Bryan Batt
Encyclopedia
Bryan Batt is an American
actor
best known for his role in the AMC series Mad Men
as Salvatore Romano, an art director for the Sterling Cooper agency. Primarily a theater actor, he has had a number of starring roles in movies and television as well. His performance in the musical adaptation
of Saturday Night Fever
earned him one of New York City's more unusual honors, a caricature at Sardi's.
, the son of Gayle Batt, an amateur actress and dancer and civic activist. His family founded and ran the Pontchartrain Beach
amusement park
. He attended and graduated from Isidore Newman School
, a preparatory school in New Orleans, and Tulane University
. Although Batt played a closeted character in Mad Men
, the actor himself is openly gay. He has played gay roles on film (Jeffrey
and Kiss Me, Guido
) and stage (La Cage aux Folles). In 2005, Batt told Playbill
that he used to worry about the effect of coming out on his career:
Bryan Batt lives with his partner, Tom Cianfichi, an events planner. Batt and Cianfichi have been together more than 21 years; they met while performing Evita in Akron, Ohio
. Batt was playing Che, and Cianfichi was the understudy for Magaldi. Batt and Cianfichi own a home decor and furnishings store, Hazelnut, on Magazine Street in New Orleans. In 2010 Batt published a memoir about his mother entitled She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother; she died in December 2010.
, 2010), ISBN 9780307588852
"Big, Easy Style" (Clarkson Potter\Pubishers, 2011), ISBN 978-0-307-59190-6
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
best known for his role in the AMC series Mad Men
Mad Men
Mad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...
as Salvatore Romano, an art director for the Sterling Cooper agency. Primarily a theater actor, he has had a number of starring roles in movies and television as well. His performance in the musical adaptation
Saturday Night Fever (musical)
This is an article about the stage musical. For the article on the 1977 film, see Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever is a musical with a book by Nan Knighton and music and lyrics by the Bee Gees.Based on Nik Cohn's 1975 New York Magazine article "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night" and...
of Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever is a 1977 drama film directed by John Badham and starring: John Travolta as Tony Manero, an immature young man whose weekends are spent visiting a local Brooklyn discothèque; Karen Lynn Gorney as his dance partner and eventual friend; and Donna Pescow as Tony's former dance...
earned him one of New York City's more unusual honors, a caricature at Sardi's.
Personal life
Batt was born in New Orleans, LouisianaNew Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, the son of Gayle Batt, an amateur actress and dancer and civic activist. His family founded and ran the Pontchartrain Beach
Pontchartrain Beach
Pontchartrain Beach was an amusement park located in New Orleans, Louisiana, on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain. It was founded by Harry J. Batt Sr. and later mananged by his son, Harry J. Batt Jr. It opened in 1928, across Bayou St. John from an existing amusement resort at Old Spanish Fort...
amusement park
Amusement park
thumb|Cinderella Castle in [[Magic Kingdom]], [[Disney World]]Amusement and theme parks are terms for a group of entertainment attractions and rides and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people...
. He attended and graduated from Isidore Newman School
Isidore Newman School
Isidore Newman School is a private, nondenominational, co-educational college preparatory school located on an campus in the Uptown section of New Orleans, Louisiana.-History:...
, a preparatory school in New Orleans, and Tulane University
Tulane University
Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...
. Although Batt played a closeted character in Mad Men
Mad Men
Mad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...
, the actor himself is openly gay. He has played gay roles on film (Jeffrey
Jeffrey (film)
Jeffrey is a 1995 American gay romantic comedy directed by Christopher Ashley. It is based on a play by Paul Rudnick, who also wrote the screenplay.Starring Steven Weber as Jeffrey and Michael T...
and Kiss Me, Guido
Kiss Me, Guido
Kiss Me, Guido is a 1997 independent film comedy. Written and directed by Tony Vitale, it stars Nick Scotti, Anthony Barrile, Anthony DeSando and Craig Chester.-Synopsis:...
) and stage (La Cage aux Folles). In 2005, Batt told Playbill
Playbill
Playbill is a monthly U.S. magazine for theatregoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most Playbills are printed for particular shows to be distributed at the door...
that he used to worry about the effect of coming out on his career:
- When I played the lead in Sunset Blvd.Sunset Boulevard (musical)Sunset Boulevard is a musical with book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Based on the 1950 film of the same title, the plot revolves around Norma Desmond, a faded star of the silent screen era, living in the past in her decaying mansion on the...
