Kristine E. Nielsen (born May 28, 1955)Date of birth, familysearch.org; accessed May 31, 2014. is an American actress known for her work on Broadway and Off-Broadway. Nielsen was nominated for the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her performance as Sonia in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike and the 2019 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus.
Personal life Nielsen grew up in the Washington, D.C., and Bethesda, Maryland, areas, the daughter of Homer Nielsen (1912–2005), who was born in the Philippines, and Eloise (née Gerard) Nielsen (1918–2009). Her mother, a Democrat, worked in government, at one point for president Jimmy Carter, and her father was a U.S. Navy captain. The family spent summers on Cape Cod.Soloski, Alexis. "Theater Special. Kristine Nielsen Delights in Durang" The New York Times, May 8, 2013 Her sister was Karen (Nielsen) Grammaticas (1951–2007), wife of Dr. Andrew Grammaticas."Dr Andrew Grammaticas" healthgrades.com, accessed May 17, 2013"Karen (Nielsen) Grammaticas Obituary" capecodonline.com, accessed May 17, 2013. Her paternal grandfather was Harold Nielsen (1879–1958), who fought in World War I and had Danish ancestry. Her great-grandfather, Lewis Gerard (1833–1914), was an immigrant from France who fought for the Union in the Civil War."Obituary Eloise Evelyn Nielsen legacy.com
She trained at Northwestern University (B.A) and the Yale School of Drama (M.F.A). At Yale her classmates included Frances McDormand and Tony Shalhoub.Sheridan, Patricia. "Kristine Nielsen" old.post-gazette.com (Pittsburgh, Pa), December 9, 2002, accessed May 17, 2013Hernandez, Ernio. "Playbill.Com'S CUE & A: Kristine Nielsen" playbill.com, April 29, 2008 She is married to actor Brent Langdon.
Career
Broadway
Nielsen has appeared in several Broadway shows. Her first appearance was in the 1985 production of The Iceman Cometh as Pearl. She next appeared in Jackie: An American Life (1997) playing various characters, including Rose Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe."'Jackie' Cast Listing" playbillvault.com, accessed May 17, 2013 In 2000 she played the role of Ninetta in a new production of The Green Bird.Sommer, Elyse and Gutman, Les. "A CurtainUp Review 'The Green Bird' " curtainup.com, April 27, 2000 In 2005, she played Eunice Hubbell opposite Natasha Richardson's Blanche Dubois and Amy Ryan's Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire. In 2008 she played Madame de Volanges opposite Laura Linney as Marquise de Merteuil in Dangerous LiaisonsBrantley, Ben. "Theater Review. 'Les Liaisons Dangereuses'", The New York Times, May 2, 2008. and also played Anna in To Be or Not to Be. In 2010 she played The Storyteller in Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson."People Kristine Nielson" broadwayworld.com"Kristine Nielsen on Getting Bloody on Broadway and Touching Ben Walkers Butt", broadway.com. Accessed August 3, 2022."Nielsen and Wingert star in Guthrie Theaters 'Arsenic And Old Lace'", broadwayworld.com. Accessed August 3, 2022.
She later appeared on Broadway in Christopher Durang's play Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike as Sonia. For this role, Nielsen was nominated for the 2013 Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Play.Gans, Andrew. "Sigourney Weaver, David Hyde Pierce, Kristine Nielsen Cast in World Premiere of 'Vanya and Sonia...'" playbill.com, June 29, 2012.Gans, Andrew. Nominations Announced for 67th Annual Tony Awards; Kinky Boots Earns 13 Nominations" playbill.com, April 30, 2013.
In 2014, she returned to Broadway, playing the role of Penny Sycamore in You Can't Take It with You. She played the role until the show closed on February 22, 2015, after 169 performances. In 2017, she played the role of Monica Reed in the limited run of Present Laughter, along with Kevin Kline and Cobie Smulders.
