Rosalie Carey

Rosalie Louise Carey ( Seddon; 18 May 1921 – 29 June 2011) was a New Zealand actor, playwright, director and author who founded the Globe Theatre in Dunedin, the first purpose-built theatre for professional repertory in New Zealand, with then-husband Patric Carey. In 2010 Carey was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to the theatre. The New Zealand Society of Authors made Carey an honorary life member.

Early life Carey was born on 18 May 1921 to parents Ada Yvonne Rica Seddon and Richard Stephen Rowley Seddon. Carey's older sister Audrey Seddon studied commercial art in London, and provided two posters for advertising the play. The Careys staged plays in the garden and drawing room.

The Globe The Careys decided to extend the house into a theatre, digging the foundations in 1957. The extension, designed by Niel Mason, included a domed ceiling, and a stage with no proscenium arch.

Later life Patric Carey retired to Mahinerangi some years after the theatre was sold to the Friends in 1971, and the Careys dissolved their marriage in 1982.

Carey was a member of the Whangarei Writers Workshop, the Playwrights Association of New Zealand, and wrote several books, including A Theatre in the House: The Careys' Globe, poetry, a children's book, and a memoir It's Not What You Know. She was an honorary life member of the New Zealand Society of Authors.

Carey was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the theatre, in the 2010 New Year Honours. She died in Whangārei on 29 June 2011.

Selected publications