Sheila Livingston

Sheila Livingston
June 30,1929 to Oct. 5, 2022.
Sheila Livingston passed away peacefully at home at age 93 surrounded by family. She is preceded in death by her beloved husband, Kenneth Livingston; her loving parents, Ben and Fanny Permack; her brother, David Permack and her sister, Barbara Rifkin. She is survived by daughters, Franci, Sandy (Martin Friedman), Robin Livingston-Richter (Sam Richter); and grandchildren, Kate, Alex, Maddie, Kameron, and Hallie. She is also survived by many loving cousins, nieces, and nephews across the United States and Canada.
Sheila had a magical presence. She believed in the gifts of each person she met and inspired people to live out their passions and dreams. There was no one more encouraging or more loving or who delighted more in the accomplishments of others. She lit up a room with her radiance, her smile, and her magnetism.
Her family was her center and her joy. She had an amazing 48-year marriage with Ken with whom she raised three daughters and created a home filled with boundless love that celebrated education, art, Jewish tradition, conversation, kindness, and commitment to community.
Franci, Sandy and Robin grew up nourished by her unconditional love, inherent goodness, and constant enthusiasm and pride. Her daughters have each said that being Sheila's daughter is the greatest honor they could have. She was devoted both to her immediate family and her extended family, traveling regularly on the overnight train to Winnipeg to visit and to celebrate simchas. She had a special bond with her sister, Barbara, and brother, David, and their children and the time with them was filled with laughter and stories. She loved her visits to Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario, to see her cousins and Ken's family.
Sheila also had a cherished family in the theater. She didn't see her first play until the age of 20 when she and Ken went to see Tyrone Guthrie's Richard III at the Stratford Festival in Ontario. She was entranced-and the experience became the prelude to her own life in the theater.
After Sheila and Ken moved to Minneapolis, she learned of Guthrie's plan to build a new theater in the city. Sheila became a volunteer with the Guthrie Theater's "Stagehands" and began her more than 50-year run at the theater. She joined the staff in 1971 and through the years created what are now renowned education programs from scratch, built cherished relationships with artists around the country, and infused both the Guthrie and the theater community with her spirit, heart and soul. Her love of the Guthrie became a family affair-with her daughters and Ken becoming staunch theatergoers and supporters of Sheila's work. Their home was filled with costume sketches from Guthrie productions.
Sheila's first mission at the Guthrie and the one always closest to her heart, was to bring students from across Minnesota to the Guthrie to experience the joy of live theater. She established relationships with hundreds of theater teachers, arranged transportation, and secured funding for tickets. She was thrilled by Wednesday afternoons at the theater when she greeted students as the school buses arrived for matinee performances and she could hear the excited chatter as young people filled the multi-colored seats. She was gratified to know that so many people in the state had become theatergoers as a result of attending their first play through the school program.
At the same time she created a wide range of activities for people of all ages, including tours, post-play discussions with actors and other artists, and audience workshops. She wanted to open the theater's doors to welcome everyone. She was a natural speechmaker who could captivate an audience. Sheila also was a theater adventurer leading Guthrie travel groups to experience theater in Ireland, England, Budapest and across Europe.
In 1998, the Guthrie established The Kenneth and Sheila Livingston Education Fund-and gave Sheila the opportunity to select its projects. She proudly created the Shakespeare Classic to enable adults to bring a child to the Guthrie at a reduced price and expose them to a Shakespeare play. More than 20 years since its founding, the Classic is a beloved annual tradition that draws audiences from several states.
Sheila was widely heralded for her work and was honored to receive the Ordway Theater's Sally Ordway Irvine Award in Education in 2004 and the Ivey Award for Lifetime Achievement from the theater community in 2007.
As her family grew, Sheila loved bringing her five grandchildren to the theater and watched with endless love and excitement as they grew into teens and adults with their own talents and passions for improving their corners of the world. They all have loved their precious time with Nana.
Sheila was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and grew up in a small town in Saskatchewan, Canada, attending school in a one-room schoolhouse. She heard Shakespeare read to the older students in the classroom which stimulated her lifelong love for theater. Her mother, Fanny died at a young age, and the family's life was never the same. Sheila cherished the relationship she had with her father Ben for decades to come.
From early childhood, Sheila loved sports and listened to football on the radio. She loved the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and then switched her allegiance to the Minnesota Vikings when she moved to Minneapolis. Sheila was thrilled to co-chair the entertainment committee when the Super Bowl came to Minneapolis in 1992. Growing up, she had wanted to be a football announcer and later became a play-by-play announcer in the privacy of her home.
The family wishes to thank the staff at The Kenwood Retirement Community including Jenny, Karen, Connie, Anna, Cheryl, and Kris. They thank Home Instead including Jessica and Deanna and Sheila's wonderful long-time caregivers, Janice and Kristina.
Funeral services at 2:00pm on Sunday, Oct. 9 at Temple Israel, 2323 Fremont Avenue South in Minneapolis. Masks required for the service. Burial immediately following. Those wishing to participate by zoom should email zoom2@hodroffepstein.com. Shiva on Tuesday, Oct. 11 at Temple Israel at 7:00pm.
Donations preferred to the Kenneth and Sheila Livingston Education Fund at the Guthrie Theater.