The following biographical information was kindly provided to me by Laura Folley (Lawrence Folley's daughter)
LAWRENCE FOLLEY, baritone, born 6 December 1928 in Benoni, died 14 January 2007 in Scotland
South African baritone Lawrence Folley had a long and distinguished career on the stage, appearing in opera, operetta, musicals and concert platforms around the world. In his tribute, Prof Angelo Gobbato, former CEO of Cape Town Opera and director of the UCT Opera School, said: "For almost 30 years he gave us one marvellous performance after another not only for the audience but also for his colleagues. He was undoubtedly one of the greatest and most beloved opera singers and artists this country has ever produced”.
Born in Benoni in 1928, Lawrence started voice training with Alan Webster and music theory with Gillian Davies who trained the Benoni Orpheus Choir. He later took singing lessons with Amy Parkinson and acting lessons with Taubie Kushlik, making his stage debut in Peter Pan with Bruce Anderson.
In 1953 Lawrence moved to London with his first wife Marie, a popular Benoni violinist. In London he studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Morley College where he sang for Joan Cross, who offered him a scholarship to the London Opera School. In 1957 he turned professional and after completing a UK tour of Lilac Time, he joined the Sadler’s Wells Opera Company. He soon went on to become a principal baritone through roles such as Count Almaviva in The Marriage of Figaro, Escamillo in Carmen, Prince Yeletsky in The Queen of Spades, the Father in Hansel & Gretel, Valentine in Faust, Agamemnon in La Belle Hélène, Leander in The Love of Three Oranges and Ramiro in Ravel’s L’Heure Espagnole. Many of these productions were broadcast on BBC Radio and Television. He also played Sam in Ledlanet Nights’ UK premier of Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti and performed in Lennox Berkeley’s A Dinner Engagement.
In 1967 Lawrence returned to South Africa with his wife and three daughters, where he became one of the country’s first full-time professional opera singers. He rapidly established himself as a leading baritone of Italian repertoire and achieved particular acclaim in the Verdi roles, portraying Macbeth, Nabucco, Rigoletto, Count di Luna, Giorgio Germont, Renato, Simon Boccanegra, Rodrigo, Amonasro, Iago and Falstaff.
Lawrence’s repertoire embraced Puccini’s Scarpia, Michele, Marcello and Sharpless; Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Count Almaviva; Donizetti’s Enrico and Dr Malatesta; as well as Figaro in The Barber of Seville, Jokanaan in Salome and Balstrode in Peter Grimes.
Over the course of his career, Lawrence forged some powerful stage partnerships. In Cape Town he sang Jokanaan to Leone Rysanek’s final performances as Salome. He also played Scarpia to her final Toscas. Lawrence’s performances opposite Marita Napier in Macbeth and Nabucco were also highly acclaimed. He had great camaraderie with Giovanni Gibin and Andre Turp as “brothers-in-arms” in various productions of Don Carlos and La Forza del Destino. Lawrence was particularly fond of these works and felt privileged to have had a close working relationship with Maestro Franco Ferraris, under whose baton he sang these roles and many others. In numerous productions Lawrence Folley held his own as the only South African in a cast of international luminaries. He is widely regarded as having been the greatest single inspiration to generations of young South African singers who went on to become professionals themselves.
Lawrence also demonstrated a flair for musicals and operettas. He starred as Hajj in Kismet, Johann Strauss Snr in The Great Waltz, Fred Graham in Kiss me Kate, Emile in South Pacific, Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus, Danilo in The Merry Widow, and Paquillo in La Perichole. In 1986, his unforgettable performance as Don Quixote in The Man of La Mancha marked the Cape Performing Arts Board’s celebration of Lawrence’s 30 years as a singer.
Lawrence won the Nederburg Opera prize five times, and the coveted Artes Award. He was voted South Africa’s most popular male opera singer in a 1988 opinion poll conducted by the arts magazine Scenaria – endorsement of the respect and affection he commanded, both with his audiences and colleagues.
In 1993 Lawrence retired from the stage and moved back to the UK to be near his three daughters. He enjoyed travelling around the world with his son-in-law tenor, John Treleaven. In 1998 Marie died in Scotland and in October 2001 Lawrence married the South African theatre director, Jacky Vermaas. They settled in the Scottish village of Kilmacolm. After a long battle with skin cancer, Lawrence died at Ardgowan Hospice in Greenock, Scotland, aged 78. His funeral was held in the Old Kirk in Kilmacolm on Tuesday 23 January 2007.
Note to Editors
Information About the Folley Family
Roxane (the eldest daughter) appeared professionally on stage with her Dad in The Great Waltz (Durban), Carmina Burana (Bloemfontein), Don Carlos and The Marriage of Figaro (Cape Town) before leaving South Africa. She subsequently sang in London and Glasgow before moving permanently to Germany where she now lives with her husband, the heldentenor John Treleaven who is in great demand around the world. (Please see his website for details about his career: http://www.johntreleaven.com). John sang in three productions with Lawrence in South Africa: Lucia di Lammermoor and Salome for PACT; and Lucia di Lammermoor for CAPAB. After he retired from the stage Lawrence enjoyed many trips accompanying John around the world and acting as unofficial coach to him. John and Roxane have two children: Lawrence Richards, who is currently doing a BA in cinematography at Salisbury University and Leona Richards who is currently assisting in the production team of Boris Godunov at the Vienna State Opera.
Mandy (the middle daughter) was a member of the PACT Permanent Chorus for 10 years and was on the stage with her father in many productions at the State Theatre, Pretoria. Her husband, Joe Robinson, played the clarinet in the PACT orchestra. (Joe comes from a distinguished line of musicians, being the grandson of Frederick Thurston, and the step-grandson of Dame Thea King, both noted British clarinetists. His father, Hilary Robinson was a distinguished British cellist who played for many well known orchestras in the UK and South Africa). They moved to Scotland in 1989 where Joe continues to teach woodwind and Mandy is actively involved with the local amateur dramatic society.
Laura (the youngest) appeared on stage in various professional productions as a child, but her fondest memory of being on stage with her Dad is in CAPAB’s 1981 production of South Pacific. She subsequently moved to London where she studied at the Royal Academy of Music. In 2001 she married bass-baritone John Eagar, who was one of Folley’s star pupils and who shared most of his 25-year career with Lawrence on the Cape Town stage. John has now retired from singing but enjoys teaching and painting. Laura has recently started composing music for children. They are now settled in London with their 3-year old daughter, Abigail.
Jacky Folley was previously known as Jacky Vermaas and is well known amongst the South African Arts Community where she worked in all aspects of the theater, film and television for 40 years and where latterly she was the former Head of Drama at Technikon Natal (now Durban University of Technology) and a busy theatrical director. She was also on the board of the Kwasuka Theatre and was an Artes judge. She settled in Scotland after marrying Lawrence Folley in October 2001. She subsequently worked at Cumbernauld Theatre in Scotland and is currently employed as Arts Development Officer for Inverclyde and has directed both professionally and for the local amateur group in Kilmacolm.
