[Candrama] James (Jim) DeFelice 1937-2024

[Day, Moira]

It is with great sadness that I share news of the passing of another significant pioneer in the Western Canadian theatre and film industry. On October 5, 2024, we lost James (Jim) deFelice,  at the age of 87. Like his contemporary, the late Tom Peacocke, who passed away at the age of 89 in 2022, Jim may have been a longstanding powerhouse of the Edmonton theatre, but his reach as an enormously dynamic, multi-faceted and prolific creative artist/educator extended well beyond the prairies to the national and international level, especially  through the influence of the many generations of students he inspired, trained, and mentored at the University of Alberta for over thirty years.

Born in Lynn, Massachusetts on January 6th, 1937, Jim received his early education at Northeastern University, Tufts, and the University of Indiana before accepting a position at the University of Alberta Department of Drama  in Edmonton in 1969. According to Anne Nothof,[1] he directed over sixty-two plays, including forty for the university prior to his retirement as a professor in 2002, winning a Sterling award for his production of The Baltimore Waltz in 1997. He acted professionally on many of the main and alternative stages in Edmonton, and appeared in small roles in the feature films, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) and Passionshendaele (2008). He was also a playwright and award-winning screenwriter, receiving a 1978 Canadian Screen Award for best screenplay for Why Shoot The Teacher? (1977). Both before and after retirement, he dramaturged and adjudicated, as well as becoming a fixture at the Edmonton International Fringe Festival where he participated in some twenty-one productions. In 2018, he served as a guest member of the local improv group, Coyote Comedy that performed every Thursday at the Grindstone in Edmonton. He was honoured by a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Sterlings in 1995, and inducted into the Edmonton Cultural Hall of Fame in 2005.

I was only one of many colleagues and former students who met Jim over the years at one of his favorite watering holes on Whyte Avenue, the 1912 Block, and never failed to be swept away by his incredible energy, brilliant raconteurship, restless original mind, kindness, and passion for everything and everyone he encountered. In the words of well-known Edmonton critic, Liz Nicholls, “A great man is gone ... the most generous and inspiring friend, teacher, and mentor to us all. It’s so hard to imagine Edmonton theatre without Jim.”[2] Deepest condolences to Gail  his partner of many years, and two daughters, Gwen and theatre director Amy DeFelice. Many of us were profoundly touched by Jim over the years, and he will be deeply missed by all of us who knew him.

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[1] Anne Nothof. “DeFelice, James.” Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia. Lasted updated Oct 24, 2024. https://www.canadiantheatre.com/dict.pl?term=DeFelice%2C%20James
[2] Liz Nicholls. “A great man is gone.” https://twitter.com/lizonstage/status/1844976194019787251



Dr. MOIRA DAY
Professor Emerita
Department of Drama
University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon, SK
S7N 5E2

780 466 8957 (message)
moira.day at usask.ca
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