Max von Essen
Encyclopedia
Max von Essen is an American musical theatre actor and vocalist.
A son of Rita and Thomas Von Essen
, who was the New York City
Fire Commissioner during the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center
, he is the youngest of four children.
Von Essen is a 1992 graduate of South Side High School, in Rockville Centre, New York
. He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
, and after graduation, began touring with Liza Minnelli
. He toured Europe in West Side Story and was a cast member of the U.S. national tour of Chicago
.
He made his Broadway debut in Jesus Christ Superstar
, and also starred in Dance of the Vampires
alongside Michael Crawford
. He also played the role of student revolutionary leader "Enjolras
" in Les Misérables
at the Broadhurst Theater on Broadway.
In 2006, he was a soloist at the biggest Andrew Lloyd Webber
musical gala to date, held in Tallinn, Estonia.
He last worked on the national tour of Xanadu
as "Sonny", and in the Roundabout Off-Broadway production of Maury Yeston's "Death Takes a Holiday" at the Laura Pels Theatre in NYC.
A son of Rita and Thomas Von Essen
Thomas Von Essen
Thomas Von Essen was appointed the 30th FDNY Commissioner of the City of New York by Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani on April 15, 1996 and served in that position until the end of the Giuliani Administration on December 31, 2001, nearly four months after the September 11, 2001 attacks.In 2002 he was...
, who was the New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
Fire Commissioner during the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
, he is the youngest of four children.
Von Essen is a 1992 graduate of South Side High School, in Rockville Centre, New York
Rockville Centre, New York
Rockville Centre is a village located in Nassau County, New York, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the village had a total population of 24,023. The town is made up of middle to upper middle class residents, most of the wealthier residents residing on the north side of town near the...
. He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
, and after graduation, began touring with Liza Minnelli
Liza Minnelli
Liza May Minnelli is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of singer and actress Judy Garland and film director Vincente Minnelli....
. He toured Europe in West Side Story and was a cast member of the U.S. national tour of Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
.
He made his Broadway debut in Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
, and also starred in Dance of the Vampires
Dance of the Vampires
Dance of the Vampires is a musical remake of a 1967 Roman Polanski film of the same name . Polanski also directed the original German production of this musical...
alongside Michael Crawford
Michael Crawford
Michael Crawford OBE is an English actor and singer. He has garnered great critical acclaim and won numerous awards during his career, which covers radio, television, film, and stagework on both London's West End and on Broadway in New York City...
. He also played the role of student revolutionary leader "Enjolras
Enjolras
Enjolras is the charismatic leader of the Friends of the ABC in the 1862 novel Les Misérables by Victor Hugo.- The Friends of the ABC :...
" in Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
at the Broadhurst Theater on Broadway.
In 2006, he was a soloist at the biggest Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
musical gala to date, held in Tallinn, Estonia.
He last worked on the national tour of Xanadu
Xanadu (musical)
Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane, music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name which was, in turn, inspired by the 1947 Rita Hayworth film Down to Earth. The title is a reference to the poem, Kubla Khan, or A...
as "Sonny", and in the Roundabout Off-Broadway production of Maury Yeston's "Death Takes a Holiday" at the Laura Pels Theatre in NYC.
Broadway
- Les MisérablesLes Misérables (musical)Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
- 2007-08 - Broadhurst TheatreBroadhurst TheatreThe Broadhurst Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 235 West 44th Street in midtown Manhattan.It was designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, a well-known theatre designer who had been working directly with the Shubert brothers; the Broadhurst opened 27 September 1917... - Les MisérablesLes Misérables (musical)Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
- 2003 - Imperial Theatre - Dance of the VampiresDance of the VampiresDance of the Vampires is a musical remake of a 1967 Roman Polanski film of the same name . Polanski also directed the original German production of this musical...
- 2002-03 -Minskoff TheatreMinskoff TheatreThe Minskoff Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre, located at 1515 Broadway in midtown-Manhattan. It is now showing the musical The Lion King, based on the Disney animated film of the same name.... - Jesus Christ SuperstarJesus Christ SuperstarJesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
- 2000 - Ford Center
Off-Broadway
- Hello AgainHello Again (musical)Hello Again is musical with music, lyrics and book by Michael John LaChiusa. It is based on the 1897 play La Ronde by Arthur Schnitzler...
- 2011 - Transport GroupTransport GroupThe Transport Group Theatre Company is a non-profit, off-Broadway theatre company in New York City. The company was founded in 2001 by Artistic Director Jack Cummings III and Robyn Hussa. The Transport Group's mission is to stage new works and reimagine revivals by American writers... - Finian's RainbowFinian's RainbowFinian's Rainbow is a musical with a book by E.Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane. The 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances. Several revivals and a 1968 film version followed. A Broadway revival ran from October 8, 2009 until January 17, 2010...
