Maria Penelope Katharine Aitken is an English theatre director, teacher, actress and writer. Aitken was born in Dublin, the daughter of Sir William Aitken, a Conservative MP, and Penelope Aitken, whose father was John Maffey, 1st Baron Rugby. She is a great-niece of newspaper magnate and war-time minister Lord Beaverbrook. She attended Sherborne School for Girls in Dorset and St Anne's College, Oxford, where she graduated with an M.A. in English Language and Literature. She has directed several plays in the West End and on Broadway. Her production of THE 39 STEPS, which is still running in... London after 5 years, played 3 years on Broadway and won Olivier and Tony Awards. In 2011 she directed Frank Langella in MAN AND BOY on Broadway. She is a Visiting Lecturer at Yale, NYU and Juilliard drama schools. Her extensive acting career includes leading roles at the Royal National Theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company and in the West End. She has played more Noel Coward leads than any actress. She was nominated for a BAFTA award for her performance in A FISH CALLED WANDA.
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