Peter Friedman, a Tony nominee for his performance in the original Broadway production of Ragtime, is presented with the Actors’ Equity Foundation’s annual St. Clair Bayfield Award January 9 at Equity's Eastern Regional Membership Meeting in Manhattan.

Established in 1973 in memory of Equity member St. Clair Bayfield, the award honors the best performance in a supporting role by an actor in a Shakespearean play in the New York City metropolitan area. Friedman, who is being celebrated for his performance as Polonius in The Public Theater production of Hamlet, will receive a $1,000 check and an engraved crystal plaque.

Previous recipients of the award include Carmen DeLavalade, Dana Ivey, Charles Kimbrough, Nathan Lane, Brian Murray, Bradley Whitford, and, in 2016, Louis Cancelmi.


Friedman's New York theatre credits include Her Requiem, The Nether, Jacuzzi, Fly By Night, The Open House, The Hatmaker's Wife, End Days, Circle Mirror Transformation, Body Awareness, Uncle Vanya, The Shaggs, After the Revolution, The Great God Pan, The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island, The Heidi Chronicles, Ragtime, The Common Pursuit, A Soldier's Play, and a Nightingale Sang..., The Loman Family Picnic, and Twelve Angry Men.

The Judges for the Bayfield Award included Joe Dziemianowicz, Daily News; Adam Feldman, Time Out New York; Susan Haskins, Theater Talk; Harry Haun, The Observer; and David Rosenberg, Hearst Media.

(Updated January 9, 2017)