Whit Hertford

His film began at an early age, most notably with his appearance in Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park.[1] In 2009 and 2010 he recurred as "Officer / Detective Ross" on the FOX comedy Raising Hope and as the tyrannical rival choreographer Dakota Stanley during the first season of Glee.[2][3] Other TV credits include Psych, various appearances on Conan and as the voice of Cadet Kryze on Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

In 2009 he co-founded the independent film company Sneak Attack with director Ryan Darst. Their American New Wave short and full-length films (written by Hertford) have screened at festivals in the US and Europe, including the premiere of the revenge short film Wildlife at Cannes Film Festival (2015) in the "Short Film Corner", which is not affiliated with the Festival de Cannes Official Short Film Competition, or the main Cannes Film Festival. The "Short Film Corner" film market screens all entries that pay the required entry fee.[4] The production shot all on location in rural Utah and co-stars Jon Heder, Lauren Lapkus and is scored by Joshua James.

In 2014 he received Best Actor awards for his work as geneticist Jesse Darden in the science fiction independent feature film The Perfect 46[5] from the Other Worlds Film Festival in Austin, Texas and Filmquest Film Festival in Salt Lake City, Utah.

In 2015, he portrayed Charles Manson in the coming of age 1960s era thriller Prettyface.[6]

He received an MFA in theatre directing from The University of Essex's East 15 in London. He also studied in Moscow at the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts (GITIS).

He is the artistic director of the theatre company Riot Act, founded in the UK in 2015.[7][8]

He was an Associate Director at Theatre N16 in South London. He is a member of the Young Vic Directors Programme and was an invitee director of Toneelgroep Amsterdam.

Directing credits include Blindness and Periphery of Sight (as writer and actor as well) based on Sophocles' Oedipus cycle. His passion for Anton Chekhov and his time in Moscow led to his radical adaptions and direction of the major works including: Bad Person (Platonov), Mopey Wrecks (Three Sisters), Poor Bastard (Ivanov), The Misbegotten Hope of the Dirty Bird* (The Seagull). He's also adapted and directed Ibsen's An Enemy of the People, and directed the Shakespearean adaptations: Høüses, an immersive LGBTQA version of Romeo and Juliet, and Dóttir* - a tragedy that explores seven of Shakespeare's motherless daughter archetypes. Additionally, Whit directed the US regional premiere of Annie Baker's The Aliens, the 2016 critically acclaimed[9] contemporary production of Henrik Ibsen's The League of Youth (in only its third UK production since publication in 1870) and a London fringe run of Coverage, a newsroom retelling of Julius Caesar - both by Canadian playwright Ashley Pearson. Other directing credits include the debuts of his original plays: Lunatic, a nü gothic psychological thriller based on Bram Stoker's Dracula, Anatomy of Arithmetic*, Bloke and Hero & Leander - adapted from Christopher Marlowe.

He has directed at the Arcola Theatre and Southwark Playhouse in London. He served as an Associate Director at The Courtyard Theatre, in Hoxton East London where he was artistic director of Versions, a month long festival of classical adaptations and devised theatre in commemoration of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare.

His other plays include: Post Modern, Science Fiction, Albatross, The Heinrich Maneuver, The Space Program, Meridian, Captive Audience, Future Generations, Travel Guide to Wherever, Lés Maids (a new translation of Genet's play)Hateful Deeds (a restructuring of Richard III) and his other Chekhovian adaptations, Rotten Fruit (The Cherry Orchard) and Gross Old Man (Uncle Vanya).

As an actor he has performed in the following productions: Blindness and Periphery of Sight (Oedipus), The Aliens (regional premiere - KJ), Anatomy of Arithmetic (UK production - Ratio TV),Three Sisters (Solyony), Ibsen's An Enemy of the People (Aslaksen), True West (Austin) A Midsummer Night's Dream (Bottom), Twelfth Night (Malvolio), The Tempest (Caliban), Measure for Measure (Lucio), Hamlet (Gravedigger).

From 2005 to 2011, Hertford was a member of the Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles as a sketch writer, performer and improviser.

He holds a BFA from the Actor Training Program at the University of Utah.

Whit Hertford is also an abstract painter.

2022

• Blindness and Periphery of Sight by Whit Hertford based on Sophocles Oedipus trilogy, Frogtown Studios, East Los Angeles (US).
• Lés Maids in a new translation by Whit Hertford after Jean Genet, Frogtown Studios, East Los Angeles (US)(*workshops).
• Bad Person by Whit Hertford adapted from Platonov after Chekhov, Studio/Stage, Los Angeles (US).

2019

• Anatomy of Arithmetic by Whit Hertford, Ember SLC (US)

2018

• Mopey Wrecks - an adaptation of Three Sisters by Whit Hertford after Anton Chekhov, Ember SLC (US)
• The Aliens - by Annie Baker, Ember SLC, (US)[10]

2017

• An Enemy of the People - by Whit Hertford after Henrik Ibsen, CUAC Art Gallery, (US)
• Høüses - an LGBTQ modern reimagining of Romeo and Juliet (adapted), Kilby Court, (US)[11]
• Poor Bastard an adaptation of Ivanov by Whit Hertford after Anton Chekhov, CUAC Art Gallery, (US)

2016

• Lunatic by Whit Hertford, based on Bram Stoker's Dracula, Theatre N16, Balham South London
• The Sting by Suzette Coon (co-dir), Southwark Playhouse, South London
• The League of Youth by Ashley Pearson after Henrik Ibsen, Theatre N16, Balham South London
• Anatomy of Arithmetic by Whit Hertford, The Courtyard Theatre, Hoxton East London
• Coverage a new version of Julius Caesar by Ashley Pearson, The Courtyard Theatre, Hoxton East London
• Dóttir by Whit Hertford, The Courtyard Theatre, Hoxton East London

2015

• The Misbegotten Hope of the Dirty Bird an adaptation of The Seagull by Whit Hertford after Anton Chekhov, The Courtyard Theatre, Hoxton East London
• Bloke by Whit Hertford, East 15, Essex UK
• Hero + Leander by Whit Hertford adapted from the poem by Christopher Marlowe, East 15, Essex UK
• 13 by Mike Bartlett (asst. dir.), East 15, Essex UK
• Bricks and Bones by Hannah Roger (co-dir.), Arcola Theatre, East London
• Holy, Holy, Shadow devised by The Stage Standard + Concierge Theatre, London, UK

Additional directing credits:

• Fool For Love by Sam Shepard, The Stage Standard, Salt Lake City, UT
• Bright Ideas by Eric Coble, University of Utah (regional debut)
• Twelfth Night by Wm. Shakespeare (asst. dir), Salt Lake Shakespeare, Salt Lake City, UT

• Whit Hertford at IMDb