Robert Westenberg (born October 26, 1953) is an American stage actor and singer, acting teacher, and professor. He received a Tony Award nomination for his performance in the original Broadway cast of Into the Woods.
Robert Westenberg | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 26, 1953 |
| Other names | Bob Westenberg |
| Education | Bullard High School California State University, Fresno |
| Alma mater | National Theatre Conservatory |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Known for | Into the Woods Sunday in the Park with George The Secret Garden |
| Spouse | Kim Crosby (m. 1991) |
| Children | 3 |
He appeared on Broadway in Sunday in the Park with George (as the title role), Les Misérables (as Inspector Javert), Into the Woods (as The Big Bad Wolf and Cinderella’s Prince), The Secret Garden (as Dr. Neville Craven), as well as several other musicals. In 2024, he returned to performing in the United States national tour of A Beautiful Noise.
He was the musical theatre coordinator and associate professor in the theatre and dance department at Missouri State University and now serves as a lecturer of Musical Theatre at the University of Colorado Boulder.
Early life and education
editBorn in Miami Beach, Florida, but raised in Fresno, California, with his six siblings. Westenberg graduated Bullard High School in 1971, where he was active in sports, specifically football. He then attended California State University, Fresno.[1][2]
Westenberg received a master's degree from Denver’s National Theatre Conservatory.[3]
Career
editBroadway
editHe made his Broadway debut in the 1983 revival of Zorba as Nikos, for which he won the Theatre World Award.[4]
He played the dual role of a Soldier/Alex and understudied Mandy Patinkin in Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George which opened in May 1984. He later took over Patinkin's leading roles of Georges Seurat/George where he played opposite Bernadette Peters in September of that year and played the role until April 1985.[5]
He received a Tony Award nomination and won a Drama Desk Award for his performance as Cinderella's Prince and the Wolf in Sondheim's Into the Woods (1987).[6] It was during this show where he met his wife, Kim Crosby, who played Cinderella.[7]
In 1990, he starred as Inspector Javert in Les Misérables opposite Craig Schulman as Jean Valjean.[8]
In 1991, he starred as Dr. Neville Craven in the original Broadway production of The Secret Garden playing opposite Patinkin again along with Daisy Eagan, Alison Fraser and Rebecca Luker.[9] In 2020, Westenberg directed the same production at Missouri State University, where he served as the head of the Musical Theatre department until joining the Musical Theatre faculty at the University of Colorado Boulder in 2023. [10] [11]
In 1995, he was featured as Harry in the Broadway revival of Company. Two years later he portrayed Lyman Hall in the revival of 1776.
Other
editIn 1981, Westenberg played Norman Mushari in Kurt Vonnegut’s God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater at Arena Stage.
In 1994 and 2001, Westenberg starred as Scrooge’s nephew Fred in the musical adaptation of A Christmas Carol in Madison Square Garden.
In 1996, Westenberg was in the US National tour of Funny Girl as Nick Arnstein opposite Debbie Gibson as Fanny Brice. It ended prematurely in November 1996 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.[12][13][14][15][16]
In 2002, Westenberg was in the US and Japan tour of The Full Monty.[17]
Westenberg has been in several MUNY (St. Louis) productions. He played Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady in 2001 opposite his wife, Kim Crosby, as Eliza Doolittle.[18]
He played the roles of both Mr. Darling and Captain Hook in the July 2007 St. Louis MUNY production of Peter Pan.[19] He reprised these roles in a 2009 production in Branson, Missouri, with Cathy Rigby as Peter Pan.[20] In 2012, he directed a production of Les Misérables at Springfield Little Theatre.
Westenberg is currently starring as the older Neil Diamond in the 2024 national tour of A Beautiful Noise.[21]
Television and film
editWestenberg's film credits include Mr. and Mrs. Bridge and The Ice Storm. He has made guest appearances on Third Watch, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and the short-lived series Aliens in the Family. He played Prince Raymond on the soap opera, One Life to Live from 1989-90.[1]
He reprised his roles of a Soldier/Alex and the Wolf/Cinderella’s Prince in the American Playhouse episodes of Sunday in the Park with George and Into the Woods.
