On winter ocean-diving, Falstaff and the music in the new film ‘Ad Astra’

Michael Schantz, who plays patriarch Torvald Helmer through November 24 in the DCPA Theatre Company’s A Doll’s House, is a Philadelphia-born actor who graduated from Rollins College in Orlando and got his master’s degree from the Graduate Acting Program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Off-Broadway credits include Life Sucks starring Austin Pendleton with Wheelhouse Theatre Company (of which he is a co-founder), Othello (New York Theatre Workshop, directed by Sam Gold), You Got Older (Page 73, directed by Anne Kauffman), Fashions for Men (The Mint), among others. Regional: Coriolanus (The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey), Love in the Wars (Bard Summerscape), The Great Gatsby (Virginia Stage Company), A Few Good Men (Alley Theatre), Arms and the Man (Guthrie Theatre). Film and TV credits include “Goodnight Death,” “Interference,” “Wu-Tang: An American Saga,” “FBI” and “The Blacklist.”

• Role: Torvald Helmer in A Doll’s House. (He’s the overbearing hubby who treats Nora more like a child than a wife by calling her silly names and scolding her for eating macaroons.)
• Hometown: Philadelphia
• Home now: New York
• What’s your handle? @the_schantz on Instagram
• Got a web site? Follow me at michaelschantz.com
• First impressions of Denver: I’ve been here a few times. When I was young, my family would take trips to Keystone in the summer and winter. What I love about Denver is its proximity to the outdoors, its championing of the arts and its seemingly progressive socio-political atmosphere.
• One thing many people might not know about you: I love jumping into the ocean during the winter.
• What’s the one role you would give anything to play … but would be completely miscast for? Falstaff, who appears in Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part 1 and The Merry Wives of Windsor
• What are you listening to on your Spotify? Max Richter, who does the music for the new film “Ad Astra.“
• Your comic sensibility: “Curb Your Enthusiasm.“
• Why does revisiting A Doll’s House matter now? Stories that masterfully delve into themes of the individual’s journey toward self discovery in the face of societal expectations and norms never lose their urgency.
• So, what should a man say to his wife when he discovers she has secretly taken out a loan that literally saved his life? “Thank you.”
• Who is the modern-day Nora in your life? Ellen.
• What do you hope the audience gets out of seeing these plays? The desire to have a conversation about their own lives.
• What’s one thing you want to get off your chest? We need to have comprehensive, common sense gun control laws in this country.

More Colorado theatre coverage on the DCPA NewsCenter

Photo gallery: A Doll’s House and A Doll’s House, Part 2:

Photos by Adams VisCom.

Ticket information

Henrik Ibsen’s renowned classic shattered the traditions of his time as his protagonist, Nora, walked out on her stark marital obligations. Decades later, Lucas Hnath brought her home (and to Broadway) to revisit her actions through a contemporary lens.

• Dates: Through November 24
• Where: Ricketson Theatre
  
• Genre: Drama (A Doll’s House) and comedy (A Doll’s House, Part 2), performed in repertory
• Advisory: Contains adult themes
• Tickets: Start at $30 and can be purchased at 303-893-4100 or in person in the Helen Bonfils Theatre Complex at 14^th and Curtis streets or online by clicking here:
  
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Photo gallery: The making of A Doll’s House and A Doll’s House, Part 2:

Photos by John Moore.

Go to our expanded gallery of photos from the process