Celebrating the visionaries who created New York's vibrant Off- and Off-Off-Broadway theater.
Tanya Berezin is an actress, co-founder, and former Artistic Director of the Circle Repertory Company. In 1969, she co-founded the Circle Repertory Company with Lanford Wilson, Marshall Mason, and Rob Thirkield. She served as Artistic Director for the company from 1987 until 1994. During that time, the Circle Repertory Company produced many shows, including: BURN THIS (1987), EL SALVADOR (1987), RECKLESS (1988), IMAGINING BRAD (1990), PRELUDE TO A KISS (1990), ROAD TO NIRVANA (1991), BABYLON GARDENS (1991), THE BALTIMORE WALTZ (1992), THE DESTINY OF ME (1992), THE FIERY FURNACE (1993), AND BABY MAKES SEVEN (1993), ESCAPE FROM PARADISE (1994), and many others. Her Off-Broadway acting credits include: BATTLE OF ANGELS (1974), THE MOUND BUILDERS (1975/1986), SERENADING LOUIS (1976), MARY STUART (1979), ANGELS FALL (1982), BALM IN GILEAD (1984), CALIGULA (1986), QUIET IN THE LAND (1986), and SYMPATHETIC MAGIC (1997). In 1985, she and the cast of the Circle Repertory Company’s BALM IN GILEAD won the 1985 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance.
Berezin was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In addition to Off-Broadway, she has worked in film, television, and on Broadway. Her film credits include: The Mound Builders (1976), Girlfriends (1978), Compromising Positions (1985), and He Said, She Said (1991). Her television credits include: “St. Elsewhere,” “Spenser: For Hire,” and “Law & Order.”Berezin’s Broadway credits include: Fifth of July (1980) and Angels Fall (1983). After stepping down as Artistic Director of the Circle Repertory Company, Berezin remained an acting coach. She has worked on set for daytime dramas such as “As the World Turns,” “One Life to Live,” and “All My Children,” where she was the Resident Acting Coach for five years. She currently teaches private acting classes at her studio and offers one-on-one coaching for young actors.
Lanford Wilson, Marshall W. Mason, Rob Thirkield, John Malkovich, Joan Allen, Jules Feiffer, Jon Robin Baitz, Judd Hirsh, Barnard Hughes, Sam Shepard, John Hurt, Robin Bartlett, Mary Beth Hurt, Mary-Louise Parker, Nina Simone, Faye Dunaway, Jim Tuttle, W.H. Auden, Claris Nelson, Michael Warren Powell, Joe Cino, William Esper, Trish Hawkins, Tennessee Williams, Stephanie Gordon, Christopher Reeve, John Bishop, William M. Hoffman, Jonathan Hogan, Julie Bovasso, Rod Marriott, Craig Lucas, Norman Rene, Peter Hedges, Joe Mantello, Alec Baldwin, Paula Vogel, Cherry Jones, Nancy Snyder, Lucille Lortel, Larry Kramer, Circle Repertory Company, La Mama E.T.C., Caffe Cino, The American Theatre Project, Theatre de Lys, THE TALLEY TRILOGY, BALM IN GILEAD, THE RIMERS OF ELDRITCH, THE HOT L BALTIMORE, BATTLE OF ANGELS, AS IS, PRELUDE TO A KISS, 5TH OF JULY