- 2004 - Irish Repertory TheatreIrish Repertory TheatreThe Irish Repertory Theatre is an Off Broadway theatre, founded by Ciarán O’Reilly and Charlotte Moore, which opened its doors in September 1988, with Sean O’Casey’s The Plough and the Stars.The mission of the theatre was and remains:... - John & Paul - 2001 - New Victory TheatreNew Victory TheatreThe New Victory Theater is an Off-Broadway theater located at 209 West 42nd Street, between 7th and 8th Avenues, in Midtown Manhattan. The New Victory is New York's first and only theater for children and family audiences...
- The FantasticksThe FantasticksThe Fantasticks is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones. It was produced by Lore Noto. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the play "The Romancers" by Edmond Rostand, concerning two neighboring fathers who trick their children, Luisa and Matt, into...
- 2000 - Sullivan Street Playhouse
Regional
- XanaduXanadu (musical)Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane, music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name which was, in turn, inspired by the 1947 Rita Hayworth film Down to Earth. The title is a reference to the poem, Kubla Khan, or A...
- 2009 - National Tour - Sweeney Todd - 2008 - Sacramento Music Circus
- West Side StoryWest Side StoryWest Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
- 2008 - Pittsburgh Civic Light OperaPittsburgh Civic Light OperaPittsburgh Civic Light Opera is a nonprofit professional theater company based in the Cultural District of Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.... - Mame - 2006 - The Kennedy Center
- CabaretCabaret (film)Cabaret is a 1972 musical film directed by Bob Fosse and starring Liza Minnelli, Michael York and Joel Grey. The film is set in Berlin during the Weimar Republic in 1931, under the ominous presence of the growing National Socialist Party....
- 2005 - Sacramento Music Circus - The Baker's WifeThe Baker's WifeThe Baker's Wife is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and the book by Joseph Stein, based on the French film La Femme du Boulanger by Marcel Pagnol and Jean Giono...
- 2005 - Paper Mill PlayhousePaper Mill PlayhousePaper Mill Playhouse is a regional theatre with approximately 1200 seats, located in Millburn, New Jersey, less than 25 miles from Manhattan. Due to its location, it can draw from the pool of actors who live in New York City. Its location, as well as its focus on producing large-scale shows, makes... - Dorian - 2004 - NoHo Arts Center
- Jesus Christ SuperstarJesus Christ SuperstarJesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
- 2004 - Sacramento Music Circus - Auntie MameAuntie MameAuntie Mame is a 1955 novel by Patrick Dennis that chronicles the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his deceased father's eccentric sister, Mame Dennis. The book is a work of fiction inspired by the author's eccentric aunt, Marion Tanner, whose life and outlook in many...
- 2004 -Ogunquit Playhouse - Auntie MameAuntie MameAuntie Mame is a 1955 novel by Patrick Dennis that chronicles the madcap adventures of a boy, Patrick, growing up as the ward of his deceased father's eccentric sister, Mame Dennis. The book is a work of fiction inspired by the author's eccentric aunt, Marion Tanner, whose life and outlook in many...
- 2004 - Bay Street Theatre - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatJoseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatJoseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story is based on the "coat of many colors" story of Joseph from the Hebrew Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly...
- 2003, 2010 -Sacramento Music Circus - My Fair LadyMy Fair LadyMy Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe...
- 2003 - Pittsburgh Civic Light OperaPittsburgh Civic Light OperaPittsburgh Civic Light Opera is a nonprofit professional theater company based in the Cultural District of Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.... - My Fair LadyMy Fair LadyMy Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe...
- 2002 - Paper Mill PlayhousePaper Mill PlayhousePaper Mill Playhouse is a regional theatre with approximately 1200 seats, located in Millburn, New Jersey, less than 25 miles from Manhattan. Due to its location, it can draw from the pool of actors who live in New York City. Its location, as well as its focus on producing large-scale shows, makes... - HairHair (musical)Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot. A product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement...
- 2001 - Bay Street Theatre - Blood Brothers - 2001 - Downtown Cabaret
- Jesus Christ SuperstarJesus Christ SuperstarJesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
- 1999 - Connecticut Repertory Theatre - A Christmas CarolA Christmas CarolA Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
- 1997 - Mill Mountain TheatreMill Mountain TheatreMill Mountain Theatre has served for more than 40 years as a nationally recognized professional, regional performing arts theatre committed to producing the highest quality theatre in Southwest Virginia, actively promoting and developing new theatre works, strengthening the artistic influence in...
National and International Tours
- ChicagoChicago (musical)Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
- 1999 - West Side StoryWest Side StoryWest Side Story is an American musical with a script by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and choreographed by Jerome Robbins...
- 1998 - Liza Minnelli in Concert - 1997