Ken Barnett ’94, pictured above with co-star Lisa O’Hare, is starring in the new Robert Freedman musical A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder.
After premiering October 12, Barnett’s show received a glowing review from Charles Isherwood of the New York Times, who does not dole out praise easily.
Isherwood writes that Barnett, who majored in theater at Wes, “finds just the right blend of perky propriety and gimlet-eyed opportunism as the jolly killer at the center of the show.”
Ken was on campus yesterday running a workshop for an acting class, where he raved about the opportunities 2nd Stage provides, saying that the sheer number of plays being produced benefited him more than perhaps anything else at Wes. He also alluded to the legendary Wesleyan Mafia and the opportunities being a Wes alum has provided him, because Wes “made me smart.”
Barnett has previously worked on Broadway alongside Brooke Shields, and acted for the disaster-prone legendary Julie Taymor in the commedia dell’arte piece The Green Bird.
Perhaps Barnett’s role that I most envy is January Jones’ doctor on Mad Men. The actor has also appeared in Entourage, Grey’s Anatomy, Monk, and even our favorite Wes alums‘ How I Met Your Mother. (Episode: 2007’s The Bracket, Character: Colton Dunn. UPDATE 5:01pm He appears in the bar, making an advance on Robin, which she is flattered by. Generally portrayed in a very favorable light.)
A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder runs through November 11 at the Hartford Stage, after which all signs indicate it will open in New York some time in 2013.