Danny Burstein is an accomplished American actor and singer. He is celebrated for his performances on Broadway and has garnered several prestigious awards, including a Tony Award, a Drama League Award, and two Drama Desk Awards, in addition to being nominated for three Grammy Awards.
Early Life & Education
Danny Burstein was born on June 16, 1964, in Mt. Kisco, New York, and spent his childhood in New York City. His parents separated when he was just two months old, leading him to be raised by his mother, Virginia (Vega), a painter, and his stepfather, Harvey Burstein, who is a professor of Greek philosophy.
Burstein studied at the High School of the Performing Arts. While in high school, he engaged in community theater and summer stock in New Hampshire, receiving $200 for the full season.
He graduated from Queens College in New York City, during which he landed his first professional acting position in the chorus of The Music Man at The Muny in St. Louis.
In 1990, he obtained an MFA from the graduate acting program at the University of California, San Diego. While at UCSD, he took part in a production of Macbeth at the La Jolla Playhouse.
Danny Burstein Career
Danny Burstein has made twenty appearances on Broadway, earning eight Tony Award nominations. His roles have included A Little Hotel on the Side (1992), Yakov in The Seagull (1992–93), Saint Joan and Three Men on a Horse (both in 1993), Paul in Company (1995), and 1st Officer William Murdoch in Titanic (1997–99).
He has also starred as Aldolpho in The Drowsy Chaperone (2006–07), Luther Billis in South Pacific (2008–10), Taxi Driver in Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (2010–11), Tokio in Golden Boy (2012–2013), Max in The Snow Geese by Sharr White (2013), Herr Schultz in the 2014 revival of Cabaret (2014–15), and Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof (2015–2016).
Danny Burstein’s film roles include, Duane Incarnate (2004), Transamerica (2005), Deception (2008), Nor’easter (2013), Trust, Greed, Bullets and Bourbon (2013), American Milkshake (2013), Autumn Whispers (2013), Affluenza (2014), Blackhat (2015), directed by Michael Mann, The Family Fang (2015), featuring Nicole Kidman and directed by Jason Bateman, Construction (2015), Indignation (2016), which was both written and directed by James Schamus, and The Sounding, created by Catherine Eaton.
He was cast in HBO’s Boardwalk Empire after Martin Scorsese noticed his performance in South Pacific, and after auditioning for three different roles, he was chosen for the part of Lolly Steinman.
He took on the role of Alfred P. Doolittle in the Broadway revival of My Fair Lady at Lincoln Center Theater beginning January 8, 2019. Furthermore, he was the first to play Harold Zidler on Broadway in the 2019 production of Moulin Rouge!
The show had its pre-Broadway performances at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston from July 10, 2018, to August 19, 2018. In 2021, Burstein was awarded the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his work in Moulin Rouge!
Personal Life
Danny Burstein was married to actress Rebecca Luker from June 2000 until her passing on December 23, 2020. He has two sons, Alexander and Zachary, from a prior marriage, and resides in Morningside Heights, Manhattan.
