|
"Hell, I suppose if you stick around long enough they have to say something nice about you."
—Ava Gardner |
Press: Actor
Billy Elliot The Musical (Berkeley Playhouse)
Theatre Bay Area Finalist: Outstanding Male Actor in a Musical
"Ken Sonkin is heartbreaking as Billy’s downtrodden father; torn between his image of a ‘real’ man and his son’s pursuit of ballet and the potential loss of his mining job and earning ability." --For All Events
Theatre Bay Area Finalist: Outstanding Male Actor in a Musical
"Ken Sonkin is heartbreaking as Billy’s downtrodden father; torn between his image of a ‘real’ man and his son’s pursuit of ballet and the potential loss of his mining job and earning ability." --For All Events
Billy Elliot The Musical (Berkeley Playhouse)
Theatre Bay Area Recommended Production
"There are so many standouts in this show that it’s impossible to name them all, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Ken Sonkin (dad), Melinda Meeng (Mum) and Taylor Bartolucci (Mrs. Wilkinson)." --East Bay Times
Theatre Bay Area Recommended Production
"There are so many standouts in this show that it’s impossible to name them all, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Ken Sonkin (dad), Melinda Meeng (Mum) and Taylor Bartolucci (Mrs. Wilkinson)." --East Bay Times
Billy Elliot The Musical (Berkeley Playhouse)
"The capable Ken Sonkin plays Billy’s father, and, of course, comes across as one of the many villains, but later brings the father/son love in the show with a touching heart pulling moment. Sonkin wonderfully encourages the future of his son in “He Could Be A Star” with the miners." --Vmedia
"The capable Ken Sonkin plays Billy’s father, and, of course, comes across as one of the many villains, but later brings the father/son love in the show with a touching heart pulling moment. Sonkin wonderfully encourages the future of his son in “He Could Be A Star” with the miners." --Vmedia
Billy Elliot The Musical (Berkeley Playhouse)
"Young Billy Elliot, the lyrical and talented Matthew Dean, is full of humility, charm, and innocence, as he slowly learns from Mrs. W. how to move, how to express himself—even though his Dad (a powerful Ken Sonkin) won’t hear about dancing, of all things!"
--Theatrius
"Young Billy Elliot, the lyrical and talented Matthew Dean, is full of humility, charm, and innocence, as he slowly learns from Mrs. W. how to move, how to express himself—even though his Dad (a powerful Ken Sonkin) won’t hear about dancing, of all things!"
--Theatrius
American Buffalo (Sonoma County Repertory Theater)
Best of the North Bay
"In American Buffalo, something truly remarkable took place, with Sonkin, as the increasingly unstable, ever-twitching burglar Teach, giving one of the most electrifying performances the North Bay has seen in years." --The Bohemian
Best of the North Bay
"In American Buffalo, something truly remarkable took place, with Sonkin, as the increasingly unstable, ever-twitching burglar Teach, giving one of the most electrifying performances the North Bay has seen in years." --The Bohemian
Cabaret (Pennsylvania Centre Stage)
"Rounding out the principals, Ken Sonkin, hilarious last season in a multifarious, gender-bending turn in Sylvia, was a natural choice for the multifaceted, gender-bending role of the emcee, which Joel Grey originated on Broadway and later made famous in the movie. He’s particularly good at portraying the comic menace of this character who embodies both the surface glitz of Weimar Germany and the creeping fascist rot underneath it." --Voices
"Rounding out the principals, Ken Sonkin, hilarious last season in a multifarious, gender-bending turn in Sylvia, was a natural choice for the multifaceted, gender-bending role of the emcee, which Joel Grey originated on Broadway and later made famous in the movie. He’s particularly good at portraying the comic menace of this character who embodies both the surface glitz of Weimar Germany and the creeping fascist rot underneath it." --Voices
Max and Maxie (Grove Theater Company, LA)
"Max and Maxie (loosely based on the story of Bert Lahr, Notes on a Cowardly Lion) turned out to be a tiny gem of a play with a very big heart. Sonkin's 'Max' ranges from twenty something to sixty something, often in the passage of a heartbeat. Because he can't rely on makeup or costume, Sonkin manages this transformation the old fashioned way: he acts. As the young 'Max,' he uses his elastic body to convey the peppy nature of a goodhearted man who still wants to succeed at any cost; as the older 'Max,' he uses his voice to command respect and sympathy." --OC Weekly
"Max and Maxie (loosely based on the story of Bert Lahr, Notes on a Cowardly Lion) turned out to be a tiny gem of a play with a very big heart. Sonkin's 'Max' ranges from twenty something to sixty something, often in the passage of a heartbeat. Because he can't rely on makeup or costume, Sonkin manages this transformation the old fashioned way: he acts. As the young 'Max,' he uses his elastic body to convey the peppy nature of a goodhearted man who still wants to succeed at any cost; as the older 'Max,' he uses his voice to command respect and sympathy." --OC Weekly
