Mark Umbers (born 17 June 1973) is an English actor known for his work in theatre, films, and television.
Born in Harrogate, Yorkshire, Umbers was brought up in Wetherby. In 1991 he enrolled at Oxford University to study Latin and Greek Literature and Philosophy. He appeared in many student Shakespeare productions, as well as in George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, in which he played Freddy, a role he would reprise a decade later in My Fair Lady at the Royal National Theatre in London.
Umbers' first professional theatre engagement was in Joseph Papp's adaptation of The Pirates of Penzance at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. Director Trevor Nunn included him in the ensemble of the 1999 season at the Royal National Theatre, where he appeared in Candide, Troilus and Cressida, and The Merchant of Venice, which was filmed for broadcast by the BBC. Various television roles followed, including a lead in the BBC period drama The Scarlet Pimpernel opposite Richard E. Grant.
Following My Fair Lady, Umbers appeared in Noel Coward's The Vortex, directed by Michael Grandage at the Donmar Warehouse. The high-profile production led him to be cast in his first leading film role by Mike Barker, opposite Helen Hunt, Tom Wilkinson, and Scarlett Johansson in A Good Woman, an adaptation of Oscar Wilde's Lady Windermere's Fan. After playing opposite Anjelica Huston, Terence Stamp and Lauren Bacall in the British independent film These Foolish Things and with John Malkovich in Colour Me Kubrick, he played the lead role of Perkin Warbeck in Channel 4's historical drama Princes in the Tower.
A brief cameo in Woody Allen's Cassandra's Dream followed, after which director Rupert Goold cast Umbers as Jim O' Connor in Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie in the West End opposite Jessica Lange. He was longlisted for the Evening Standard Award Best Actor Award for his performance. Later that year Steven Soderbergh cast Umbers as British journalist George Roth in Che: Part Two.
The following year Umbers starred in Chichester Festival Theatre's 2008 revival of Funny Girl, playing Nick Arnstein opposite Samantha Spiro as Fanny Brice. Soon afterwards he played heart surgeon Dan Tate opposite Sarah Parish in the second series of the BBC1 drama Mistresses and The Master in the BBC1 2009 reworking of Henry James' The Turn of the Screw.
Umbers starred opposite Tamzin Outhwaite in the Menier Chocolate Factory's revival of Sweet Charity, playing Charlie, Vittorio Vidal and Oscar Lindquist: the first production to have cast the same actor in all the love-interest roles. The production opened on 2 December 2009 and transferred to the Theatre Royal Haymarket on 3 May 2010 where it ran for six months, closing on 6 November 2010.
[edit]External links
Mark Umbers at the Internet Movie Database
The Independent review of Sweet Charity 2010
Orlando Sentinel review of Sweet Charity 2010
The Times review of Sweet Charity 2010
Broadway World review of Sweet Charity 2010
Theater News Online review of Sweet Charity 2010
Official London Theatre Guide interview 2010
The Times review of Sweet Charity 2009
The Spectator review of Sweet Charity 2009
New York Times review of Sweet Charity 2009
The Financial Times review of Sweet Charity 2009
The Independent on Sunday review of Sweet Charity 2009
The Arts Desk Matt Wolf review of Sweet Charity 2009
Variety review of Sweet Charity 2009
The Independent review of Sweet Charity 2009
TNT Magazine review of Sweet Charity 2009
London Magazine review of Sweet Charity 2009
Sydney Morning Herald article on Princes in the Tower 2008
Variety review of Funny Girl 2008
Evening Standard review of Funny Girl 2008
The Sunday Times review of Funny Girl 2008
The Daily Telegraph review of Funny Girl 2008
Evening Standard Awards 2007 long list
2007 review West End theatre
The New York Times review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
The Sunday Times review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
Broadway.com review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
Variety review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
The Observer review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
Financial Times review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
Evening Standard review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
The Independent review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
Michael Coveney review of The Glass Menagerie 2007
Broadway.com interview 2007
Washington Post review of A Good Woman 2006
Evening Standard review of The Vortex 2003
The Independent on Sunday review of The Vortex 2003
Daily Express review of The Vortex 2003
Variety review of My Fair Lady 2001
Evening Standard article about My Fair Lady 2001
The Independent review of The Pirates of Penzance 2000