Patrick Jesse Robertson
ROBERTSON, FERRIS, EWERT, MCGLOTHLIN, ROBBINS, MURPHY
Posted By: Sarah Fletcher (email)
Date: 10/15/2019 at 12:17:00
Patrick Jesse Robertson, born in Santa Fe, New Mexico on August 9th, 1951, passed away at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics on Saturday, September 7th, 2019. He was the son of Jesse "Tony" Robertson and Mabel K. Ferris, both deceased. Pat was raised in Grand Prairie, Texas and attended the University of Texas Theater Department in Austin, where he was known as a powerful and charismatic actor.
After graduating with a BFA in Theater in 1976, Pat moved to New York City’s West Village with his then partner and longtime collaborator, Shelby Brammer, and began working as an actor, director, producer, and props master. His far-reaching talents touched the lives of so many of his fellow artists.
A sensitive, insightful, and highly creative director, Pat was particularly effective working with emerging playwrights on new works, such as Shelley Berc (former Playwright in Residence at the University of Iowa Theater Department), whose play Dual Heads he directed both in New York and at the St. Louis Repertory Theater.
He was a founding member of Empire Stage Players, which was funded by the NEA and devoted to developing new plays. There he both directed and produced. Later, he helped form Sweetheart Productions out of the newly opened ACME on Great Jones Street.
For a time, Pat was also employed as Props Master at Joe Papp’s Public Theater. He worked on memorable and groundbreaking productions, including John Guare’s Landscape of the Body, and Gilbert and Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance with Linda Ronstadt, and Shakespeare’s The Tempest with Raul Julia, both part of The New York Shakespeare Festival at the Delacorte in Central Park. He was always adored and respected by his co-workers.
Pat left New York in 1989 to return to Grand Prairie to care for his beloved ailing mother, who passed away a year later. He subsequently moved to Iowa City to attend the UI Theater Department as a graduate student in Directing, working on new plays from the Playwrights Workshop, and also directing Locomotives, a play about Leo Tolstoy by visiting alumnus Nicholas Meyer (known for his best-selling novel The Seven- Per-Cent Solution), in UI's E.C. Mabie Theatre.
Pat ultimately settled in Iowa City, marrying his partner, Kim Ewert and raising two amazing children: Callista, now 15, and Sebastian, 12. He worked as a Project Director for Pearson in Iowa City for many years before retiring in 2015.
It is difficult for his friends and family to describe the indelible impression he has left on them, and to accept that they will no longer hear his laugh, be privy to his insights, or be on the receiving end of his great kindness and generosity. He cared deeply about the environment – global warming, the bees, the oceans. He valued education and the preservation of the arts. He relished history, music, baseball, and organic food. He loved to engage with people. When someone needed a hand, you could count on Pat to raise his and show up. Above all, he took pride in his kids. The legacy he leaves behind is the passion with which he gave of himself to cultivate what was good and beautiful in life.
He is survived by his children, Callista and Sebastian; his ex-wife, Kim; his brothers, Michael Anthony “Tony” Robertson of Grand Prairie, and James Louell “Jim” Robertson of Dallas; nieces and nephews, Lisa McGlothlin, Carla Robbins, Brandon Robertson, Beth Murphy, and Ben Robertson; as well as the many, many friends around the country who now grieve his loss while remembering his fierce spirit, his humor and grace, and the great artistic inspiration he shared with us all.
A life celebration for Pat will be held on Saturday, October 26, 2019 from 6-8 pm at the Preucil School of Music Main Campus in downtown Iowa City. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Pat Robertson Family Education Fund for Callista and Sebastian. (c/o Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service; PO Box 167; Iowa City, Iowa 52244).
Lensing Funeral & Cremation Service
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