Off-Broadway Nielsen has appeared in numerous Off-Broadway shows. She won an Obie Award for Best Actress for her role as Madeline Newell in Dog Opera (1995). Nielsen won the Obie and a Drama Desk Award nomination for Best Featured ActressLefkowitz, David and Jones, Kenneth and Ku, Andrew. "List of 1999 Drama Desk Winners" playbill.com, May 9, 1999 for her role as Mrs. Siezmagraff in Betty's Summer Vacation (1999) by Christopher Durang. Her first Off-Broadway appearance was in a 1984 New York Shakespeare Festival production of Henry V at the Delacorte Theater in which she played Mistress Quickly.Rich, Frank. "Stage: 'Henry V' Takes Field In Central Park" The New York Times, July 6, 1984 In 1988 she appeared opposite Laura Dern in The Palace of Amateurs.
In 2005, Nielsen starred as Veronica in Christopher Durang's play Miss Witherspoon at Playwrights Horizons.Brantley, Ben. "Theater Review. 'Miss Witherspoon' " The New York Times, November 30, 2005 In 2007 she played the lead role of Mary in Crazy Mary by A. R. Gurney at Playwrights Horizons, also starring Sigourney Weaver.Brantley, Ben. "Theater Review. 'Crazy Mary' " The New York Times, June 4, 2007 Nielsen portrayed Bootsie Carp in the 2007–08 production of Charles Busch's Die, Mommie, Die! at New World Stages. She has also appeared at the Guthrie Theater and in many regional theatre productions."Kristine Nielson" guthrietheater.org, accessed May 17, 2013
Film
Nielsen's first film appearance was in the 1999 film Advice from a Caterpillar. She next played the role of Emily Bailey in the Woody Allen film Small Time Crooks (2000)."'Small Time Crooks' Xast" movies.tvguide.com, accessed May 17, 2013 She has since appeared in the 2007 film The Savages starring Laura Linney, 2010's Morning Glory starring Rachel McAdams, and That's What She Said (2012)."Kristine Nielsen Biography" filmreference.com, accessed May 17, 2013
Television Nielsen's first television appearance was on a 1990 episode of Tales from the Crypt. She has also appeared on Third Watch, Conviction, two episodes of Law and Order, and three episodes of Political Animals as Alice, starring Sigourney Weaver.
In 2022, Nielsen starred in The Gilded Age on HBO.
Stage YearTitleRoleVenueRef.1985The Iceman ComethPearlBroadway, Lunt-Fontanne Theatre1997JackieMartha Bartlett, Rose Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, Sander VanocerBroadway, Belasco Theatre1999Betty's Summer VacationMrs. SiezmagraffOff-Broadway, Playwrights Horizons2000The Green BirdNinettaBroadway, Cort Theatre2005A Streetcar Named DesireEunice HubbelBroadway, Studio 542008Spring AwakeningAdult WomanBroadway, Eugene O'Neill TheatreLes Liaisons DangereusesMadame de VolangesBroadway, American Airlines TheatreTo Be or Not To BeAnnaBroadway, Samuel J. Friedman Theatre2009Why Torture Is Wrong, and the People Who love ThemLuellaOff-Broadway, The Public Theater2010Bloody Bloody Andrew JacksonThe StorytellerBroadway, Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre2013Vanya and Sonia and Masha and SpikeSoniaBroadway, John Golden Theatre2014You Can't Take It With YouPenelope SycamoreBroadway, Longacre Theatre2017Present LaughterMonica ReedBroadway, St. James Theatre2019Gary: A Sequel to Titus AndronicusJaniceBroadway, Booth Theatre2025SmashSusan ProctorBroadway, Imperial Theatre2025Archduke (play)SladjanaOff-Broadway, Laura Pels Theater
Awards and nominations AwardYearCategoryWorkResultRef.Tony Awards2013Best Actress in a PlayVanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike2019Best Featured Actress in a PlayGary: A Sequel to Titus AndronicusDrama Desk Awards1999Outstanding Featured Actress in a PlayBetty's Summer VacationOuter Critics Circle Awards1999Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play2009Why Torture is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them2013Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
References
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