Clayton Corzatte, Fairhope native and well-known theatre actor, died April 6 at the age of 86 at his home in Seattle, Wash.

Corzatte spent most of his 60-year acting career in New York and then Seattle, earning a nomination for a Tony award and winning an Obie award along the way.

Corzatte, son of William and Grace Corzatte, graduated from Fairhope High School in 1945. While in Fairhope, he was a member of the Fairhope Little Theatre, precursor to Theatre 98.

After serving two years in the Navy in WWII, Corzatte attended the University of Alabama, originally planning to pursue a career in radio broadcasting. He fell in love with theatre instead.

In the late 1950s, Corzatte landed his first major Broadway role in a production of Shakespeare's “Twelfth Night.” He was cast as Sebastian, the long lost twin of Viola, played by Katharine Hepburn.

In 1967, he was nominated for a Tony Award as best supporting or featured actor for his role as Charles Surface in “The School for Scandal.” He won an Obie award in 1962 for his Off-Broadway performance as Constantin in “The Seagull.”

After his time in New York, Corzatte and his wife Susan moved to Seattle, where they have lived for more than 40 years. In Seattle, he appeared in a wide variety of well-received plays in addition to teaching acting classes and directing. He especially enjoyed roles in Shakespeare plays. While most of his work was in theatre, Corzatte also had roles in several television movies.

He continued performing well into his 80s, telling people he would never stop acting until his death, his sister Bobbie Hughes remembered.

“He didn't care (about being famous) — he just wanted to act,” Hughes said.

About two years ago, Corzatte was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS), which forced him to leave the stage.

Although Corzatte left Fairhope in the late 1950s, he returned to his hometown periodically to visit family and to promote the arts in the area, said Mary Lois Adshead, founder of the Jubilee Fish Theatre.

“When I was in high school, he came back to visit his family, and while he was home, he did a one-man show in the high school auditorium,” Adshead said. “I had just never seen anything like it, and I was astonished. He transported this little high school kid, and after that I wanted to be in theatre. He was an inspiration to a lot of people who lived in Fairhope those days. He was a wonderful artist.”

In the early 90s, Corzatte and his wife Susan, also an accomplished actress, returned to Fairhope to help promote the Jubilee Fish Theater with a performance of several scenes from different shows, Adshead said.

“He was very helpful as that venture was getting started,” she said. “He was a delightful personality and very knowledgable about theatre. He was very accessible to people like me who were just getting started.”

Pagan Sheldon Mosher, whose family was close to Corzatte, said she and her husband Dean traveled to Seattle once to see him perform.

“To watch Clayton was just magic,” she said. “He became more than just the writing and the character in a way. It just became very real. It wasn't just like watching theatre — it was like watching someone's life. He was such a master at his craft. Fairhope should be very proud.”

He is survived by his wife, Susan; their two children, Christopher and Felicity Katharine; one grandchild, Kayla; and a sister, Fairhope resident Bobbie Corzatte Hughes.

Hughes said there will be a celebration of Corzatte's life held in Fairhope, to be announced at a later date.