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Danny Lee Wynter

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British actor, playwright, and activist
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Danny Wynter
BornDanny Lee Wynter
(1982-05-25) 25 May 1982 (age 42)
Barking, London, England
OccupationActor
Years active2006–present

Danny Lee Wynter (born 25 May 1982) is a British actor, playwright, and activist.

He is best known for playing the lead in Stephen Poliakoff's BBC films Joe's Palace and Capturing Mary, and also for appearing in Dominic Cooke's 2021 National Theatre revival of The Normal Heart, for which he was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor. Mainly recognised for his stage work, he began his professional training while ushering at the Royal Court Theatre.

His writing has appeared in numerous publications including The Stage Newspaper, The Huffington Post, The Guardian and The Evening Standard. Between 2017 and 2018 he was a columnist for the gay publication Attitude.

His debut play, Black Superhero, opened at the Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, the main space at the Royal Court Theatre in March 2023.

Personal life

Danny Lee Wynter was born in Barking, East London and grew up in a single parent family in Essex. His mother, a train attendant, is of Romany Gypsy and Italian ancestry, and his father, a local businessman, is of Jamaican descent. He has been open about his sexuality since the beginning of his career identifying as gay.

In 2000, he studied performing arts at Middlesex University, where he trained in clown under John Wright, founder of Trestle Theatre Company and As Told by an Idiot. In 2003, he gained a place at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art to train in classical acting.

Career

While at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, Wynter ushered at the Royal Court theatre, a job which he left to make his professional debut in Stephen Poliakoff's 2007 BBC/HBO films Joe's Palace and Capturing Mary.

After receiving acclaim for his performance in the Poliakoff films, Wynter was cast by Dominic Dromgoole as the Fool to David Calder's King Lear for Shakespeare's Globe. His other work for the company includes Henry IV Part I and II, opposite Roger Allam, and new plays The Frontline by Che Walker and Bedlam by Nell Leyshon. He also appeared as the titular character in Milton's Comus in the Wanamaker Playhouse.

Theatre work includes The Glass Menagerie for the Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, Deathwatch for The Print Room at The Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill, The Maids for HOME Theatre, Manchester, Forty Years On for Chichester Festival Theatre, Cell Mates for Hampstead Theatre, The Changing Room for the Royal Court, The Miser for The Royal Exchange Manchester, Much Ado About Nothing for The Old Vic Theatre Company (directed by Sir Mark Rylance), and the National Theatre's revival of The Normal Heart, for which he was nominated for an Olivier Award.

His debut play, Black Superhero, opened on the main stage of the Royal Court Theatre in March 2023, with Wynter appearing as the lead character. The play, revolving around an out of work London actor in love with his married friend, the star of a Hollywood superhero franchise, was described by The Independent as a "funny and unflinching exploration of black masculinity".

In January 2014, after responding to a trailer for a new season of TV drama which failed to include a single BAME artist, Wynter brought together a group of friends and colleagues, actresses Ruth Wilson and Stephanie Street, actor and director Daniel Evans, casting director Andy Pryor and actors Malcolm Sinclair and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, to send out the message that the UK arts must reflect everyone regardless of race, gender, class, sexual orientation or disability. What started as a handful of voices soon became the Act for Change project. The organisations first public event was a sold out debate chaired by Baroness Shami Chakrabarti, then of the human rights group, Liberty. Held at London's Young Vic Theatre, the pilot debate was attended by various leading industry figures.

Selected performances

References

  1. "Black Superhero". Royal Court. Retrieved 22 June 2024.
  2. "Interview | Actor Danny Lee Wynter talks 'Deathwatch' revival and lack of media diversity". 14 April 2016. Archived from the original on 17 April 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
  3. "Danny Lee Wynter plays Joe Dix". BBC. Retrieved 19 December 2008.
  4. "Fool's gold: Danny Lee Wynter on Lear's Fool". The Stage. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
  5. Akbar, Arifa (22 March 2023). "Black Superhero review – original queer drama with plenty of kapow". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  6. "Black Superhero is a funny and bold exploration of Black masculinity – review". The Independent. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2024.

External links

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