Originally appeared on E! Online
The theater community is mourning a tragic loss.
Julien Arnold — a Canadian stage actor who founded the Shakespeare theater company Free Will Players — died on Nov. 24 after having a medical emergency during a performance of "A Christmas Carol" at Edmonton's Citadel Theatre. He was 60.
While the specifics of his medical issue have not been disclosed, paramedics arrived at the theater around 8:28 p.m. and performed multiple resuscitation attempts on Arnold — who was playing the roles of Marley, Mr. Fezziwig, Banjo and a part of the ensemble in the production — before he was pronounced dead at the location, Alberta Health Services spokesperson Kerry Williamson told CBC News Nov. 26.
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In light of his passing, the theater announced that it would be modifying the remaining dates of its "A Christmas Carol" play, which is scheduled to run until Dec. 24, to allow the cast and crew time to grieve Arnold's death.
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Arnold — who grew up in Edmonton and studied at the University of Alberta — had a decades-long career in theater, performing in plays such as "The Taming of the Shrew," "The Wizard of Oz", "Twelfth Night" and "Sense and Sensibility." In addition to taking the stage for companies including Citadel Theatre, Northern Light Theatre and Workshop West Theatre, he was a founding member of the theater company Free Will Players, which produced Edmonton's annual Freewill Shakespeare Festival.
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Following his passing, Citadel Theatre's executive director Jessie van Rijn and artistic director Daryl Cloran shared a heartwarming message about Arnold's impact on the acting community.
"His presence brought joy, heart and depth to every role," they said in a statement to CBC News Nov. 26, "and his artistic contributions — and big hugs — will be deeply missed."
Rijn and Cloran continued, "We are asking for some privacy and patience as we turn our attention to supporting family members, the Christmas Carol company, staff and patrons at this time."
