Reviews
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, opera composed by Benjamin Britten, 1961
Miss Coghill was the lightest, dancingest mote of a Puck one could ask for. It was a stroke of genius on Britten’s part to preserve Puck as a speaking role, and Miss Coghill brought the acting credibility of the spoken theatre to her assignment. She was as much acrobat as actress, and if she had leapt to the chandelier above the audience to proclaim what fools these mortals be, no one would have been surprised.
Alfred Frankenstein, San Francisco Chronicle
My Memories of You by Wendy Lill, 1989
The glory of this production is Joy Coghill’s performance as Elizabeth Smart. Coghill’s face is as bluntly gnarled, as sensitive and tough, as passionate and deeply wise, as rich with suffering and torment and peace, as some ancient representation of Socrates savouring the hemlock prepared by others but which he himself has willed to take.
Reg Skene, Chairman of the Drama Department, University of Winnipeg
...a startlingly good cast led but not dominated by Joy Coghill. The veteran actress gave the kind of performance for which you wait decades in the theatre.
Robert Enright, Border Crossings
Director, Noah's Flood (Noye's Fludde) by Benjamin Britten, 1995
Joy Coghill’s uncluttered and highly effective directing left many a potent memory.
Timothy Pfaff, San Francisco Examiner
Coghill sharing a laugh with Ma Murry
Ma! by Eric Nicol, 1981
Actress Joy Coghill gave an exceptional performance as Ma, characterizing her mannerisms, from the flat-footed stance to the sparkle in her eyes, with skill and an obvious emotional involvement.
Lorraine Aspden, Bridge River-Lillooet News
The Seagull by Anton Chekhov, 1979
Joy Coghill, a simply wonderful actress who takes the pivotal role of Arkadina, provides a strong centre for the rest of the cast to revolve around and stimulates the most absorbing interaction. [She] delivers a riveting performance.
Denise Ball, The Leader-Post
Unless The Eye Catch Fire by P.K. Page, 1994
Actress Joy Coghill and musician/composer Robert Cram have adapted Page’s story and fashioned from it a thoroughly engrossing, totally theatrical experience... Coghill’s portrayal of Babe is mesmerizing, a theatrical tour-de-force, and is perfectly complemented by Robert Cram's atmospherically moody music.
Deryk Barker, Times-Colonist
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Albertine in Five Times by Michel Tremblay, 1985
Albertine at 60 [is] an almost bed-ridden, pill-popping wreck... An expert, edgy performance by Coghill, with suppressed anger finally bubbling to the surface.
Robert Crew, Toronto Star
Director, Beauty and the Beast, Holiday Theatre, 1962
There is a unity of design and effect in Joy Coghill’s direction... that must impress every theatre lover. Miss Coghill is working with a script here which offers many temptations to indulge in the mere cute and coy. She resists these and sustains Nicholas Gray’s play in a character which does not falsify human relationship for the sake of whimsy.
Ben Metcalfe, reviewing Holiday Theatre's entry into the Vancouver International Festival
Curtains For a Crazy Old Lady by John Lazarus, 1990
Joy Coghill plays the mother, Esther, and through her we understand, sympathize and admire the character. This actress is perfectly cast, her timing, sense of humour and humanity shine throughout the play.
John Drean, Oak Bay Star
Coghill gives a very skilled, authentic performance that manages to tap into humanity’s wellspring. Glibness and superficiality are avoided... Coghill is a pure delight.