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Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!

By: Aug. 31, 2018
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Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  Image

Roundabout Theatre Company's premiere of Theresa Rebeck's Bernhardt/Hamlet, directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel, begins previews today! The company is led by international star Janet McTeer as "Sarah Bernhardt." She is joined by Dylan Baker as "Constant Coquelin" and Jason Butler Harner as "Edmond Rostand."

The cast also includes Matthew Saldivar as "Alphonse Mucha," Nick Westrate as "Maurice," Paxton Whitehead as "Louis," Ito Aghayere as "Rosamond," Brittany Bradford as "Lysette," Aaron Costa Ganis as "Raoul" and Triney Sandoval as "Francois."

Mark Twain wrote, "There are five kinds of actresses: bad actresses, fair actresses, good actresses, great actresses. And then there is Sarah Bernhardt." In 1899, the international stage celebrity set out to tackle her most ambitious role yet: Hamlet. Theresa Rebeck's new play rollicks with high comedy and human drama, set against the lavish Shakespearean production that could make or break Bernhardt's career. Janet McTeer brings the legendary leading lady to life.

Get to know the cast below as they begin Broadway performances!


Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageJanet McTeer (Sarah Bernhardt): Golden Globe, Tony and Olivier Award-winning actress Janet McTeer stars in not one but two Netflix original series this year. She is currently filming Ozark as a series regular, season two of which will premiere later this year, and she is starring opposite Krysten Ritter in season two of Marvel's Jessica Jones, which premiered March 8. Additionally, she will star in a lead role opposite Elizabeth Olsen in Sorry For Your Loss, a 10-episode half-hour dark comedy series for Facebook Watch. McTeer returned to Broadway in 2017, starring opposite Liev Schreiber in a revival of Christopher Hampton's Les Liaisons Dangereuses, directed by Josie Rourke. The production garnered acclaim, and an Olivier nomination for McTeer as Best Actress, under Rourke's direction at London's Donmar Warehouse, with McTeer starring opposite Dominic West. McTeer starred as 'Petruchio' in director Phyllida Lloyd's summer 2016 riotous all-female production of The Taming of the Shrew for New York's Shakespeare in the Park at the Delacorte Theater. It's her second time in the role, having first collaborated with Lloyd on a production at London's Globe Theatre in 2003. It is also her third collaboration with Lloyd, having starred in the director's Mary Stuart both in London and on Broadway. For the latter she received London's Olivier nomination Broadway's Drama Desk Award and a Tony nomination, all as Best Actress. One of the most respected stage actresses in the U.S and England, McTeer won the 1997 Olivier, Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Theatre World Award for Best Actress in a Play for her stunning portrayal of Nora in Ibsen's A Doll's House. That performance also marked her Broadway debut. Her prolific theater credits include the Broadway and West End runs of God of Carnage, The Duchess of Malfi, The Grace of Mary Traverse for The Royal Court Theatre and Uncle Vanya for the National Theater (both of which earned her Olivier Award nominations), Much Ado About Nothing in the West End and A Midsummer Night's Dream for the RSC. In 2000, McTeer received her first Oscar nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and won a Golden Globe Award, in director Gavin O'Connor's Tumbleweeds. In 2012 she was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for her starring role opposite Glenn Close in Albert Nobbs. Recent film credits include MGM's hit romantic drama Me Before You; actress Amber Tamblyn's directorial debut Paint it Black, which McTeer also Executive Produced and which premiered at the 2016 Los Angeles Film Festival; and opposite Lily James and Christopher Plummer in director David Leveaux's The Exception. Additional film credits include Disney's Maleficent, both Allegiant and Insurgent from the "Divergent" series, Angelica, Hannah Arendt, The Woman in Black, director Kenneth Branagh's As You Like It and director Maggie Greenwald's Songcatcher, For television, she starred opposite Maggie Gyllenhaal and Stephen Rea in Hugo Blick's 2014 Golden Globe-winning miniseries The Honourable Woman. McTeer received a Critic's Choice nomination for that performance. The same year she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the BBC One and Starz Television mini-series The White Queen. In 2010, McTeer was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe for her role as Clementine Churchill in Into the Storm, the HBO film on the life of Winston Churchill. Her additional television credits include the miniseries Five Days for the BBC and HBO, the miniseries ParadesEnd with Benedict Cumberbatch, also for the BBC and HBO, and the acclaimed FX legal thriller, Damages. Janet McTeer was born in Newcastle, England. She attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and upon graduating she began her acting career on stage by joining the Royal Exchange Theatre. She was awarded Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honours List for her services to drama. Photo: Shane Nelson.