Stage credits
edit| Show | Role(s) | Year(s) | Production |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bye Bye Birdie | Conrad Birdie | 1975 | Good Company Players[22] |
| Minnie's Boys | Herbert “Zeppo” Marx | ||
| Carousel | Billy Bigelow | 1976 | |
| Sweet Charity | Vittorio Vidal | 1977 | |
| God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater | Norman Mushari | 1981 | Arena Stage |
| Henry IV, Part 1 | Vintner / Vernon / Ensemble | Delacorte Theatre in Central Park | |
| The Death of Von Richthofen As Witnessed From Earth | R. Raymond-Barker | 1982 | Off-Broadway |
| Hamlet | Laertes | 1982-1983[23] | |
| Zorba | Nikos | 1983 | National tour |
| Original Broadway Revival cast | |||
| Sunday in the Park with George | A Soldier / Alex
u/s Georges Seurat / George |
1984 | Original Broadway cast |
| Georges Seurat / George | 1984-1985 | Broadway replacement | |
| Into the Woods | The Wolf / Cinderella's Prince | 1987-1989 | Original Broadway cast |
| She Loves Me | Georg Nowack | 1990 | Berkshire Theatre Festival |
| Les Misérables | Inspector Javert | Broadway replacement | |
| The Secret Garden | Dr. Neville Craven | 1991 | Original Broadway cast |
| Gay Divorce | Guy | 1993 | Concert |
| Abe Lincoln in Illinois | Ninian Edwards | 1993-1994 | Original Broadway Revival cast |
| Three Birds Alighting on a Field | Auctioneer / David / Constantin / Ahmet | 1994 | Off-Broadway |
| The King and I | The King of Siam | The Muny | |
| A Christmas Carol | Fred Anderson | The Theater at Madison Square Garden | |
| I Sent a Letter to My Love | Stan | 1995 | Off-Broadway |
| Company | Harry | Original Broadway Revival cast | |
| Funny Girl | Nick Arnstein | 1996 | US National tour |
| Violet | Preacher / Bus Driver 1 / Radio Singer / Bus Driver 4 | 1997 | Off-Broadway |
| 1776 | Dr. Lyman Hall | Original Broadway Revival cast | |
| Macbeth | Macduff | 1998 | Denver Center Theatre Company |
| Travels with My Aunt | Henry Pulling / Wordsworth / Col. Hakim, Hatty | ||
| A Christmas Carol | Charles Dickens / Ghost of Christmas Past | American Conservatory Theater | |
| 1776 | John Adams | 1999 | The Muny |
| The Sound of Music | Captain Georg von Trapp | 2000 | |
| A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum | Marcus Lycus | ||
| Art | Marc | 2001 | Old Globe Theatre |
| My Fair Lady | Professor Henry Higgins | The Muny | |
| A Christmas Carol | Fred Anderson | The Theater at Madison Square Garden | |
| The Full Monty | Harold Nichols | 2002-2004 | International tour |
| The Sound of Music | Captain Georg von Trapp | 2005 | The Muny |
| Oliver! | Mr. Brownlow | 2006 | |
| Peter Pan | Captain Hook / Mr. Darling | 2007 | |
| My Fair Lady | Professor Henry Higgins | 2008 | |
| Peter Pan | Captain Hook / Mr. Darling | 2009 | Branson, Missouri |
| Les Misérables | Director | 2012 | Springfield Little Theatre |
| A Little Night Music | 2017 | Missouri State University | |
| Pippin | |||
| Amélie | 2018 | ||
| The Secret Garden | 2020 | ||
| Brigadoon | 2021 | ||
| Titanic | 2024 | University of Colorado Boulder | |
| A Beautiful Noise | Neil Diamond (Now) | 2024-2025 | US National Tour |
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Bearskin, or The Man Who Didn't Wash for Seven Years | Bearskin | Short film |
| 1990 | Mr. & Mrs. Bridge | Ruth's Boyfriend | |
| 1995 | The Stars Fell on Henrietta | Mr. Rumsfelk | |
| 1996 | Before and After | Journalist #1 | |
| 1997 | The Ice Storm | Rob Halford |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | American Playhouse | A Soldier / Alex | Episode: "Sunday in the Park With George" |
| 1989-1990 | One Life to Live | Prince Raymond Hohenstein | Recurring role |
| 1991 | American Playhouse | The Wolf / Cinderella's Prince | Episode: "Into the Woods" |
