Michael Benz

Last updated

Michael Benz
Born1981or1982(age 41–42)
England
Education Georgetown University
Royal Academy of Dramatic Art
OccupationActor

Michael Benz (born 1981or1982) [1] is an English-American actor. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Benz was born in England to American parents Thomas and Margaret Benz. [3] He attended The American School in London before graduating from Georgetown University in 2004 and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London in 2007. [4]

Career

Benz was cast as Mike in the popular British sci-fi TV sitcom Mike and Angelo . Benz participated in six series of the program and appears in 60 episodes. Benz has also provided voice work for the British-American animated adventure comedy film We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story . Benz also appeared as the title character in the BBC 6-part miniseries Little Lord Fauntleroy , based on the English children's novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and adapted by Julian Fellowes. Upon graduation from RADA, Benz made his professional stage debut in the Shakespeare's Globe production of The Winter's Tale playing Paulina and the Young Shepherd. [5] Also for Shakespeare's Globe, Benz appeared in Love's Labour's Lost , As You Like It , and the world premiere production of A New World: A Life of Thomas Paine . [6] In the summer of 2012, Benz played the title role in the Globe's production of Hamlet , directed by artistic director Dominic Dromgoole and Bill Buckhurst. [7] During the fall of 2012, the production toured the United States and Benz was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor at the Helen Hayes Awards in Washington, DC. [8] Benz made his West End theatre debut in 2011 playing Horatio in Trevor Nunn's production of Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket. [9] Benz worked with Nunn again later that year, playing Ferdinand opposite Ralph Fiennes' Prospero, in The Tempest also at Theatre Royal, Haymarket. [10] Other stage appearances by Benz include Lee Baum in Arthur Miller's The American Clock [11] and Christopher in the premiere of Oohrah! by Bekah Brunstetter, [12] both at the Finborough Theatre; Simon Bliss in Noël Coward's Hay Fever at the West Yorkshire Playhouse; [13] and Balthasar in Romeo & Juliet for the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC). [14] Benz was a guest player in the season four Christmas Special of Downton Abbey that was broadcast on 25 December 2013 in the UK (season 4, episode 9 in the US). Benz played Ethan, the American valet to guest star Paul Giamatti's character Harold Levinson.[ citation needed ] In 2019, Benz played a Wall Street executive in the thriller Joker , in which his character is harassing Arthur on the Subway.

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNotes
1993 We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story Voice role
2009Sam and Jenny Go to a PlayOld SageShort
2010 'As You Like It' at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre Silvius
The Newest Pledge Futuristic Party Go-er
2012City SlackerWell Presented Man
2015 The Importance of Being Earnest LIVE John Worthing
2016 Snowden CIA Student
2017 The Wife White
2019 Joker Wall Street Three
2020 Greyhound Lieutenant Carling

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1993-1998 Mike and Angelo Mike MasonSeries regular
1994 The Tomorrow People VinnyEpisode: "The Monsoon Man"
1995 Little Lord Fauntleroy Cedric ErrolMini-series
2013 Downton Abbey Ethan SladeEpisode: "The London Season"
2017 Time After Time SmytheEpisode: "Pilot"
2021 For All Mankind Gary Piscotty7 episodes

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenneth Branagh</span> British actor and filmmaker (born 1960)

Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh is a British actor and filmmaker. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Reading, Berkshire, Branagh trained at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and has served as its president since 2015. His accolades include an Academy Award, four BAFTAs, two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and an Olivier Award. He was appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 2012 Birthday Honours, and was given Freedom of the City in his native Belfast in 2018. In 2020, he was ranked in 20th place on The Irish Times' list of Ireland's greatest film actors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Shakespeare Company</span> British theatre company

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratford-upon-Avon, and on tour across the UK and internationally.

Sir Trevor Robert Nunn is an English theatre director. He has been the artistic director for the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre, and, currently, the Theatre Royal Haymarket. He has directed dramas for the stage, like Macbeth, as well as opera and musicals, such as Cats (1981) and Les Misérables (1985).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theatre Royal Haymarket</span> West-End theatre in London, England

The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre on Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use. Samuel Foote acquired the lease in 1747, and in 1766 he gained a royal patent to play legitimate drama in the summer months. The original building was a little further north in the same street. It has been at its current location since 1821, when it was redesigned by John Nash. It is a Grade I listed building, with a seating capacity of 888. The freehold of the theatre is owned by the Crown Estate.

Imogen Stubbs is an English actress and writer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominic Dromgoole</span> British theatre director and writer

Dominic Dromgoole is an English theatre director and writer about the theatre who has recently begun to work in film. He lives in Hackney with his three daughters and partner Sasha Hails.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Burke (actor)</span> English actor

Tom Burke is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Athos in the 2014–2016 BBC series The Musketeers, Dolokhov in the 2016 BBC literary-adaptation miniseries War & Peace, the eponymous character Cormoran Strike in the BBC series Strike and Orson Welles in the 2020 film Mank.

Clive Wood is a British actor, known for his television roles in Press Gang (1989–93), The Bill (1990), London's Burning (1996–99), and as King Henry I in The Pillars of the Earth (2010). His stage roles include playing Stephano in The Tempest at Shakespeare's Globe (2011) and Antony in Antony and Cleopatra at the Haymarket (2014). His film appearances include The Innocent (1985), Buster (1988) and Suffragette (2015).