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageDylan Baker (Constant Coquelin): Broadway: The Front Page, The Audience, God of Carnage, November, Mauritius, La Bete (Tony and Drama Desk nominations), Eastern Standard(Theatre World Award). Off-Broadway: Peer Gynt, Sea of Tranquility, Homebody/Kabul, What the Butler Saw, That Championship Season, Pride's Crossing, Wolfman, The Common Pursuit, To Whom It May Concern, Not About Heroes (Obie Award), Tartuffe, Much Ado About Nothing and The Two Gentlemen of Verona (NYSF). Film: Misogynists, Miss Sloane, Anchorman 2, Selma, Franny, The Humbling, 2 Days in New York, Secretariat, Revolutionary Road, Trick 'R Treat, Across the Universe, The Hunting Party, Fido, Spider-Man 2 and 3, Hide & Seek, Head of State, Road to Perdition, Changing Lanes, Along Came a Spider, Thirteen Days, Happiness (Indy Spirit Award nomination), Disclosure, Delirious, Planes Trains & Automobiles, The Long Walk Home, The Cell, Requiem for a Dream. TV: "Homeland," "Little Women," HBO's "Confirmation," "Blindspot," "Difficult People," "The Americans," "I'm Dying Up Here," "The Mentalist," "Chicago Fire," "Chicago PD," "Political Animals," "Damages," "The Good Wife" (Three Emmy Award Nominations) "Turks and Caicos," "Kings," "Drive," "The Book of Daniel," "The Pitts!," "The Laramie Project," "From Earth To The Moon," "Feds," "Murder One." Feature Film Directorial Debut: 23 Blast.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageJason Butler Harner (Edmond Rostand): currently stars as Agent Roy Petty on the celebrated Netflix series "Ozark." He returns to Broadway having last been seen in Ivo van Hove's galvanizing revival of The Crucible. Harner also appeared as Ivan Turgenev, aging 45 years, in the multi-Tony award winning trilogy The Coast of Utopia by Tom Stoppard. He has previously appeared with the Roundabout in The Paris Letter and Juno and the Paycock, as well as in numerous Off-Broadway productions for which he has garnered an OBIE Award and multiple Drama Desk nominations. Memorable productions include The Village Bike (MCC), c*ck(The Duke), Hedda Gabler (New York Theatre Workshop), Through A Glass Darkly (Atlantic Theatre), The Ruby Sunrise (The Public), An Experiment With An Air Pump (MTC), Macbeth (The Public), Crimes Of The Heart (Second Stage), Observe The Sons Of Ulster (Lincoln Center), Five Flights(Rattlestick) and Orange Flower Water (Edge Theatre). He has appeared in the West End at The Donmar Warehouse in Lanford Wilson's Serenading Louis and across this country in The Glass Menagerie (with Sally Field at the Kennedy Center), the American premiere of The Invention Of Love (with James Cromwell at ACT), The Cherry Orchard (with Annette Bening, Alfred Molina, and Sarah Paulson at the Taper), Long Days Journey Into Night (ACT) and Hamlet (Dallas Theatre Center). Harner's major film debut came as Gordon Northcott Jr in Clint Eastwood's Oscar-nominated Changeling. Other film work includes Blackhat, Non-Stop, The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3, and The Extra Man. Independent films include Sundance favorite Letters From The Big Man (with Lily Rabe), The Green (for which he won many film festival awards), and The Family Fang, directed by Jason Bateman. On television, Harner returns in Season 2 of "Ozark" and has been seen recently in "High Maintenance," as well as in memorable arcs on "Ray Donovan," "Scandal," "Homeland," "The Blacklist" and "Betrayal." He was a series regular on JJ Abrams' "Alcatraz" and continues to be seen in the prophetic (and heavily shared gif) from the opening scene of Aaron Sorkin's "The Newsroom." He was born in the small town of Elmira, NY, was raised by his father in the Virginia suburbs of Washington DC, and now splits time between beloved New York City and Los Angeles.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageMatthew Saldivar (Alphonse Mucha): This past year Matthew Saldivar appeared in Sam Gold's Hamlet at The Public Theater and on Broadway in both Junk at Lincoln Center (dir. Doug Hughes) and Saint Joan at MTC (dir. Daniel Sullivan). Other Broadway credits include James Lapine's Act One at Lincoln Center, the character of Black Stache in Peter and The Starcatcher(dir. Roger Rees and Alex Timbers), Honeymoon in Vegas with Tony Danza (Gary Griffin dir.), A Streetcar Named Desire (Emily Mann dir.) and Kenicke in Grease (Kathleen Marshall dir.). He made his Broadway debut originating the role of Sammy in The Wedding Singer (John Rando dir.). Other credits include: South Pacific (Luther Billis in the Lincoln Center Theater First National Tour, Bartlett Sher dir.), Hadestown at New York Theater Workshop (Rachel Chavkin dir.), The Royal Family (Rachel Chavkin dir.) Daphne's Dive (Thomas Kail dir.), All In The Timing(John Rando dir.), The Toxic Avenger Musical (John Rando dir.) Randy Newman's Harps and Angels (Jerry Zaks dir.), Architecture of Loss (Chay Yew dir.), Much Ado About Nothing (Ethan McSweeny dir.) Sea of Tranquility (Neil Pepe dir.) and Working (Christopher Ashley dir.). This autumn he will appear as the recurring character Gordy on Tony Danza's new Netflix series "The Good Cop." He earned a BA and an MA at Middlebury College and an MFA at the NYU Graduate Acting Program. He is pleased to be collaborating again with director Moritz von Stuelpnagel after working together previously on Important Hats of the 20th Century at Manhattan Theater Club.