| 1996 | Swift Justice | Leo | Episode: "Where Were You in '72?" |
| C.P.W. | Episode: "Out On Bail" | ||
| Aliens in the Family | High Elder Prissy | Episode: "Respect Your Elders" | |
| 2001 | Third Watch | Dr. Gambetti | Episode: "Unfinished Business" |
| Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Col. Marsden | Episode: "Manhunt" |
Personal life
editHe married actress and singer Kim Crosby on June 19, 1991, and the couple now have three children, Emily, Katie, and Joel.[24]
Westenberg and Crosby currently reside in Longmont, Colorado, where Westenberg serves as a lecturer in Musical Theatre in the College of Music at the University of Colorado Boulder. He was previously the chair of the theatre program at Drury University and coordinator of the musical theatre program at Missouri State University.[3][25][26][1] [10]
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Work | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Zorba | Theatre World Award | Won | |
| 1988 | Into the Woods | Tony Award | Best Featured Actor In A Musical | Nominated |
| Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Featured Actor In A Musical | Won | ||
References
edit- ^ a b c "Robert Westenberg Bio" masterworksbroadway.com, accessed July 2016
- ^ Rawson, Christopher. "Stage Preview: 'Medea' brings top-class, hard-working actor to the bad-guy role of Jason" post-gazette.com, September 28, 2001
- ^ a b "Award-winning actor to lead MSU’s musical theatre program" missouristate.edu, February 1, 2016
- ^ " Zorba, Broadway 1983" Playbill (vault), accessed July 27, 2016
- ^ " Sunday in the Park with George Broadway 1984" Playbill (vault), accessed July 27, 2016
- ^ " Into the Woods Broadway 1987" Playbill (vault), accessed July 27, 2016
- ^ Culwell, Logan. "Did They Finish the Hat? Where Are the Stars of 'Sunday in the Park with George' Now?" Playbill, May 12, 2015
- ^ "Les Misérables Broadway: Robert Westenberg". www.broadwaylesmis.com.
- ^ " The Secret Garden Broadway 1991" Playbill (vault), accessed July 27, 2016
- ^ a b [1] CU Boulder College of Music Faculty
- ^ Culwell-Block, Logan (September 16, 2020). "Robert Westenberg Returns to the 'Prophetic' Secret Garden Amid Coronavirus Pandemic". Playbill. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
- ^ "'Funny Girl' tour, 1996". deb.org. Retrieved January 28, 2010.
- ^ "Just Don't Call Her Debbie: For Deborah Gibson, anything is still possible". Rolling Stone. February 10, 1997. Archived from the original on October 14, 2008.
- ^ Jones, Chris (February 17–23, 1997). "Off Season: Tourers Hitting Road Blocks". Variety. p. 73.
- ^ Weiskind, Ron (October 3, 1996). "'Funny Girl' Opts For Laughs Over Depth". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. F8.
- ^ Lefkowitz, David (November 26, 1996). "Debbie Gibson Funny Girl Tour Cancels 1996 Engagements". Playbill. Retrieved April 25, 2022.
- ^ Ehren, Christine. " 'Full Monty' 's Westenberg, Woods Bare All for Boston, DC, San Fran, Japan", Playbill, March 22, 2002
- ^ "2002 Interview with Robert Westenberg" talkinbroadway.com
- ^ Gans, Andrew. "He's Flying: Francis Jue Is 'Peter Pan' at the Muny Beginning July 16" Playbill, July 16, 2007
- ^ Cantrell, Rachel. "Cathy Rigby as Peter Pan" branson.com, May 15, 2009
- ^ "Cast Complete for National Tour of A Beautiful Noise, Starring Nick Fradiani".
- ^ "Westenberg GCP".
- ^ "Hamlet". www.iobdb.com.
- ^ "DIVA TALK: Chatting with Follies' Kim Crosby Plus Victor Victoria (Piazza's Clark, that is) | Playbill".
- ^ " 'INTO THE WOODS' Tony Nominee Robert Westenberg Joins MSU Faculty" broadwayworld.com, February 2, 2016
- ^ Gordon, David. "5 Facts We Learned About 'Into the Woods' During the Original-Cast Reunion" theatermania.com, June 22, 2015
