Jack Birkett

Jack Birkett (11 June 1934 – 10 May 2010) was a British dancer, mime artist, actor, and singer born in Leeds, England. His mother came from a Romani family, and his father left the household when Birkett was six years old. He attended Coldcotes School in Gipton until the age of fourteen, during which time he developed a strong interest in ballet. Before entering the professional entertainment world, he worked as an art model for David Hockney and others. His stage career began in 1950 at the Grand Theatre in Leeds, where he worked as a stagehand and lighting technician. He subsequently moved to London, performing as a dancer and singer in touring productions and musicals, among them the UK tour of Oklahoma! in 1952.

Birkett made his West End debut in Bye Bye Birdie in 1961. His most enduring professional relationship was with director and performer Lindsay Kemp, whom he first met in 1956 when both were attending ballet classes with Marie Rambert at the Mercury Theatre in Notting Hill Gate. Birkett became a central member of the Lindsay Kemp Dance Mime Company, participating in its earliest performances in 1965, which culminated in the production Illuminations. While working with Kemp in Italy in 1966, Birkett began losing his sight. Despite pursuing various treatments, including surgery and bee-stings, he became entirely blind. He continued performing nonetheless, and much of his most recognized work was carried out after losing his sight completely. He was frequently billed under the stage name Orlando, or The Incredible Orlando.

Birkett played the role of Blackbird in Kemp's production Flowers, a piece based on Jean Genet's Our Lady of the Flowers. The production transferred from London to Broadway in 1974, marking Birkett's sole Broadway credit. He continued to tour internationally with Kemp's company through the late 1980s.

Beyond his stage work, Birkett appeared in several film and television productions, most notably in the films of director Derek Jarman. He portrayed Borgia Ginz in Jarman's Jubilee in 1978, Caliban in Jarman's adaptation of The Tempest in 1979, and the Pope in Jarman's Caravaggio in 1986. He also appeared in Jarman's The Garden in 1990 as Pontius. On television, he played Thersites in Jonathan Miller's production of Troilus and Cressida in 1981, part of the BBC Television Shakespeare series, delivering his lines in the manner of a drag queen. His film work extended to Spanish productions as well, including El vent de l'illa in 1988 and El niño de la luna in 1989.

In his later years, Birkett retired from performing and lived first in Barcelona and then in London. He studied shiatsu and was supported by his long-time partner Nyako Nakar, a Spanish writer and artist. Birkett died in London on 10 May 2010 at the age of seventy-five.