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageNick Westrate (Maurice): Broadway: Casa Valentina, A Moon for the Misbegotten. Off-Broadway: Tribes, A Delicate Ship, Galileo, Love's Labor's Lost, Unnatural Acts, The Little Foxes, The Boys in the Band (Drama Desk nomination). Regional: Yale, McCarter, Huntington, Barrington, CalShakes. TV: 3 seasons as Robert Townsend on AMC's "Turn: Washington's Spies," also has appeared on "Blindspot," "The Tick," "Quantico," "Person of Interest," "Blue Bloods," "Mildred Pierce," "Hatfield's & McCoys," and "New Amsterdam." Upcoming TV: "The American Guest" for HBO. Film: Ricki & the Flash (dir. Jonathan Demme). Nick was the recipient of the 2012 special Drama Desk Award for his performances that season Off-Broadway, he is a New York Theatre Workshop Usual Suspect, a Juilliard graduate, founding member of the Fair Wage Onstage movement and proud member of Actors' Equity Association. This performance is for Karen Walsh.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImagePaxton Whitehead (Louis): Roundabout: The Importance of Being Earnest. Broadway: Absurd Person Singular, My Fair Lady, Lettice and Lovage, A Little Hotel on the Side, Artist Descending a Staircase, Run For Your Wife, Noises Off, Camelot, Crucifer of Blood, Habeas Corpus, Beyond the Fringe 1964, Beyond the Fringe, Candida, The Affair. Off Broadway: The Heir Apparent, The Harlequin Studies, London Suite, Suite in Two Keys, One Way Pendulum, Gallows Humour. London's West End: Heartbreak House. Associate Artist Old Globe San Diego: roles include The Miser, Sir Anthony Absolute. Richard III, Sir Peter Teazle, Benedict, Malvolio. Artistic Director The Shaw Festival, Canada 1967- 1977: Sergius, Lord Summerhays, King Magnus, Adolphus Cousins, Hector Hushabye, The Philanderer, General Burgoyne, Charley's Aunt and Ronnie Gamble in Thark. Directed: The Circle, Misalliance, Getting Married, Forty Years On etc. Regional: Many Ayckbourn plays in Westport. Los Angeles: How the Other Half Loves, What the Bulter Saw, Woman in Mind, Pirates of Penzance. Also Chicago, Philadelphia, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Toronto, Costa Mesa among others, not to mention most of Florida. Film: Kate and Leopold, Back to School, Boris and Natasha, Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Television: "West Wing," "Friends," "Frasier," "Mad About You," "Ellen," "Dinosaurs," the series "Marblehead Manor" and the films Tales from the Hollywood Hills, An Inconvenient Woman, Hale the Hero, Trick of the Eye.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageIto Aghayere (Rosamond): made her Broadway debut originating the role of Jacqueline Blount in Ayad Akhtar's Tony Award nominated Junk (LCT). She is a 2016 Lucille Lortel Award nominee for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play for her work in Danai Gurira's critically acclaimed play Familiar (Playwrights Horizons). Select off Broadway credits include Lynn Nottage's Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards nominated Mlima's Tale (Public); The Liquid Plain (Signature Theatre); Three Days To See (New York Theatre Workshop/Transport Group); The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing, Macbeth (Classic Stage Company). Film: Logan Lucky with Hilary Swank and Channing Tatum. TV: "Instinct," "Blacklist," "Elementary," "Doubt," "Master Of None," "Braindead," "The Knick," "Orange Is The New Black," "Unforgettable," "Forever." Education: MFA, Columbia University; BA, Duke University. Instagram: @itoaghayere.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageBrittany Bradford (Lysette): NYC/Regional credits: For Colored Girls (Public Theater); Flyin' West (Westport Country Playhouse); Family Resemblance (Eugene O'Neill); The Profane and Taming of the Shrew (Chautauqua Theater Company); Midsummer Night's Dream (Ten Thousand Things Theatre); Neighbors, Avenue Q, and Next to Normal (Mixed Blood Theatre); Ragtime and Stick Fly (Park Square Theatre). Brittany graduated in May from Juilliard, where her credits included Father Comes Home From The Wars, Hoodoo Love, Triumph of Love, King Lear, Cymbeline, Christina Martinez, and Marriage of Bette and Boo. Co-Founder of HomeBase Theatre Collective. www.brittany-bradford.com

