George Rae | |
---|---|
Born | Ayrshire, Scotland | 23 November 1978
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2002 - present |
George Hamilton Rae (born 23 November 1978, Ayrshire, Scotland) is a Scottish professional actor best known for his portrayal of Otto Kringelein in the 2015 London revival of the musical Grand Hotel. [1]
Rae was born in Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland and attended Ayr Academy. He continued his education at Iain Tomlin School of Music at Edinburgh Napier University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Music Degree, followed by the Royal Academy of Music, London, where he graduated with a Postgraduate Diploma (Distinction) in Musical Theatre and the Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music as a Singing Teacher.
Rae made his West End debut in 2003 starring in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat at London's New London Theatre alongside Stephen Gately from the Irish boyband Boyzone.
Following Joseph, Rae performed in several productions at Scotland’s Pitlochry Festival Theatre where he was awarded the prestigious Leon Sinden Award in 2010 [2] for his portrayal as Tim in Noises Off. He also created the role of George Campbell in the theatre’s first musical production, Whisky Galore a Musical! (2009). [3]
In 2013 Rae embarked on the UK & Ireland tour of The Lion King in the role of Timon, including the Irish premiere of the show. [4] Following this, he performed the role of Otto Kringelein in the 2015 London revival of Grand Hotel for which he was nominated for three Best Actor awards, including an Off West End Theatre Award or 'Offie' nomination, [5] and was subsequently featured in theatre critic Mark Shenton’s 2017 list of the ten best men in UK musical theatre. [6]
In 2018 Rae made his solo cabaret debut at New York City’s 54 Below. [7] [8]
Grand Hotel is a 1932 American pre-Code drama film directed by Edmund Goulding and produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The screenplay by William A. Drake is based on the 1930 play by Drake, who had adapted it from the 1929 novel Menschen im Hotel by Vicki Baum. To date, it is the only film to have won the Academy Award for Best Picture without being nominated in any other category.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly; their first collaboration, The Likes of Us, written in 1965, was not performed until 2005. Its family-friendly retelling of Joseph, familiar themes, and catchy music have resulted in numerous stagings. According to the owner of the copyright, the Really Useful Group, by 2008 more than 20,000 schools and amateur theatre groups had staged productions.
Peter Blake was a Scottish actor. Probably best known as the character Kirk St Moritz in the BBC sitcom Dear John, by John Sullivan, his other high-profile moments came through his playing of a 'Fonz'-type character in Pepsi-Cola commercials which led to a hit record in 1977 "Lipsmackin' Rock 'n' Rollin", Andy Evol the disc-jockey in Agony with Maureen Lipman for LWT and in an episode of Taggart as Sgt. Bill Kent. He also had a long association with The Rocky Horror Show playing Frank-N-Furter over a thousand times between 1975 and 1994.
Pitlochry is a town in the Perth and Kinross council area of Scotland, lying on the River Tummel. It is historically in the county of Perthshire, and has a population of 2,776, according to the 2011 census.
Whisky Galore is a novel written by the Scottish author Compton Mackenzie. It was published in 1947. It was adapted for the cinema under the title Whisky Galore!. The book has sold several million copies and has been reprinted several times.
Rona Munro is a Scottish writer. She has written plays for theatre, radio, and television. Her film work includes Ken Loach's Ladybird, Ladybird (1994), Oranges and Sunshine (2010) for Jim Loach and Aimée & Jaguar (1999), co-authored by German director Max Färberböck. Munro is the second cousin of Scottish author Angus MacVicar.
The Lion King is a stage musical with music by Elton John, lyrics by Tim Rice, and a book by Roger Allers and Irene Mecchi, with additional music and lyrics by Lebo M, Mark Mancina, Jay Rifkin, Julie Taymor, and Hans Zimmer. It is based on the 1994 Walt Disney Animation Studios' film of the same name. Directed by Taymor, the musical features actors in animal costumes as well as giant, hollow puppets. The show is produced by Disney Theatrical Productions.
Nick Winston is an English director and choreographer working in theatre, opera and film.
Whisky Galore! is a 1949 British comedy film produced by Ealing Studios, starring Basil Radford, Bruce Seton, Joan Greenwood and Gordon Jackson. It was the directorial debut of Alexander Mackendrick; the screenplay was by Compton Mackenzie, an adaptation of his 1947 novel Whisky Galore, and Angus MacPhail. The story—based on a true event, the running aground of the SS Politician—concerns a shipwreck off a fictional Scottish island, the inhabitants of which have run out of whisky because of wartime rationing. The islanders find out the ship is carrying 50,000 cases of whisky, some of which they salvage, against the opposition of the local Customs and Excise men.
Rockets Galore! is a 1957 British comedy film directed by Michael Relph and starring Jeannie Carson, Donald Sinden and Roland Culver. The sequel to Whisky Galore!, it was much less successful than its predecessor.
James Gillan is a Scottish stage actor born in Glasgow, and trained at The Arts Educational Schools in London.
Enda Walsh is an Irish playwright.
Barry James is an English theatre actor and singer.
Mark Fredric Baker was an American actor. He was best known for the title role in Harold Prince's revival of Candide, for which he received a Tony Award nomination, and his portrayal of Otto Kringelein in the international tour of Grand Hotel.
The Lion King is a Disney media franchise comprising a film series and additional media. The success of animated original 1994 American feature film, The Lion King, directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, led to a direct-to-video sequel and prequel, a live-action remake in 2019, a television film sequel, two spin-off television series, three educational shorts, several video games, merchandise, and the third-longest-running musical in Broadway history, which garnered six Tony Awards including Best Musical. The franchise is one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time. The franchise as a whole has EGOT-ed, meaning it has won the four biggest awards of American show business.
Anna-Jane Casey is an English singer, dancer and actress best known for her work in musical theatre.
Matt Henry is a Laurence Olivier Award-winning British singer and actor.
Fifty-Nine Productions is a design studio with offices located in London and New York City.
Anthony Lyn is a Welsh theatrical director and actor, originally from Swansea in South Wales. During his early life, he performed in numerous shows at the Grand Theatre in Swansea. As an actor he appeared in London's West End and toured nationally.
Rae Smith is a British set and costume designer who has worked frequently in theatre and Live Art. Her designs can be seen in the Opera Rigoletto which received a South Bank Sky Arts Award as did ‘’[Uncle Vanya ] film and West End Production in 2022. Saint Joan, an Obie Award for Oliver Twist and an Irish Times award for An Ideal Husband. Smith was nominated for Laurence Olivier Awards for The Light Princess, Uncle Vanya and Rosmersholm. Her work on the set of War Horse received particular praise and she received an Olivier, Tony, Evening Standard, Toronto Critics and Drama Desk Special Award. Smith has also worked on several operas and ballets.