Bullshot Crummond (Center REPertory Company)
"Ken Sonkin nails all the other characters, and there are a lot of them: the abused waiter, the mafioso, the Professor, the deranged henchman, you name it... the actors are definitely the funniest thing about this show, with their impeccable timing and complete physical commitment." --East Bay Times
"Ken Sonkin nails all the other characters, and there are a lot of them: the abused waiter, the mafioso, the Professor, the deranged henchman, you name it... the actors are definitely the funniest thing about this show, with their impeccable timing and complete physical commitment." --East Bay Times
Bullshot Crummond (Center REPertory Company)
"Sonkin, who plays what seems like a dozen different roles, was wonderfully hilarious, creating unique characterizations -- from a midget patrolman to a secretly German police inspector -- that were all stunning, scene-stealing gems." --Contra Cost Times
"Sonkin, who plays what seems like a dozen different roles, was wonderfully hilarious, creating unique characterizations -- from a midget patrolman to a secretly German police inspector -- that were all stunning, scene-stealing gems." --Contra Cost Times
Bullshot Crummond (Center REPertory Company)
"Bullshot is assisted by Algernon Longwort (Ken Sonkin) a Watson-esque character. Sonkin plays a plethora of characters, in fact, all the other characters in the show. While the acting is superb by all the principal actors, Sonkin is the most vital piece in this production's success. He is so clever and varied in his many characterizations, that I found myself looking for another page in the program to describe who played all the other characters. Even at the end of the show, I kept telling myself, this one guy could not possibly played all those other people. Sonkin is simply superlative!" --Rossmoor News
"Bullshot is assisted by Algernon Longwort (Ken Sonkin) a Watson-esque character. Sonkin plays a plethora of characters, in fact, all the other characters in the show. While the acting is superb by all the principal actors, Sonkin is the most vital piece in this production's success. He is so clever and varied in his many characterizations, that I found myself looking for another page in the program to describe who played all the other characters. Even at the end of the show, I kept telling myself, this one guy could not possibly played all those other people. Sonkin is simply superlative!" --Rossmoor News
Bullshot Crummond (Center REPertory Company)
"Ken Sonkin walks away with the show in seven - count `em - seven roles. First he's Bullshot's Watson-like sidekick 'Algernon.' Next he's a brilliant scientist who has discovered a way to create diamonds. Before the show is over, he's also a miniature cop investigating the scientist's disappearance, a stuffy tea room waiter, a crazy hunchback and a German master of disguise impersonating a one-armed inspector from Scotland Yard." --Oakland Tribune
"Ken Sonkin walks away with the show in seven - count `em - seven roles. First he's Bullshot's Watson-like sidekick 'Algernon.' Next he's a brilliant scientist who has discovered a way to create diamonds. Before the show is over, he's also a miniature cop investigating the scientist's disappearance, a stuffy tea room waiter, a crazy hunchback and a German master of disguise impersonating a one-armed inspector from Scotland Yard." --Oakland Tribune
Six Degrees of Separation (San Francisco Playhouse)
"They are entertaining a rich and influential white South African man (Ken Sonkin) who intends to broker a very expensive two-sided Kandinsky painting. Sonkin gives a splendid performances as the South African magnate 'Geoffrey' and 'Dr. Fine.'" --Talkin' Broadway
"They are entertaining a rich and influential white South African man (Ken Sonkin) who intends to broker a very expensive two-sided Kandinsky painting. Sonkin gives a splendid performances as the South African magnate 'Geoffrey' and 'Dr. Fine.'" --Talkin' Broadway
Tossing Monte (450 Geary Studio Theatre)
"Then, into their lives comes 'Jack' (Ken Sonkin), a roving three-card monte shark who claims that he's been signed on as a magician by Regina's absent dad. 'Jack' ( "I'm a magician; I make things happen" ) is obviously a con man who handles his cards with magical dexterity. The play has a quirky sense of humor that plays out very nicely in scenes such as a conversation eloquently carried on by Hecht and Sonkin entirely in grunts. Hecht and Sonkin play some of the showdowns with a knowing, watchful intensity that draws us into the action." --SF Chronicle
"Then, into their lives comes 'Jack' (Ken Sonkin), a roving three-card monte shark who claims that he's been signed on as a magician by Regina's absent dad. 'Jack' ( "I'm a magician; I make things happen" ) is obviously a con man who handles his cards with magical dexterity. The play has a quirky sense of humor that plays out very nicely in scenes such as a conversation eloquently carried on by Hecht and Sonkin entirely in grunts. Hecht and Sonkin play some of the showdowns with a knowing, watchful intensity that draws us into the action." --SF Chronicle