, the movie of JeffreyJeffrey (film)Jeffrey is a 1995 American gay romantic comedy directed by Christopher Ashley. It is based on a play by Paul Rudnick, who also wrote the screenplay.Starring Steven Weber as Jeffrey and Michael T...
was coming out, and I was petrified. Back then, every agent told you that if you want to play a straight role, you don’t come out. This was before Ellen [DeGeneresEllen DeGeneresEllen Lee DeGeneres is an American stand-up comedienne, television host and actress. She hosts the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and was also a judge on American Idol for one year, having joined the show in its ninth season....
] came out. But now I couldn't give a rat’s ass. It’s normal to be gay.
Bryan Batt lives with his partner, Tom Cianfichi, an events planner. Batt and Cianfichi have been together more than 21 years; they met while performing Evita in Akron, Ohio
Akron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
. Batt was playing Che, and Cianfichi was the understudy for Magaldi. Batt and Cianfichi own a home decor and furnishings store, Hazelnut, on Magazine Street in New Orleans. In 2010 Batt published a memoir about his mother entitled She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother; she died in December 2010.
Film
- JeffreyJeffrey (film)Jeffrey is a 1995 American gay romantic comedy directed by Christopher Ashley. It is based on a play by Paul Rudnick, who also wrote the screenplay.Starring Steven Weber as Jeffrey and Michael T...
- Darius (Workin' Man Films 1995) - Kiss Me, GuidoKiss Me, GuidoKiss Me, Guido is a 1997 independent film comedy. Written and directed by Tony Vitale, it stars Nick Scotti, Anthony Barrile, Anthony DeSando and Craig Chester.-Synopsis:...
- Tino (Sundance 1997) - Funny PeopleFunny PeopleFunny People is a 2009 American comedy-drama film written, co-produced and directed by Judd Apatow, and starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, and Leslie Mann. The film was released on 31 July 2009 in North America, and on 28 August 2009 in the United Kingdom. Funny People uses considerably more...
- George Simmons' Agent (2009)
Theater
- Broadway
- La Cage aux Folles - standby Albin (Marquis Theatre)
- Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast (musical)Beauty and the Beast is a musical with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice and a book by Linda Woolverton, based on the 1991 Disney film of the same name. Seven new songs were written for the stage musical...
- Lumiere (Lunt-Fontanne Theatre) - SeussicalSeussicalis a musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty based on the books of Dr. Seuss that debuted on Broadway in 2000. The play's story is a rather complex amalgamation of many of Seuss's most famous books. After a Broadway run, the production spawned two US national tours and a UK tour...
- Alternate Cat in the Hat (Richard Rodgers Theatre, Colonial Theatre, Boston tryout) - Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever (musical)This is an article about the stage musical. For the article on the 1977 film, see Saturday Night FeverSaturday Night Fever is a musical with a book by Nan Knighton and music and lyrics by the Bee Gees.Based on Nik Cohn's 1975 New York Magazine article "Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night" and...
- Monty (Minskoff Theatre) - The Scarlet PimpernelThe Scarlet Pimpernel (musical)The Scarlet Pimpernel is a musical with music by Frank Wildhorn and lyrics and book by Nan Knighton, based on the novel of the same name by Baroness Orczy. The show is set in England and France during the Reign of Terror of the French Revolution...
- standby Percy/Pimpernel (Minskoff Theatre) - Sunset BoulevardSunset Boulevard (musical)Sunset Boulevard is a musical with book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Based on the 1950 film of the same title, the plot revolves around Norma Desmond, a faded star of the silent screen era, living in the past in her decaying mansion on the...
- u/s Joe Gillis/Ensemble (Minskoff Theatre) - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatJoseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatJoseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story is based on the "coat of many colors" story of Joseph from the Hebrew Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly...
- Reuben, u/s Pharaoh (Minskoff Theatre) - CatsCats (musical)Cats is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot...
- MunkustrapMunkustrapMunkustrap is a Jellicle cat, named in T. S. Eliot's poem "The Naming of Cats". He is a principal character in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Cats.-The musical:...
