Born at Railway Street, Stevenage
Mother: Ellen Terry (1847-1928)
1883-1886 Southfield Park School, Tunbridge Wells
Visits United States on tour with Ellen Terry and Henry Irving. Makes first speaking appearance on stage in Eugene Aram
Bradfield College.
Godwin, Craig's father, dies. Craig had not seen him since age 4.
Heidelberg College, Heidelberg.
Southfield Park School, Tunbridge Wells, as a private student.
Joins Henry Irving’s company in London as an actor
“my first style” – draws design for a stage setting of Friar Lawrence’s Cell, in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
Begins to take an interest in the art of woodcutting
Marries May Gibson
They go on to have four children: Rosemary, Robert, Philip, Peter
Starts making woodcuts and producing and selling prints
Publishes The Page magazine
Begins an affair with Jess Dorynne
They go on to have one daughter, Kitty
Publishes Gordon Craig’s Book of Penny Toys
Publishes book of Ellen Terry and Henry Irving lithographs
Between 1900 and 1903 Craig designed his productions of The Masque of Love, Acis and Galatea and Bethlehem in London
He directs Dido and Aeneas in London, with Martin Shaw as musical director
Meets Elena Meo in London
They go on to have two children: Ellen (Nellie) and Edward (Teddy)
Publishes a booklet, Bookplates
Dido and Aeneas is staged again
Directs The Masque of Love at the Coronet Theatre, London
Stops publishing The Page
Directs Acis and Galatea at the Great Queen St. Theatre, London.
Directs Bethlehem at the Imperial Institute, London
Designs Act 1 Scene 1 and the last scene for For Sword and Song at Shaftesbury Theatre, London
Directs The Vikings in London
Directs Much Ado About Nothing in London
Designs scenes for Venice Preserved for the Lessing Theatre in the Weimar Republic (Germany)
Leaves for Berlin, Lessing Theater.
Meets Isadora Duncan (1827–1927) and together they have a child in 1906: Deirdre
Designs and cuts five scenes for The White Fan for the Lessing Theatre in the Weimar Republic
Venice Preserved is produced in Berlin
Publishes On the Art of the Theatre
This book was first published in German and then in English, Dutch, Russian
Republished throughout his life
Directs Rosmersholm at the Pergola Theatre in Florence
Publishes Isadora Duncan designs/drawings Six Movement Designs
Publishes A Note on Rosmersholm
Craig conceives of the Über Marionette
Craig creates his first Black Figures and model theatre
Between 1907 and 1909 he has an intense period of creating woodcuts
Agrees to direct Hamlet at the Moscow Arts Theatre
Spends the years 1908-1912 doing preparatory work for Hamlet and takes several trips to Moscow
Secures the lease on the Arena Goldoni, Florence, which he uses as a workshop/studio. Find the arena Goldoni
Begins his visits to Moscow which continue on and off until after Hamlet in 1913. Ellen Terry Archive
Publishes The Mask Volume 1 – the first international theatre journal
The Mask is published continually in some fashion until 1929
Publishes the essays The Actor and the Über Marionette and The Artists of the Theatre of the Future
Publishes A Portfolio of Etchings
Designs four shows for WB Yeats at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin: Plays for an Irish Theatre, Deirdre, The Hour Glass, and On Baile’s Strand
Makes some thirty to forty sketches for the Moscow production of Hamlet
Craig designs a set of Screens for the Abbey Theatre, Dublin
Craig applies for a patent for ‘Improvements in Stage Scenery’
January: Abbey Theatre implements the above designs in their theatre season and use Craig’s Screens for the first time
September: an Exhibition of Craig’s woodcuts for Macbeth along with some of his other projects happens at the Leicester Galleries
Craig is giving daily showings of his large model stage and the principles of the Screens in London
Craig is at the Arena Goldoni in Florence experimenting with making and working with marionettes
Death of his daughter Deirdre (with Isadora Duncan) at the age of seven
He opens the School for the Art of the Theatre at the Arena Goldoni
He begins to explore marionette making and performance
Publishes Towards a New Theatre
Designs the model for St. Matthew Passion at the Arena Goldoni, Florence
Arena Goldoni closes in August, the day after England declares war on Germany.
Craig writes several marionette plays
He moves to Rapallo near Genoa until 1925
His son, David Lees (with Dorothy Nevile Lees) born in September
Publishes The Marionette Volume 1
There are twelve volumes of The Marionette published in total over this year
Published The Theatre Advancing first in Boston
Designs his famous woodcut for the storm scene in King Lear
The Theatre Advancing is published in London
Puppets and Poets published in London
Is instrumental in having the International Exhibition of Theatre Art and Craft transferred to the Victoria & Albert museum and then on to Manchester, Glasgow and Bradford (1922- 1923
Invited to the International Exhibition of Theatre Art and Craft in Amsterdam
Scene published featuring designs made 1907-1910
Exhibition of his woodcuts in London with the King Lear storm scene model as a central part of the exhibit
Published Woodcuts and Some Words
Goes to Denmark to direct Ibsen’s The Crown Pretenders for the Poulsen brothers in Copenhagen
Exhibition of a large collection of Craig’s woodcuts in Amsterdam
Goes to Weimar Republic where Count Kessler is printing a version of Hamlet for which he is providing woodcut illustrations.
Exhibition in London of Craig’s designs for The Pretenders
Craig makes the designs for an American production of Macbeth
Meets Daphne Woodward in London, she becomes his secretary and helps with the Henry Irving book
Hamlet published by Cranach Press in the Weimar Republic (Germany) with woodcuts by Craig
The Mask stops being published
Craig’s Hamlet designs shown at the Galerie Flechtheim in Berlin
Publishes his book Henry Irving
The English edition of Hamlet with Craig’s woodcuts is published
The Pretenders book of Craig’s designs from the 1926 production published
Publishes Ellen Terry and Her Secret Self
Craig has a daughter Daphne (‘Two Two’) with Daphne Woodward.
Moves to Paris
Appointment to the distinction of Royal Designers for Industry
Along with Charles Dullin, Jacques Copeau, Jouvet, Gaston Baty and Jacques Rouche, founds the French Syndicat National des Metteurs en Scène (National Union of Directors)
Craig moves to the south of France finally settling in Vence in 1952
Makes a series of recordings/talks for the BBC
Craig is made a Companion of Honour by Queen Elizabeth II for services to the theatre.
Publishes Index to the Story of My Days, Craig’s autobiography 1872-1907
Craig dies at the age of 94 in Vence, France
