Behind the Characters

Bernadette Peters was born February 28, 1948 in Queens, New York.  Her name is very familiar to the stages of theater.  She graced the stages of original Broadway productions such as the character Dot, in “Sunday in the Park with George”, Mabel Normand in “Mack and Mabel” and the Witch “Into the Woods.”  The character of the Witch from “Into the Woods” made a huge impact on me from watching it in class this past semester. Bernadette Peters once was giving a two minute long standing ovation which is one of the longest standing ovations in Tony History.  Her talents have let her to win two Tony Awards for “Song and Dance” and “Annie Get Your Gun.” Her success even made it possible for her to be on the recognized on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Live Theater.   

 Anthony Dean Rapp was born on October 26, 1917.  He is an American stage and film director and singer who made his name known to the world of Broadway by playing the role of Mark Cohen of "Rent."  Anthony Rapp made his first performance on Broadway during the production of "The Little Prince and the Aviator," which is a musical based on Antoine de Saint-Expuery’s novel.  He has been in many theater productions "Your’re a Good Man, Charlie" in 1999, "Nocturne" in 2001,  "Little Shop of Horrors" in 2004 and many many more.  His experiences with theater have led him to do other projects that include television and Filmography.  

 

Mary Testa was born June 4 1955.  She is an American stage actress that has won two Tony Awards for her performances in Leonard Berstein’s " On the Town" in 1988 and 42^nd Street in 2001.  She had made her debut to Broadway as the character Miss Goldberg, in the musical In "Trousers." She later came back to Broadway in the summer of 2007 in the musical theater remake of the film Xanadu.  For her role in this performance she was awarded with a nomination of a Drama Desk Award.  She has collaborated with some of the best in the theater industry, William Finn, Michael LaChiusa, Stephen Sondheim, and Leonard Bernstien to name a few.  Mary Testas’ latest project she is involved with playing the character of Roz in the 9 to 5 national tour.