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageAaron Costa Ganis (Raoul): has worked in theatrically in New York at the LAByrinth Theater Company and Second Stage, regionally at Williamstown Theatre Festival, Berkshire Theatre Group, and internationally at the Oxford Playhouse, the Old Fire Station, and the Burton-Taylor Theater as a member of the Oxford University Dramatic Society. Aaron can be seen in the films Lazy Eye, Monsters and Men (Neon), Set It Up (Netflix), Blood, Sand, and Gold, and Straight Outta Tompkins, and the upcoming indie First Love. TV credits include "Jessica Jones" (Netflix), "Odd Mom Out" (Bravo), "House of Cards" (Netflix), "American Odyssey" (NBC), "Unforgettable" (CBS) and "Fridays" (Super Deluxe). He has also written and directed the upcoming film Health to the King. Aaron wishes to dedicate this show to his mother and father, June and Rick, who always encouraged empathy and galvanized a love of art and civics in him, leaving him terribly poor but forever curious. Black Lives Matter. Immigrant Rights are Human Rights. Believe Her. Never Again. Aaron hails from New Hampshire and was trained at NYU's Graduate Acting Program, and studied at Brandeis and Oxford University.

Meet the Cast of Theatrical Tale BERNHARDT/HAMLET- Now in Previews!  ImageTriney Sandoval (Francois): Broadway: Marvin's Room, Macbeth, A Free Man of Color, A Man for All Seasons, Frost/Nixon. Other New York theatre: Timon of Athens, The Idiot, Elliot, a Soldier's Fugue, As you Like it, Whisper. Regional: La Jolla Playhouse, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, The Old Globe Theatre, The Wilma Theatre, Denver Theatre Center, Round House Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The ALLIANCE THEATRE, Two Rivers Theatre Company, Virginia Stage Company, Baltimore Center Stage, Yale Rep., Milwaukee Rep., Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Great Lakes Shakespeare, Idaho Shakespeare, Alabama Shakespeare, California Shakespeare, Shakespeare Santa Cruz, and six seasons with The Oregon Shakespeare Festival. TV: The Blacklist, Elementary, The Sopranos, Lights Out, One Life to Live, All My Children and recurring roles on both Law & Order and Law & Order; SVU.

Photo Credit: Jenny Anderson




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