I’m currently playing Rene Gallimard in David Henry Hwang’s play “M. Butterfly” at San Francisco Playhouse in California, opposite this exquisite Edric Young as Song. Our scrumptious production, directed by the brilliant Bridgette Loriaux, runs through March 14th. Tickets and more information here.
I’m overwhelmed with gratitude looking back on my artistic adventures over the past year:
I got to fulfill a lifelong dream and play the title role in “Hamlet” in a bold and bodacious production at Oakland Theater Project directed by the great Michael Moran.
My acting work was profiled by the San Francisco Chronicle.
I won two San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards for my work in Harvey Fierstein’s “Torch Song” and Tony Kushner’s “Angels in America”.
I have also been involved in several workshops and readings of exciting new plays, including:
“The Broken Ear Trilogy” (written and composed by the Bengsons) directed by Anne Kaufman and Caitlin Sullivan as part of Berkeley Rep’s Ground Floor Summer Residency Lab.
“Anna” (by Matt Minnicino) directed by Nick Piacente at the Harold Clurman Laboratory Theater.
“Lavender Men” (by Roger Q. Mason) directed by Richard Mosqueda at Z Space.
I am more honored than ever to be forging a career in the arts with these extraordinary collaborators and companies. Many more exciting happenings are coming up in 2026, y’all. Happy New Year! 
I am currently playing Hamlet in “Hamlet” – an absolute dream come true. The Oakland Theater Project production, directed by the brilliant Michael Moran, features a cast of 23 (!) and runs through September 21st. Tickets and more information can be found here.
Some fun Hamlet links:
A video interview of me discussing the play
A video trailer for the production
A podcast interview I did about Hamlet and my artistic roots.
I was profiled by the San Francisco Chronicle in the lead-up to the production. We dish on family, growing up creative, and all things Hamlet.
Here’s what the critics had to say about my performance:
“Dean Linnard’s extraordinary performance as Hamlet portrays the raw explosion of mixed feelings through movement and facial expressions: … the lightning quick, frenzied movements, the psychotic break–the earnest angst to do the right thing. But what is that? Is he truly crazy? “To Be or Not to Be,” or both.” Patricia L Morin, Front Row Review
“As Hamlet, Dean Linnard uses his elastic face and vocal dexterity to take us to new heights. Linnard runs the scales, from shocking sounds that channel his dead father to the pitch of a doomed man who fears for the safety of his beloved. Linnard’s comic timing and physical genius reveal an actor in control of detail and technique. Linnard delivers Hamlet’s beloved soliloquies with precision and passion. Clarity, thy name is Linnard.” Jenyth Jo, Theatrius
“Dean Linnard boldly paints the struggles of the title character in mellifluous iambic pentameter … He pivots vocal registers like a one-man band. In death-haunted, centuries-old words, he finds comedy and contemporary inflections that reach a welcoming hand out to Shakespeare newbies … Linnard’s eyes are deeply set, evoking the skull Hamlet famously clutches, yet they blaze with life.” Lily Janiak, San Francisco Chronicle
I was honored to recently receive two San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards for my work last year in California: I won the SFBATCC award for Principal Performance – Comedy for playing Arnold in “Torch Song” at Marin Theatre and I was among the winners of the SFBATCC award for Best Ensemble as part of the cast of “Angels in America” at Oakland Theater Project. An utter delight to be recognized for these two productions that meant so much to me. A very full heart today. Lots of gratitude to the SFBATCC!
“Angels in America” and “Torch Song” in one year?!?! I’m beyond humbled to have tackled two gay classics in 2024, playing Louis in Oakland Theater Project’s production of both parts of “Angels in America”, as well as playing Arnold in Marin Theatre’s “Torch Song”. These were true bucket list experiences.
But wait – there’s more! This past year I also traveled to Maine to act in Portland Stage’s production of “The Play That Goes Wrong”, and went to California to develop the opera “Least of My Children” through Berkeley Rep’s Ground Floor Summer Residency Lab.
Thank you to all of the above organizations for being my artistic homes in 2024. It was an honor and privilege to create and play with such extraordinary artists and friends. Happy New Year!
Prepare the way. The Great Work Begins. This is the big one, folks. I am currently playing Louis in “Angels in America” at Oakland Theater Project in California. Both “Part 1: Millennium Approaches” and “Part 2: Perestroika” are running in rep September 27th – October 27th. I’m over the moon excited about this one, y’all. Tickets and info can be found here, or click here for a video of me talking about “Angels” and its personal significance.
Here’s what the critics had to say about my performance:
“Linnard’s Louis could dig himself a tunnel of self-loathing to China, so deeply does he root his hands in his pockets; when he monologues about liberalism and the bourgeoisie and antisemitism and how race is politics, Linnard makes every “I mean” and “I think” into a riot of understatement.” Lily Janiak, San Francisco Chronicle
“The powerhouse performances of J Jha as Prior and Dean Linnard as Louis grounds the play’s central theme … Linnard’s portrayal of Louis skillfully embodies the universal conflict between love and fear that drives individuals to abandon the person they love the most … Oakland Theatre Company’s Angels in America remains a timeless exploration of the human psyche in crisis, a must-see for anyone and everyone.” Patricia L. Morin, Front Row Review
“The gay couple of Prior (sympathetic J Jha) and Louis (pitch perfect Dean Linnard) draw us into their crumbling love … Prior lies in the grave-like pit, calling out for help. But Louis is too busy struggling with his Jewish “guilt” and his gay “shame” – both beautifully depicted by Linnard … This is a superb production of our greatest play. Don’t miss Oakland Theater Project’s magnificent achievement.” Barry David Horwitz, Theatrius
“OTP’s production is graced by outstanding performances: Dean Linnard as the tortured Jewish boyfriend … this play stands as a timeless ode to life in all its wonder. Don’t miss the chance to see this masterpiece.” Corey Finnegan, Theatrius
I’m thrilled to announce that soon I’ll be returning to Berkeley Repertory Theatre (where I was a part of Dave Malloy’s “Octet” in 2022). I am among the over 100 local and national artists who will come together in the Summer Residency Lab of The Ground Floor: Berkeley Rep’s Center for the Creation and Development of New Work.
