Mitchell Butel

Mitchell Butel
Born Mitchell Patrick Butel
10 February 1970
Education Bachelor of Arts
Alma mater University of NSW
Occupation Actor, singer
Awards Helpmann Award (3)
Green Room Award (2)

Mitchell Patrick Butel (born 10 February 1970) is an Australian actor and singer. He is best known for his work in theatre, in both musical and opera productions.[1]

Early life and career

Butel became interested in theatre as a child after seeing the musical Song and Dance and later Little Shop of Horrors.[2]

Butel attended the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and studied for a degree in Law, working as a paralegal in a law firm between terms.[3] After a short time he changed the focus of his studies and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Studies.[4] He was part of the original Australian Avenue Q cast in 2009. He played the roles of two puppet characters in the production: Princeton (a recent college graduate) and Rod (a closet Republican homosexual).[5] The Australian production opened in June 2009 at the Comedy Theatre in Melbourne, Victoria. The production then went to Sydney in August and then toured Canberra, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane and Auckland in New Zealand. The production closed in 2010.

In 2010, Butel took part in the Adelaide Cabaret Festival with his cabaret show Killing Time. Since then, he has taken part in three Opera Australia productions.[6] Butel has worked extensively for many theatre companies including: Sydney Theatre Company,[7][8] Melbourne Theatre Company, Bell Shakespeare, Malthouse Theatre, Melbourne, Belvoir St Theatre, Queensland Theatre Company, The Production Company and the State Theatre Company of South Australia appearing in productions such as Six Degrees of Separation, The Cafe Latte Kid, Tartuffe, Mourning Becomes Electra, A View from the Bridge, Othello, Stones in His Pockets, Boeing-Boeing, The Government Inspector, Strange Interlude, Unidentified Human Remains and the True Nature of Love, Meow Meow's Little Match Girl, Romeo and Juliet and Woyzeck.[9] His music theatre credits include Follies, Man of La Mancha, Dusty - The Original Pop Diva, Grease, Urinetown, Oklahoma!, Tom Foolery, Hair, Sugar and The Producers. He is also the voice of the Play School theme song.[10]

In June and July 2013, Butel played a lead role in the Belvoir St Theatre production of Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes.[11][12][13]

In 2013, he also played Hysterium opposite Geoffrey Rush as Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.[14]

Butel has been awarded three Helpmann Awards for Best Actor in a Musical for The Mikado (2012), Avenue Q (2010) and The Venetian Twins (2005) [15] and was nominated for Little Me (2008), Summer Rain (2006) and The Republic of Myopia (2005).[16] Butel has also received two Green Room Awards for Best Male Actor in a Featured Role (Music Theatre) for Piaf (2000) and Hair (2002).[17]

Butel has been nominated for two Australian Film Institute (AFI) Awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Feature Film for Gettin' Square (2003) and Strange Fits of Passion (1999). His other film credits include Holding the Man (2014), The Bank (2001), Two Hands (1999) and Dark City (1998). His television credits include Hiding (TV series) (2014), The Broken Shore (2013), Mr & Mrs Murder (2013), Rake (2012), Nightmares and Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King (2006), MDA (2003), Grass Roots (2000), Wildside (1998), G.P. (1994-1996) and Bordertown (1995).[18]

He has been a member of Actors Equity since 1988.[19]

Opera Australia

In May 2011, Butel made his Opera Australia debut in the Gilbert and Sullivan production The Mikado where he played the comedic role of Ko-Ko.[20] In February 2013, he took part in another Opera Australia Production Orpheus in the Underworld where he played the role of John Styx.[21][22]

Later in 2013 Butel performed the part of Luther Billis in South Pacific.[23]

Killing Time album

Killing Time is an album which was recorded during the Adelaide Cabaret Festival in 2010, and consists of songs with a time-related theme, as well as poetry and anecdotes. The album features a mixture of genres including jazz and cabaret.[24] Butel has also performed the Killing Time songs at other venues, including the Seymour Centre and the Cremorne Theatre.[25] The album was released in March 2012.[25] He can also be heard on the original cast recordings of The Republic of Myopia, Meow Meow's Little Match Girl and Opera Australia's The Mikado.[26][27]

References

  1. ↑ "BONZA - Australia & New Zealand Database". Bonzadb.com.au. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  2. ↑ "This Is Your Brain On Musical Theatre - 7 Questions with (Funny Thing!) Mitchell Butel". Australia.broadwayworld.com. 2012-12-05. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  3. ↑ "Ko-Ko the new Hamlet". Opera Australia. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  4. ↑ Killing Time | Mitchell Butel
  5. ↑ "Avenue Q : The Musical : Comedy : Michala Banas : Mitchell Butel : Theater In Melbourne : Web Wombat Theatre". Webwombat.com.au. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  6. ↑ Monday (2011-06-06). "12 Acts of Cabaret: Mitchell Butel - Killing Time @ QPAC (Brisbane)". Cabaret Confessional. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  7. ↑ Face To Face | Sydney Theatre Company | Mitchell Butel Interview
  8. ↑ Sydney Theatre Awards 2013 nominees announced | Daily Review: film, stage and music reviews, interviews and more
  9. ↑ Williamson, David. Emerald City. Currency Press. pp. 81–82. ISBN 9781925005264.
  10. ↑ "Mitchell Butel". Opera Australia. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  11. ↑ June 07, 2013 (2013-06-07). "Angels in America Part One: Millennium Approaches, Productions | Belvoir St Theatre". Belvoir.com.au. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  12. ↑ "Where Angels Dared to Tread" | The Australian
  13. ↑ "Angels in America: Millenium Approaches + Perestroika". Time Out Sydney.
  14. ↑ Burch, Peter. "Forum's funny things carry on". Retrieved 11 November 2014.
  15. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helpmann_Award_for_Best_Male_Actor_in_a_Musical''. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  16. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helpmann_Award_for_Best_Male_Actor_in_a_Supporting_Role_in_a_Musical''. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  17. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Room_Award_for_Male_Actor_in_a_Featured_Role_(Music_Theatre)''. Wikimedia Foundation Inc. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  18. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0124728/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1''. IMDB Ltd. Missing or empty |title= (help);
  19. ↑ Williamson, David. Emerald City. Currency Press. p. 82. ISBN 9781925005264.
  20. ↑ "Detail". Opera Australia. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  21. ↑ "Orpheus in the Underworld | Sydney Opera House: Opera Theatre | Opera review". Bachtrack.com. 2013-03-04. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  22. ↑ http://www.opera-australia.org.au/res/pdfs/media_releases/SS13/Orpheus%20in%20the%20Underworld%20MR.pdf
  23. ↑ "Theatre Review: South Pacific". Glam Adelaide.
  24. ↑ "Killing time : live in concert / Mitchell Butel. [sound recording] : - Version details - Trove". Trove.nla.gov.au. 2010-06-20. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Killing Time | Mitchell Butel". Australianstage.com.au. 2010-06-21. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
  26. ↑ Stage Noise with Diana Simmonds - Review - ROMEO AND JULIET
  27. ↑ Face To Face | Sydney Theatre Company | Mitchell Butel Interview

External links