Giving his regards to Broadway
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| Robert Petkoff, seen here with Sarah Rosenthal, who plays his daughter, has a leading role in the Broadway production of “Ragtime,” which opened Nov. 15. Set in turn-of-the-century New York, “Ragtime” weaves together the stories of three different people — a stifled upper-class wife, a determined Jewish immigrant and a daring young Harlem musician. (Photo contributed) |
NEW YORK, N.Y. — The new Broadway production of “Ragtime” opened on Nov. 15, and a Princeton High School graduate was starring in a lead role as the Jewish immigrant, Tateh.
It might come as no surprise to anyone who attended PHS almost 30 years ago that Robert Petkoff was going to make it big.
Petkoff, who had done some theater at his previous high school, moved to Princeton in his sophomore year.
“It wasn’t really until I hit Princeton that I took it very seriously,” he said. “I had fun doing it, but it wasn’t anything I took very seriously until Mr. (Dan) Martinkus.”
When Petkoff moved to Princeton, PHS teacher Dan Martinkus was working on “My Fair Lady”, and the young actor was stunned by how professional everything was.
“Mr. Martinkus is not someone who’s there to say, ‘Well, great, we’re just here to have fun and games,’” Petkoff said. “He’s there to say, ‘You know, if you’re going to do something, do it right’ and that was the ethic he kind of instilled in me.”
Petkoff’s final production at PHS was “Camelot,” and he played King Arthur.
“I was very much into the Knights of the Round Table-type of thing, so when Martinkus announced it, I was over the moon,” Petkoff said.
So he snuck in a sword for his audition.
“I snuck one into school and hid it backstage, so when I went out to do my audition and the big speech, when he’s holding Excalibur, I snuck backstage and got my sword,” Petkoff said with a laugh. “I’m sure everyone was rolling their eyes like, ‘Oh God, here goes Petkoff again.’”
After graduating in 1981, Petkoff moved on to Illinois State University, where he majored in theater. After graduation, he moved to Chicago. Just a year later, he got a television pilot, and moved to Los Angeles, doing episodic TV such as “Mr. Belevidere” and “Quantum Leap” and the occasional film.
“I was mainly playing the boyfriend of the girl,” Petkoff said with another laugh.
After five years, he married Susan Wands, an actress playing opposite him in a play in San Diego, and moved to New York, which he called the best move he ever made.
“I am a theater beast, really,” he said. “It’s in my blood, and it’s what I love to do the most.”
Petkoff called theater a visceral experience.
“You get to share it with a live audience that is your scene partner,” he said. “They let you know whether you’re telling the story in a way they get it or not.”
Petkoff said acting on stage is an educational experience.
“Young actors very much want to cry on stage a lot,” he said. “But the fact is, when you’re crying on stage, the audience is not. You’re releasing that tension for the audience, whereas if you’re fighting tears, if you’re fighting that emotion, the audience can cry for you.”
Petkoff has worked with a variety of actors over the years, and said he’s particularly enjoyed working with Dame Judi Dench, Alfred Molina, Lynn Redgrave. He said that in addition to being amazing actors, they also treated everyone in the production with absolute respect.
And now, Petkoff is enjoying his time in “Ragtime.”
“It’s probably one of the best productions I’ve ever been in,” he said. “It’s a joy to do, and I’m very joyfully playing one of the starring roles.”
Petkoff isn’t looking too far into the future.
“You knock wood on a show like this that it runs for a couple of years,” he said. “As far as the career is concerned, this is the kind of a show and the kind of a role that helps you step one more step up the ladder, to the point where perhaps instead of auditioning for things, you’re just simply getting offers.”
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