The Real Inspector Hound (Pennsylvania Centre Stage)
"...with fun and frivolity,The Real Inspector Hound explores the theatricality of....well, theatricality, of course. George Dzundza, Bradley Dean White, Joshua Leonard, Harmony Schuttler, Peggy Scott, Bellamy Young, and the irrepressible Ken Sonkin as the oh-so- stuffy, wheelchair-bound 'Magnus Muldoon.' First rate and should not be missed." --Centre Daily Times
"...with fun and frivolity,The Real Inspector Hound explores the theatricality of....well, theatricality, of course. George Dzundza, Bradley Dean White, Joshua Leonard, Harmony Schuttler, Peggy Scott, Bellamy Young, and the irrepressible Ken Sonkin as the oh-so- stuffy, wheelchair-bound 'Magnus Muldoon.' First rate and should not be missed." --Centre Daily Times
The Tempest (Grove Shakespeare Festival, LA)
"Ken Sonkin, dressed in a tux, plays some very witty magic tricks out front before curtain, before he metamorphoses into a spritely onstage 'Ariel' (Sonkin is an acrobat as well as a magician, and he's a real find for the theater). There's an energy and joyousness to Sonkin's 'Ariel' that makes the part, in relation to the rest of this production, an added blessing." --LA Times
"Ken Sonkin, dressed in a tux, plays some very witty magic tricks out front before curtain, before he metamorphoses into a spritely onstage 'Ariel' (Sonkin is an acrobat as well as a magician, and he's a real find for the theater). There's an energy and joyousness to Sonkin's 'Ariel' that makes the part, in relation to the rest of this production, an added blessing." --LA Times
The Mystery of Irma Vep (Sonoma County Repertory Theater)
"Scott Phillips and Ken Sonkin not only play seven characters between them but give a great comic performance in every role. Each actor is required to change costumes, characters and even genders between his exit on one side of the stage and his almost immediate re-entry on the other side. That would be funny enough, but Phillips and Sonkin make each of the characters consistently comic in his, (or her!) own way. The actors would deserve some praise for their accomplishment if all they did was keep all the bits of business straight, but they do much more than that. They get all the roles right as well. Sonkin's hunchback wins sympathy as well as laughs, and as the trembling bride, he earns concern as well as smirks. During a fast-paced, madcap two hours, the pair also portray, between the two of them, a fez-wearing guide with a Peter Lorre accent, a long-entombed Egyptian princess and a mysterious intruder. Each character has great moments. The guide, for example, swears in Middle Eastern menu items: "Falafel!'' "Couscous!'' If you're hoping for a probing contemplation of the human condition you'll have to wait for another show, but as Stephen Sondheim once wrote, "Tragedy tomorrow, comedy tonight.'' --Press Democrat
"Scott Phillips and Ken Sonkin not only play seven characters between them but give a great comic performance in every role. Each actor is required to change costumes, characters and even genders between his exit on one side of the stage and his almost immediate re-entry on the other side. That would be funny enough, but Phillips and Sonkin make each of the characters consistently comic in his, (or her!) own way. The actors would deserve some praise for their accomplishment if all they did was keep all the bits of business straight, but they do much more than that. They get all the roles right as well. Sonkin's hunchback wins sympathy as well as laughs, and as the trembling bride, he earns concern as well as smirks. During a fast-paced, madcap two hours, the pair also portray, between the two of them, a fez-wearing guide with a Peter Lorre accent, a long-entombed Egyptian princess and a mysterious intruder. Each character has great moments. The guide, for example, swears in Middle Eastern menu items: "Falafel!'' "Couscous!'' If you're hoping for a probing contemplation of the human condition you'll have to wait for another show, but as Stephen Sondheim once wrote, "Tragedy tomorrow, comedy tonight.'' --Press Democrat
25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Seacoast Repertory Theatre, NH)
"The adults are: former Bee champ Rona Lisa Peretti, Ashley Kelley; school Vice Principal Douglas Panch, Ken Sonkin, and community-service 'comfort counselor' Mitch Mahoney, Kevin Smith Kirkwood. Ken Sonkin is perfect as Panch, just the right amount of droll and drool." --Seacoast Online
"The adults are: former Bee champ Rona Lisa Peretti, Ashley Kelley; school Vice Principal Douglas Panch, Ken Sonkin, and community-service 'comfort counselor' Mitch Mahoney, Kevin Smith Kirkwood. Ken Sonkin is perfect as Panch, just the right amount of droll and drool." --Seacoast Online
Sylvia (Pennsylvania Centre Stage)
"Ken Sonkin handles all the play's secondary roles, switching characters--and genders--with an aplomb that would make Mike Meyers jealous." --Voices
