Ms. O'Connell was born in the South Bronx, New York. She was one of five children of Irish immigrants. This is documented in the book by her sister, Geraldine O'Connell Cusack, "Children of the Far-flung". After completing school, she was lead to studies at Erwin Piscator's New York Dramatic Workshop, and then Lee Strasberg's Actors' Studio. Miss O'Connell moved to Dublin, Ireland in her early twenties and set up a Stanislavski Method Studio at the Pocket Theatre. This began her lifelong training career of actors in Stanislavski's 'system' that she had learned from Strasberg in New York. In 1967 she founded the Focus Theatre near St. Stephens Green to continue in The Method. She was its artistic director, manager and fund-raiser. The actress also performed extensively in the Focus productions. In Dublin she was known as "the woman in black" because she always dressed in black clothes in her personal life. Many famous actors of Ireland and the U.S. got there start studing with Ms. O'Connell including Gabriel Byrne and Tom Hickey. In the summers of 1987 and 1988, she taught "the method" at the Amateur Drama League of Ireland summer program outside of Dublin. Deidre O'Connell was also a folk-singer and performed at the Newport Folk Festival. In June of 1965 she married Irish singer Luke Kelly, a founding member of the band The Dubliners. He preceded her in death in 1984. Ms. O'Connell died of cancer at age 61 at her home in Dublin and was buried at Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin.
Ms. O'Connell was born in the South Bronx, New York. She was one of five children of Irish immigrants. This is documented in the book by her sister, Geraldine O'Connell Cusack, "Children of the Far-flung". After completing school, she was lead to studies at Erwin Piscator's New York Dramatic Workshop, and then Lee Strasberg's Actors' Studio. Miss O'Connell moved to Dublin, Ireland in her early twenties and set up a Stanislavski Method Studio at the Pocket Theatre. This began her lifelong training career of actors in Stanislavski's 'system' that she had learned from Strasberg in New York. In 1967 she founded the Focus Theatre near St. Stephens Green to continue in The Method. She was its artistic director, manager and fund-raiser. The actress also performed extensively in the Focus productions. In Dublin she was known as "the woman in black" because she always dressed in black clothes in her personal life. Many famous actors of Ireland and the U.S. got there start studing with Ms. O'Connell including Gabriel Byrne and Tom Hickey. In the summers of 1987 and 1988, she taught "the method" at the Amateur Drama League of Ireland summer program outside of Dublin. Deidre O'Connell was also a folk-singer and performed at the Newport Folk Festival. In June of 1965 she married Irish singer Luke Kelly, a founding member of the band The Dubliners. He preceded her in death in 1984. Ms. O'Connell died of cancer at age 61 at her home in Dublin and was buried at Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin.
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