MEET DANNY ROTHMAN
Ensemble and Judge Turpin understudy, Sweeney Todd

At the Theatre Company: Debut. Other theatres: The Old Globe, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Goodspeed Musicals, Signature Theatre, St. Louis Repertory Theatre, Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma, York Theatre Company, Fulton Theatre, Stages St. Louis, Stamford Center for the Arts, The MUNY, K.C. Starlight, Pittsburgh CLO, Hangar Theatre among others and has been featured in multiple concerts at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall. Received a Drammy Award for his performance in Portland Center Stage’s production of Ragtime.
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• Hometown: St. Louis
• Training: BFA, Carnegie Mellon University
• Website: dannyrothman.com
• Twitter: @dannyrothman
• What was the role that changed your life? My experience as a whole at Interlochen Arts Camp in northwestern Michigan really moved me in the direction of becoming a professional actor more than any other experience I’ve had.
• Why are you an actor? There is no one reason. There are many. All these reasons coalesce around a single profession, that of the actor. For instance, I have an insatiable, joyous curiosity exploring why we do the things we do, think the way we think, and feel the way we feel. I enjoy stepping as much as I can into someone else’s shoes. I’m thrilled with the connection I feel with an audience as we experience a story together. I love that on the stage every emotion – granted, it’s connected to the story – is celebrated. I love to sing. More shamefully, I’ll admit part of me may enjoy being the center of attention at times, and the bit of fear and adrenaline that go along with it. I could probably write a good chapter on all the reasons. …  I get to enjoy all of them as an actor. 
• What would you be doing for a career if you weren’t an actor? I would be a theoretical physicist and explore the mysteries of the universe; a psychologist exploring the mysteries of mind; a new-age spiritualist exploring the mysteries of the soul; or a Navy Seal and just be badass – although I would never make it through hell week, because I’m not fond of the cold.
• Ideal scene partner: Meryl Streep, Edward Norton, Philip Seymour Hoffman, a young Marlon Brando or James Dean, because I feel like these actors are so alive and spontaneous in their work. Working opposite them, one would have no choice but to be alive in the scene as well, elevating my own performance and ability.
• Why does this production of Sweeney Todd matter? All theatre is important as it brings human beings together to share and reflect on the human experience by, as Shakespeare put it, “holding the mirror up to nature to show … the very age and body of the time his form and pressure.” Sweeney Todd, in particular, is a masterful musical fable, exploring what may happen when society’s righteous and moral deem themselves superior and become corrupt with power, spawning unimaginable horrors in their wake… all with a bit of fun and dark humor. 
• What do you hope the audience gets out of it? First, I hope they’re entertained. After that, I always hope audience members find some sort of new understanding about themselves or the human experience after they see a show like Sweeney Todd. I believe Sweeney Todd is enough of a masterpiece that people will find many different insights within it. 
  
• Finish this sentence: “All I want is …”
  “… to in some way leave the world a better place than I found it … perhaps more empathetic … and being an actor seems the most fun way to do it.”
  

More Colorado theatre coverage on the DCPA NewsCenter

Sweeney Todd: Ticket information

Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; Book by High Wheeler (adapted by Christopher Bond); musical adaptation by DeVotchKa

Previous NewsCenter coverage of Sweeney Todd:
Theatre Company giddily going down rabbit hole in 2015-16
DeVotchKa frontman promises a Sweeney Todd that’s ‘loud and proud’
DCPA announces DeVotchka-infused Sweeney Todd casting
​Where the band meets the blade: Rehearsals open
Co-stars on bringing DeVotchKa’s fresh blood to Sondheim
Video sneak peek with DeVotchKa

Previous 2015-16 ‘Meet the Cast’ profiles
Meet Adeoye of Lookingglass Alice and All the Way
Meet Kevin Berntson of The Nest
Meet J. Paul Boehmer of As You Like It
Meet Molly Brennan of Lookingglass Alice
Meet Courtney Capek of A Christmas Carol
Meet Todd Cerveris of All the Way
Meet Brian D. Coats of The Nest
Meet Tad Cooley of Tribes
Meet Paul DeBoy of All the Way
Meet Allen Dorsey of A Christmas Carol
Meet Kevin Douglas of Lookingglass Alice
Meet Napoleon M. Douglas of A Christmas Carol
Meet Brian Dykstra of The Nest
Meet Isabel Ellison of Tribes
Meet Mariana Fernandez of FADE
Meet Kate Finch of Tribes
Meet Ella Galaty of A Christmas Carol
Meet Mike Hartman of All the Way
Meet Ben Heil of A Christmas Carol
Meet Carolyn Holding of As You Like It
Meet Drew Horwitz of As You Like It
Meet Maurice Jones of As You Like It
Meet Geoffrey Kent of As You Like It and All the Way
Meet Emily Kron of As You Like It
Meet Nick LaMedica of As You Like It
Meet Victoria Mack of The Nest
Meet Bianca Mikahn of How I Got Over
Meet Andrew Pastides of Tribes
Meet Ralonda Simmons of How I Got Over
Meet Shannan Steele of A Christmas Carol
Meet Carly Street of The Nest
Meet Samuel Taylor of Lookingglass Alice
Meet Lindsey Noel Whiting of Lookingglass Alice
Meet Jake Williamson  of A Christmas Carol
Meet Matt Zambrano of As You Like It