The CAST
BRIAN D’ARCY JAMES (James) was nominated for a TONY in 2009 for his performance of ‘Shrek’ in Shrek the Musical. He also won the Outer Critics Circle and the Drama Desk Award for that role.
Brian recently appeared in the feature film comedy Ghost Town with Ricky Gervais as ‘Irish Eddie’ a tattooed gangster. Brian has also appeared in the ABC series "Cashmere Mafia," and FX's "Rescue Me”. He recently co-created, co-produced and starred in an original made for TV improv comedy pilot called “Shiny People” about the unique world of corporate entertainment.
A Broadway veteran, Brian received a 2002 Tony nomination, a Drama Desk nomination, an Outer Critics Circle nomination and a Drama League Honor for his star turn as ‘Sidney Falco’ in Sweet Smell of Success. For his performances Off-Broadway, he received a 2000 Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Musical and a Drama League Award Nomination for The Wild Party at Manhattan Theatre Club. He also received a 2001 OBIE Award, Drama Desk Award nomination, Outer Critics Circle Nomination, Backstage Garland Award, and LA Weekly Award for his solo performance in Conor McPherson’s The Good Thief. He comments that his role as the unnamed narrator in this play is his most memorable role to date and plans to reprise that role in 2010 for the 10 year anniversary of Keen Company, the New York City theater company that originally produced the play and gave him the opportunity to star.
This past year, Brian received rave reviews for the Atlantic Theater Company’s production of Port Authority, his second Conor McPherson play. For his role, Brian was nominated for a Lucile Lortel award for Outstanding Lead Actor and a Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play for the 2009 season. He also co-starred in the Lucile Lortel nominated production of Next to Normal, at Second Stage Theater.
Brian started his illustrious career on Broadway when he appeared in Blood Brothers in 1993, taking over the lead role of ‘Mickey’ for a limited time before leaving to join Nicholas Hytner's acclaimed production of Carousel at Lincoln Center. He continued with strong performances in Titanic in the standout role of ‘Barrett the Stoker’, for which he received his first Drama League Nomination and a FANY Award. 2007 was a busy year on Broadway for Brian. He originated the role of ‘Brendan’ in Martin McDonagh's Tony and Drama Desk nominated play The Lieutenant of Inishmore, starred with Kristen Chenoweth, in the Roundabout Theatre Company’s revival of The Apple Tree, and starred with Keith Carradine in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels as the scene-stealing, crude con-man ‘Freddy Benson.’
He has appeared in the plays The Pavilion, Flight, Ancestral Voices at Lincoln Center and Public Enemy by Kenneth Branagh. He starred in the Encores production of Pardon My English, and appeared in the original companies of Floyd Collins for Playwrights Horizons and Irving Berlin's White Christmas in San Francisco, Boston and Los Angeles.
An outstanding overall performer, Brian has starred in numerous benefit concerts and performances around the world. Highlights include the original benefit concert of “Children and Art” in 2005, the "Kennedy Center Honors” in both 1997 and 2004 first honoring Charlton Heston and then "Hamlisch on Hamlisch." He has appeared at venues ranging from Los Angeles’ Disney Hall to Madison Square Garden with Barry Manilow; from the Boston Pops with Keith Lockhart to Dortmund Germany as well as numerous solo appearances at Carnegie Hall.
His numerous recordings include but are not limited to his 2004 debut Solo Album entitled "From Christmas Eve to Christmas Morn" (featuring his original popular holiday song “Michigan Christmas”), “Shrek the Musical,” “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas,” "Carousel," "Floyd Collins," "Myths and Hymns," "The Wild Party," "Sweet Smell of Success," "The Civil War," "Violet," "Dream True," "Maury Yeston Compilation Album," "The Steven Sondheim Album," "The Steven Schwartz Album." He can be heard along with numerous Broadway performers singing Alan Menken’s and Steven Schwart’s original songs in the Disney feature film “Enchanted.”
Brian d’Arcy James resides in New York City with his wife and daughter. He has supported and performed many times for an organization in his hometown of Saginaw, Michigan, called the Field Neurosciences Institute (FNI). The mission of the FNI is the prevention, early diagnosis, care and cure of neurological diseases, disorders and injuries.