"Ken Sonkin handles all the play's secondary roles, switching characters--and genders--with an aplomb that would make Mike Meyers jealous." --Voices
The Mystery of Irma Vep (Pennsylvania Centre Stage)
"Gender-bending brilliance. Actors Dan Matisa (The Immigrant, Taming of the Shrew) and Ken Sonkin (Twelfth Night, American Buffalo) dash about the stage in a mad fury to the audiences delight. In total, Irma Vep includes eight roles, (all acted by Matisa and Sonkin), 14 costumes, eight wigs, 10 hats and headdresses and 48 -- dare I repeat -- 48 costume changes. The eclectic duo plays each character with resilience and spunk, creating a humorous pair that is easy to watch. Keeping speed with the play's fast pace, the two hardly appear frazzled from the wear and tare of changing costumes so frequently: an impressive feat, considering how the actors run about. Fun, extravagant and bound with laughs, director Brant Pope brings The Mystery of Irma Vep to the stage with an accurate depiction of Ludlum's brilliance. A must-see show!" --Centre Daily Times
"Gender-bending brilliance. Actors Dan Matisa (The Immigrant, Taming of the Shrew) and Ken Sonkin (Twelfth Night, American Buffalo) dash about the stage in a mad fury to the audiences delight. In total, Irma Vep includes eight roles, (all acted by Matisa and Sonkin), 14 costumes, eight wigs, 10 hats and headdresses and 48 -- dare I repeat -- 48 costume changes. The eclectic duo plays each character with resilience and spunk, creating a humorous pair that is easy to watch. Keeping speed with the play's fast pace, the two hardly appear frazzled from the wear and tare of changing costumes so frequently: an impressive feat, considering how the actors run about. Fun, extravagant and bound with laughs, director Brant Pope brings The Mystery of Irma Vep to the stage with an accurate depiction of Ludlum's brilliance. A must-see show!" --Centre Daily Times
California Schemin' (Sacramento Theatre Company)
"...written and directed by Ron House, Ken Sonkin pulls off some of the funniest stuff as the leather-jacketed 'Nobby,' especially when he speaks Spanish in his working- class London accent. ...physical bits, pratfalls and the like, Sonkin's plunge through a trap door may be the slickest. Sonkin doubles rather delightfully, too, as a local gay activist and politician on roller-skates, 'Harvey Martin.' That role is written as a stereotype, yes, but he brings it sweetly to life." --Sacramento Bee
"...written and directed by Ron House, Ken Sonkin pulls off some of the funniest stuff as the leather-jacketed 'Nobby,' especially when he speaks Spanish in his working- class London accent. ...physical bits, pratfalls and the like, Sonkin's plunge through a trap door may be the slickest. Sonkin doubles rather delightfully, too, as a local gay activist and politician on roller-skates, 'Harvey Martin.' That role is written as a stereotype, yes, but he brings it sweetly to life." --Sacramento Bee
Popcorn (Pacific Alliance Stage Company)
"Ken Sonkin, however, delivers a top-drawer performance as the conflicted film director Bruce Delamitri, your Type A Hollywood stereotype--crass, fast-talking, and ingeniously charismatic. Take a gander at Sonkin's headshot hanging in the theater's lobby and behold the striking physical transformation Sonkin undergoes for this part--peroxide, Van Dyke goatee, super tan. Sonkin's performance is the only reason to see this living-history museum of mid-'90s American cinema." --MetroActive
"Ken Sonkin, however, delivers a top-drawer performance as the conflicted film director Bruce Delamitri, your Type A Hollywood stereotype--crass, fast-talking, and ingeniously charismatic. Take a gander at Sonkin's headshot hanging in the theater's lobby and behold the striking physical transformation Sonkin undergoes for this part--peroxide, Van Dyke goatee, super tan. Sonkin's performance is the only reason to see this living-history museum of mid-'90s American cinema." --MetroActive
The Comedy of Errors (Marin Shakespeare Company)
"The impressive set….all of the actors with speaking parts are not only professional, but good in their roles. Paul Sulzman as Antipholus is excellent….Ken Sonkin is a fine Dromio. His athletic skills are breathtaking – downright frightening at times…. not-to-be-missed theatrical event….an abundance of extraneous and anachronistic schtick – and it all works. ...a high-energy, theatrically effective production – that makes this silly play soar." --Marin Scope
"The impressive set….all of the actors with speaking parts are not only professional, but good in their roles. Paul Sulzman as Antipholus is excellent….Ken Sonkin is a fine Dromio. His athletic skills are breathtaking – downright frightening at times…. not-to-be-missed theatrical event….an abundance of extraneous and anachronistic schtick – and it all works. ...a high-energy, theatrically effective production – that makes this silly play soar." --Marin Scope
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