(Winter Garden Theatre) - Starlight ExpressStarlight ExpressStarlight Express is a rock musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber , Richard Stilgoe and Arlene Phillips , with later revisions by Don Black and David Yazbek . The story follows a child's dream in which his toy train set comes to life; famously the actors perform wearing roller skates...
- Rocky I/Greaseball (Gershwin Theatre)
- Off-Broadway
- Forbidden Broadway Cleans Up Its ActForbidden Broadway Cleans Up Its ActForbidden Broadway Cleans Up Its Act is the fifth incarnation of Gerard Alessandrini's Forbidden Broadway, his popular off-Broadway musical revue spoofing "the best of Broadway". All the parody lyrics were written by Gerard Alessandrini. This version was co-directed by Mr. Alessandrini and his...
(OBC Recording, nominated for Drama Desk Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical) - Forbidden Broadway Strikes BackForbidden Broadway Strikes BackForbidden Broadway Strikes Back! is a version of Forbidden Broadway created by Gerard Alessandrini. It Previewed Thursday September 5, 1996 and Opened at the Triad Theater Wednesday October 16, 1996. It later moved to the basement of Ellen's Stardust Diner and, as is the show's tradition, spoofed...
! - Various (Triad Theater, New Original Cast, OBC Recording) - Jeffrey - Darius (Minetta Lane,WPA/Christopher Ashley)
- Too Many Girls - Al (ELT)
- The Golden Apple - Patroclus (York Theater)
- Give My Regards to Broadway (Carnegie Hall/David Bell)
- I Love New York (Rainbow and Stars - Bistro Award, OBC Recording)
- Forbidden Broadway Cleans Up Its Act
- Los Angeles
- Jeffrey - Darius ( Westwood Playhouse) LA Drama-Logue Award
- Regional
- Evita - Che (Carousel Dinner Theater)
- GreaseGrease (musical)Grease is a 1971 musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey. The musical is named for the 1950s United States working-class youth subculture known as the greasers. The musical, set in 1959 at fictional Rydell High School , follows ten working-class teenagers as they navigate the complexities of love,...
- Kenicke (Darien Dinner Theater) - Trixie True: Teen Detective - Dick Dickerson (Boston Post Road Stage Co.)
- Romeo & Juliet - Paris (New Orleans Center Stage)
- The Lover - John (New Orleans Center Stage)
- Action - Jeep (New Orleans Center Stage)
Television
- Mad MenMad MenMad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...
(AMC)- Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Nominated 2007. Won 2008, 2009. - Guess Who's Coming to Decorate (Style)
- Rescue MeRescue Me (TV series)Rescue Me is an American television drama series that premiered on the FX Network on July 21, 2004, and concluded on September 7, 2011. The series focuses on the professional and personal lives of a group of New York City firefighters in the fictitious Ladder 62 / Engine 99 firehouse.The show...
(FX) - Guiding LightGuiding LightGuiding Light is an American daytime television drama that is credited by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest running drama in television and radio history, running from 1937 until 2009...
(CBS) - Law & Order: Criminal IntentLaw & Order: Criminal IntentLaw & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...
(NBC) - The Cosby ShowThe Cosby ShowThe Cosby Show is an American television situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, which aired for eight seasons on NBC from September 20, 1984 until April 30, 1992...
(NBC) - Pulp Comics Special featuring Caroline Rhea (Comedy Central)
- As the World TurnsAs the World TurnsAs the World Turns is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS from April 2, 1956 to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created As the World Turns as a sister show to her other soap opera Guiding Light...
(CBS) - Ugly BettyUgly BettyUgly Betty is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which premiered on ABC on September 28, 2006, and ended on April 14, 2010. The series revolves around the character Betty Suarez and is based on Fernando Gaitán's Colombian telenovela soap opera Yo soy Betty, la fea...
(ABC) - Spencer ("The Past Presents the FutureThe Past Presents the Future (Ugly Betty)"The Past Presents the Future" is the nineteenth and penultimate episode of the fourth season of the American comedy-drama series, Ugly Betty, and the 84th episode overall...
")
Book
She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother: A Memoir (Random HouseRandom House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
, 2010), ISBN 9780307588852
"Big, Easy Style" (Clarkson Potter\Pubishers, 2011), ISBN 978-0-307-59190-6