Mariah Gale is a British actress of film, stage and television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Camargo</span> American actor (born 1971)

Christian Camargo is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Brian Moser in the Showtime drama Dexter, Michael Corrigan in the Netflix drama House of Cards, and Eleazar in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Parts 1 and 2.

Thelma Holt is a British theatre producer and former actress.

Jack Laskey is an English actor best known for his theatre work and his role as DS Jakes in the ITV drama series Endeavour. He is the third son of Michael Laskey, a poet. Laskey trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shakespeare in performance</span> Performances of William Shakespeares plays

Thousands of performances of William Shakespeare's plays have been staged since the end of the 16th century. While Shakespeare was alive, many of his greatest plays were performed by the Lord Chamberlain's Men and King's Men acting companies at the Globe and Blackfriars Theatres. Among the actors of these original performances were Richard Burbage, Richard Cowley, and William Kempe.

The Ian Charleson Awards are theatrical awards that reward the best classical stage performances in Britain by actors under age 30. The awards are named in memory of the renowned British actor Ian Charleson, and are run by the Sunday Times newspaper and the National Theatre. The awards were established in 1990 after Charleson's death, and have been awarded annually since then. Sunday Times theatre critic John Peter (1938–2020) initiated the creation of the awards, particularly in memory of Charleson's extraordinary Hamlet, which he had performed shortly before his death. Recipients receive a cash prize, as do runners-up and third-place winners.

Synetic Theater is a non-profit physical theater company located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It performs at the Crystal City Theatre in Arlington Virginia. Since its formation its productions have received numerous awards.

Sarah Woodward is a British actress. Olivier Award winner 1998 for ‘Tom & Clem’ & Tony Nominated in 2000 for ‘The Real Thing’. Sarah is the daughter of actor Edward Woodward and his first wife, actress Venetia Barrett, sister of actor Tim Woodward, and actor, voice artist, and screenwriter Peter Woodward, and sister to actress Emily Woodward, whose mother is actress Michele Dotrice. Sarah is married to actor Patrick Toomey. They have two daughters and live in London. Her elder daughter is the singer/songwriter Girli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gdańsk Shakespeare Festival</span>

Gdańsk Shakespeare Festival is an international theatre festival devoted to the idea of the Elizabethan theatre, and especially to the works of William Shakespeare. The event was first organized in 1993, on the initiative of Theatrum Gedanense Foundation, which had been created by Professor Jerzy Limon and Władysław Zawistowski, with Charles, Prince of Wales as its patron. Its original name, "Gdańsk Shakespeare Days" was transformed into "Gdańsk Shakespeare Festival" in 1997, during the celebration of Gdańsk's millennium.

Michelle Terry is an Olivier Award–winning English actress and writer, known for her extensive work for Shakespeare's Globe, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre, as well as her television work, notably writing and starring in the Sky One television series The Café. Terry took up the role of artistic director at Shakespeare's Globe in April 2018.

Philip Donaghy is a British actor who in a four-decade career has appeared in television, film and on stage. Donaghy who is best known by his stage name of Pip Donaghy trained at the London Drama Centre. He is a former member of the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liam Gerrard</span> British actor and voiceover artist

Liam Gerrard is a British-Irish film, television and theatre actor. He is also an acclaimed voice-over artist and audiobook narrator. He is best known for his BAFTA-nominated work: Walter Tull: Britain's First Black Officer, Peterloo and Coronation Street. To date he has narrated over 100 audiobooks.

References

  1. Isherwood, Charles (4 October 2012). "Yes, a Blended Family Can Be a Pain, but That Danish Prince Tries His Best". The New York Times . Retrieved 2 December 2022. At 30, Mr. Benz is one of the youngest actors I've seen in the role...
  2. Marks, Peter (23 August 2012). "At Folger, 'Hamlet' will be a homecoming for Georgetown grad Michael Benz". The Washington Post . Retrieved 2 April 2022. When Anglo American actor Michael Benz was 12...
  3. "Georgetown Alumnus Reaches Shakespearian Heights—Georgetown University". Georgetown University. 25 October 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  4. "Michael Benz—RADA". Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
  5. "The Winter's Tale / Shakespeare's Globe". Shakespearesglobe.com. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  6. "Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, Bankside, Southwark, London / Shakespeare's Globe". Shakespearesglobe.com. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  7. "Hamlet / Shakespeare's Globe". Shakespearesglobe.com. Archived from the original on 26 September 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  8. "The Washington Post". Articles.washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on 19 April 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  9. "» Trevor Nunn Season 2011 – 2012". Trh.co.uk. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  10. Michael Billington. "The Tempest – review | Stage". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  11. "The American Clock - Productions 2012". Finborough Theatre. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  12. "Finborough Theatre". Finborough Theatre. 6 April 2009. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  13. Clare Brennan. "Hay Fever | Theatre review | Stage | The Observer". Theguardian.com. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  14. "Romeo and Juliet · British Universities Film & Video Council". Bufvc.ac.uk. Retrieved 4 January 2014.