MEET VANDIT BHATT
Bhatt plays Abe in Disgraced, playing through May 7 at the Ricketson Theatre. The Pulitzer Prize-winning play is about a successful Muslim-American attorney named Amir Kapoor, who has turned his back on his faith and is now thriving in post-9/11 Manhattan. Amir’s American nephew, born Hussein Malik, is now assimilated and called Abe. He brings to Amir his concerns over the arrest of a local imam accused of terroristic acts.


At the Theatre Company: Debut. Select New York credits: Indian Ink (Roundabout Theatre Company); Harper Regan (Atlantic Theater Company); Other Farmers’ Fields (The Public), Skin, Asking for Trouble, and The Unusual Life of Bed Bugs and Other Creatures (all at The Ensemble Studio Theatre); Bike America (Ma-Yi Theater Company); and The Great Recession (The Flea Theater). Select regional credits: The Hard Problem (American Conservatory Theater) and Disgraced (Arizona Theater Company). Film: “Ripped,” “42 Seconds Of Happiness.” TV: “Younger,” “The Michael J. Fox Show,” “Mercy,” “One Life To Live.”

• Hometown: A blend of Fort Myers, Fla. and Hyderabad, India
• Training: Graduated from the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Fla.
• Twitter handle: @thevanditbhatt
• Website: vanditbhatt.com
• What was the role that changed your life?

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  Claudio in Much Ado About Nothing. It was the first play I ever did. I had just moved from India, so I didn’t know anything about acting, much less Shakespeare. I auditioned and, for some reason, Mrs. Goff cast me as Claudio. I had a lot of firsts with that play: First lead, first Shakespeare play, my first friends in America, my first girlfriend and my first kiss. I firmly believe doing that play set me on a path to become an actor. I always wanted to be an actor but I probably wouldn’t have gone for it if it hadn’t been for that production.

• Why are you an actor? If I were to put it simply, it’s all I have ever known. Sometimes, when I take a step back and look at my life, I feel like it was really meant to be. 
• What would you be doing if you weren’t an actor: I honestly don’t know.
• Ideal scene partner: Robert DeNiro. There are numerous reasons, but the most obvious one is that it would be a tremendous learning experience.
• Why does Disgraced matter? It’s one of the most relevant plays of our time. It matters because it is incredibly complicated, much like life.  
• What do you hope the audience gets out of this play? I want them to leave with questions. Lots of them.
• Finish this sentence: “All I want is …”
  At the risk of sounding silly: “All I want is to share my work with the world.”

‘Disgraced’ actors, from left, Vandit Bhatt, Olivia Gilliatt and Dorien Makhloghi. Photo by Adams VisCom for the DCPA NewsCenter.

Disgraced: Ticket information
In this raw new play, Amir has built the perfect life. But as a high-profile case and his wife’s art show reveal how little his culture is understood, their misconceptions become too much to bear.

Through May 7
Ricketson Theatre

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ASL and audio-described performance: 1:30 p.m. April 30

Tickets: 303-893-4100 or BUY ONLINE

Previous NewsCenter coverage of Disgraced:
Perspectives: Disgraced is about starting, not finishing, conversations
Video, photos: Your first look at Theatre Company’s Disgraced
Video: A talk with Disgraced Costume Designer Lex Liang
Disgraced has been known to leave audiences gasping
Disgraced Director promises to push your (empathy) button
TED Talk: On the danger of a ‘single story’

More 2016-17 ‘Meet the Cast’ profiles:
Steven J. Burge, An Act of God
Liam Craig, The Book of Will
Aubrey Deeker, The Glass Menagerie
Thaddeus Fitzpatrick, Frankenstein
Meridith C. Grundei, Frankenstein
Steven Cole Hughes, An Act of God
Sullivan Jones, Frankenstein
Mark Junek, Frankenstein
Dorien Makhloghi, Disgraced
Charlie Korman, Frankenstein
Jennifer Le Blanc, The Book of Will
Cajardo Lindsey, The Christians
Rodney Lizcano, The Book of Will
Wesley Mann, The Book of Will
Robert Montano, Two Degrees
Amelia Pedlow, The Glass Menagerie
Benjamin Pelteson, Disgraced
Jessica Robblee, Frankenstein
Erik Sandvold, An Act of God
John Skelley, The Glass Menagerie
Kim Staunton, Two Degrees

More Colorado theatre coverage on the DCPA NewsCenter