I will be workshopping a piece called “Least of My Children” that is very near and dear to me. Originally composed almost 40 years ago my late father, Loren Linnard, “Least of My Children” was miraculously rediscovered in a dusty old box during the pandemic after lying dormant since its creation. The opera was written during and about the AIDS crisis: it’s a stirring and timely meditation on love, family, heartbreak, miracles, and prestidigitation.
I’m collaborating with director Caterina Nonis, music supervisor Andy Peterson, and actor Jen Anaya on revitalizing this forgotten queer Classic for the present day. The entire team is overjoyed to be continuing our development process at Berkeley Rep’s Ground Floor in July! More information about “Least of My Children” can be found here.
Next up, I’m playing the lead role of Arnold in Harvey Fierstein’s seminal queer Classic “Torch Song” at Marin Theatre Company in beautiful Mill Valley, California. It is an honor of a lifetime to step into Harvey’s shoes (or bunny slippers – if you know you know) and inhabit the role he originated over 40 years ago. Directed by the fabulous Evren Odcikin, we run May 9th – June 2nd. A video preview of the show can be found here. Tickets and more information can be found here. Reviews below:
Here’s what the critics had to say about my performance:
“Dean Linnard as Arnold delivers a commanding, tour de force performance in Marin Theatre’s compelling and captivating staging of Harvey Fierstein’s Torch Song … [W]hat we get from this award-worthy performance is a genuine, believable look at the heart and soul, at the hopes and dreams, and at the hurts and angers of a drag queen we quickly come to love.” Eddie Reynolds, Theatre Eddys
“Linnard’s standout performance masterfully portrays Arnold’s loneliness and struggle to gain respect and honesty with cunning wit and exaggerated humor.” Patricia L. Morin, Front Row Review
“As Arnold, Dean Linnard is pitch perfect. His performance is compelling, deftly mixing hilarity and pathos—and every moment with him rings true.” Otto Coelho, Theatrestorm
“Bay Area native Linnard is amazing in his portrayal of the lovelorn Arnold … Linnard is tall and lean, which has him looking amazing in the drag queen’s gorgeous sequined gowns … Watching Linnard’s “Arnie” evolve is worth the price of admission.” Chuck Louden, Stage and Cinema
“Linnard delightfully depicts Arnold as a melancholy torch singer. He’s a gay revolutionary who simply wants to be a good parent. Linnard’s Arnold, a masterwork of complex comedy, is also a call to arms.” Barry David Horwitz, Theatrius
“Brilliantly channeling this funny, cynical, and often bitter character is Dean Linnard, an award-winning actor making his Marin Theatre debut. And what a debut it is – Linnard is captivating every moment he’s onstage and carries the weight of the production with an incandescent performance.” Steve Murray, Broadwayworld
“Making his Marin Theatre debut, Linnard shines in a quilted green bathrobe as the ever anxious Arnold Beckoff. Delivering his lines with a hint of Fierstein’s raspy Brooklyn baritone, Linnard’s Arnold is a force to behold as he navigates his way through a world that seemingly has no place for him … Presented with boundless energy, deft comic timing, and plenty of pathos, the heat of Fierstein’s words continues to burn bright in the capable hands of a cast that continually rises to the challenge of bringing to life this zany, substantive meditation on the gay experience.” Zack Ruskin, San Francisco Chronicle
I’m currently playing MAX in Portland Stage Company’s production of “The Play That Goes Wrong” here in beautiful Portland, Maine. It’s a joy to clown around with this incredible cast of fools, with the incomparable director Kevin R. Free at the helm. We run through February 25th; more info and tickets here.
Asolo Rep, a West Coast Premiere, and more! 2023 has been a thrilling year of creative adventures: I spent a season as part of the repertory company of Asolo Rep in Sarasota, Florida, performing in “The Three Musketeers” and “Chicken & Biscuits”. I played the title role in a staged reading of Euripides’ ancient Greek play “Ion” at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco, directed by Carey Perloff. And I played Kit Marlowe in Aurora Theatre Company‘s West Coast Premiere of Liz Duffy Adams’ play “Born With Teeth”, which was recently named by the San Francisco Chronicle as one of the Top 10 Theatre Productions of 2023. Here’s what San Fransisco Chronicle Theatre critic Lily Janiak had to say about my performance in her best theater of the year article:
“We Bay Area theater mavens have long noted the exceptional promise shown by actor and Berkeley native Dean Linnard — in “Groundhog Day” at San Francisco Playhouse, in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at California Shakespeare Theater. But Aurora Theatre Company’s West Coast premiere of Liz Duffy Adams’ two-hander, imagining the collaboration by William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe on the “Henry VI” trilogy, established him as a star. He sharpened every line of already taut dialogue, showing how each beat was an attack, a faux retreat, a come-on, a baring, a garrisoning. A play became a dance.” Lily Janiak, San Francisco Chronicle
I have deep appreciation for the above companies for being my artistic homes over this past year. As for 2024? Oooo mama, there are some exciting things in store. Watch this space …
