Dan Manning
Dan Manning is currently in rehearsals at Signature Theatre for their upcoming production of The Fix in which he will be portraying the character of Anthony Gliardi. The show begins performances August 11th.
If you are a Signature Theatre regular then you know Dan from his many appearances there. A few choice credits include Sunday in the Park with George, Beaches, Gypsy, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, 110 in the Shade and Allegro. On Broadway Dan was part of the revival cast of Ragtime, which started its life at the Kennedy Center. Off-Broadway credits include Lamb’s Theatre’s production of Smoke on the Mountain and St. Peters Citicorp’s production of The Majestic Kid. Dan’s many area credits include Kennedy Center’s The Golden Age; Ford’s Theatre’s Big River and 1776; Studio Theatre’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead; Round House Theatre’s Camille and Murder, Mystery, and a Marriage; Maryland Stage’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Rep Stage’s Lie of the Mind and A Shayna Maidel. Select regional credits include: Centerstage’s The Murder of Isaac; Los Angeles’s Court Theatre productions of Ray-Bud (Dramalogue award) and Dearly Departed and the National Symphony Orchestra’s Narrator and Le Histoire du Soldat. You might have also seen Dan in the films Gods and Generals, State of Play, Renaissance Man, Memoirs of an Invisible Man and Marie or on TV in Veep, House of Cards, The Wire, West Wing and X-Files.
Dan has been performing for over 40 years now and shows no signs of stopping. Here is a performer who has played a wide variety of roles in both plays and musicals in all sized theatres across the country. I always enjoy Dan’s performances but a standout for me would have to be the Governor in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. I have no doubt I’ll have a similar reaction with The Fix. I imagine you will also. Check out Dan Manning and the rest of the cast of Signature Theatre’s The Fix. A veteran performer in a musical that is perfect for the time. That gets my vote. How about you?
Had you been performing in another area of the country before coming to work in the DC area?
I had been acting for about 27 years before moving here in 2000. 15 years in and out of New York, performing off-Broadway and regional houses, mostly in the east and the south. For ten summers I did the outdoor drama circuit, playing Daniel Boone, Sam Houston, Devil Anse Hatfield, and other historical and musical characters. Ten years in Los Angeles came next pursuing work in theatre, film and television.
Can you please tell us a little bit about The Fix and the character you play in the show?
The show is a satirical look at the election process as experienced by one particularly ambitious family, with a rollicking rock score, and an ensemble that is like a greek chorus on steroids. I play an underworld boss who may or may not be influential in the democratic process.
Dan Manning as the Governor in Signature Theatre’s production of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. Photo by Scott Suchman.
You were a cast member of the Broadway revival of Ragtime that started here at the Kennedy Center? Can you please talk about the experience of working on that production and do you think it got the short end of things once it moved Broadway?
One of the highlights of my career, to say the least. Working with and developing a relationship with Marcia Milgrom Dodge, Terrence McNally, E.L. Doctorow, and the huge marvelous cast was a life changer, and watching it all come together at the Kennedy Center was a magical enlightening experience. Of course, we were all disappointed in the show’s limited run on Broadway, but, it was a huge cast and large orchestra, and it was the recession. The one thing I know for sure about this business, is that you can never know anything for sure about this business.
You’ve worked as a performer in the DC area for many years. What do you consider to be the some of the biggest changes to our theatre community from when you first started working here?
Watching the opportunities and the new companies grow and expand, as well as a healthy film and industrial market to help supplement our incomes, and, of course the new beautiful venues such as Arena, Harman Hall and our versatile new facilities here at Signature.
What is next for you after The Fix?
I can’t say right now, because, I haven’t signed contracts and they haven’t bought my shoes. The one thing I know for sure about this business……..
