Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2002 Drama Desk Awards. Huntley was most recently nominated for hair and wig design in 2019 for Tootsie.
Huntley’s first Broadway show was Uncle Vanya in 1973 for Mike Nichols. Some of his other credits include Romeo and Juliet, The Importance of Being Earnest, Tartuffe, Hello, Dolly!, The Elephant Man, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Brigadoon, My Fair Lady, You Can’t Take It With You, The Glass Menagerie, Singin’ In The Rain, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, Blithe Spirit, Anything Goes, Waiting For Godot, Company, Once Upon a Mattress, The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Sound of Music, Cabaret, The Wild Party, The Music Man, Seussical, Follies, Mamma Mia!, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Hairspray, La Cage aux Folles, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Pajama Game, Sweet Charity, Gypsy, Catch Me If You Can, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, A Bronx Tale, and many more.
There will be a small private funeral service.
