QUICK CAREER TIMELINE               STAGE TIMELINE

FULL BIOGRAPHY:
Philip Quast began his career at the State Theatre Company of South Australia, having graduated from Australia's premiere drama school, NIDA (National Institute of Dramatic Arts), in 1979. His extensive career has included work with Sydney, Melbourne and Nimrod Theatre Companies. In the early 80s he appeared in The Mystery Plays of Wakefield (as Adam), On The Wallaby, No End of Blame, The Threepenny Opera (as the Narrator), A Hard God (as Jack), As You Like It (as Orlando), Pericles (as Gower) and A Month In The Country.

His other Australian theatre credits include Candide (Nimrod Theatre Company, 1982), Shark Infested Waters, Song of the Selchies (1983, as Flysche), Carmen - Another Perspective (Melbourne Theatre Company, 1983) and The Marriage/Hamlet (Adelaide Festival, 1986, as Henry/Laertes).

Philip Quast shot to prominence in 1987 as Javert in the original Australian production of Les Misérables in Sydney and New Zealand, a performance which won him a Sydney Critics Award and a MO Award.

His performance was so successful that in 1989 he traveled to London to play the same role on the West End stage and was chosen to sing on the international cast recording with the London Symphony Orchestra. He also joined the 'Dream Cast' as Javert in the Tenth Anniversary Concert at the Royal Albert Hall in October 1995 and 1998 saw one final performance in the famous role for Hey, Mr Producer!, a concert honouring producer Cameron Mackintosh.

Quast won an Olivier Award for his performance as George in Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George at the Royal National Theatre in 1990. His other West End credits include Mike Batt's The Hunting of the Snark (1991), recreating the role he first performed in the Australian concert version of the show.

In 1993, he returned to Australia, playing Aufidius in Gale Edwards' production of Coriolanus and The Wolf/Cinderella's Prince in Sondheim's Into the Woods, for the Sydney Theatre Company.

Gale Edwards also directed him as Dunois in Bernard Shaw's Saint Joan in the West End and on a UK tour (1994).

In 1994-96 he spent two seasons with the Royal Shakespeare Company, performing as Fred/Chorus in A Christmas Carol and King of Navarre in Love's Labour's Lost in the first season.

Before returning for a second season, he spent some time back in Australia, performing in The Secret Garden as Dr. Neville Craven - along with Anthony Warlow and Marina Prior.

In 1996 he once again flew back to England for his second season at the RSC, in Stratford and London, during which he performed in The White Devil (as Lodovico), Macbeth (as Banquo) and Troilus and Cressida (as Achilles).

In 1997 he appeared in the new musical The Fix at the Donmar Warehouse with American Beauty director Sam Mendes. His performance as the tortured Grahame Chandler earned him a second Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical.

The year 2000 saw another return to Australia for the Henson Company's all-new version of the JM Barrie classic, Pan (as Captain Hook) and to the Sydney Theatre Company and director Gale Edwards, playing Francesco de' Medici this time, in The White Devil, as part of the Sydney Olympics Arts Festival.

No sooner completed, it was back to the UK for the hugely successful RSC production of The Secret Garden, in the lead role of Archibald Craven, first in Stratford-upon-Avon, then in London.

In the latter part of 2001, Quast joined Robson Green and Cassidy co-star Caroline Goodall in the UK telemovie Me & Mrs Jones and flew to Sydney to film a six-part ABC comedy, Corridors of Power, before launching into his role as Emile de Becque in South Pacific at the Royal National Theatre, directed by Trevor Nunn. His performance in the production, which celebrated the 50th anniversary of composers Rodgers & Hammerstein, has earned him a third Olivier Award, making him the first actor to receive three awards in this category.

In June 2002 he was heard on Radio 2 in a celebration of Richard Rodgers' 100th Birthday with the BBC Concert Orchestra. Later in the summer he accepted the invitation by Donmar Warehouse director Sam Mendes to take part in the "Divas at the Donmar" season. His critically-acclaimed performance was also recorded on CD.

Back to Australia once again, he played the lead role in an Edward Albee play that was very successful on Broadway, The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? at The Fairfax in Melbourne.

Back to London, Quast took part in the star-studded 2003 edition of The Night of 1000 Voices at The Royal Albert Hall in May, singing 'Stars' one more time before a spellbound audience.

All through summer 2003 Quast played the role of Antonio in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice and of Trigorin in Chekhov's The Seagull at the Chichester Festival season in West Sussex, UK.

Between July and early November - as part of London's National Theatre Travelex Season - he juggled superbly between the role of Miles Gloriosus in Stephen Sondheim's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and the role of George Tenet in Sir David Hare's new political drama Stuff Happens.

In 2005 Philip Quast's career entirely evolved in his native Australia. In April-May he played German Chancellor Willy Brandt in the critically-acclaimed play Democracy with the Sydney Theatre Company. After shooting the movie The Caterpillar Wish in South Australia, he joined the STC again, playing the role of Lopakhin in The Cherry Orchard until February 2006.

From June 2006 to May 2007 Philip Quast played the role of Argentinian President Juan Perón in the revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Evita at the Adelphi Theatre (London) for which he was nominated for a fourth Olivier Award.
In February 2007 Quast appeared in a star-studded one-off Charity Gala Concert of Stephen Sondheim's Follies before a mesmerised 2200-strong audience at the London Palladium.
Over winter 2007-8 Quast played the role of Georges in the critically-acclaimed revival of La Cage aux Folles at the Menier Chocolate Factory, South London.
After almost a year spent in Australia filming a new series of the family drama Bed of Roses, in May 2009 Philip Quast re-joined the cast of La Cage aux Folles after its West End transfer, reprising the role of George for four months, opposite Roger Allam in the role of Albin/Zaza.

In January 2010 Quast performed at the annual Australia Day Gala Dinner at Australia House (London), during which the 2010 UK Australians of the Year were announced.
After being part of a star-studded celebration of the 10th Anniversary of The Night of 1000 Voices at the Royal Albert Hall (London) in early May 2010, Quast is now spending a couple of years in Australia, playing the role of Mr Banks in the Disney's Mary Poppins, which has now transferred to Sydney after a sell-out season in Melbourne.

During the first half of 2012 Philip Quast will be busy touring Australia, starring in the stage adaptation of the popular British comedy Yes, Prime Minister. After that, he will move to Melbourne to star in the MTC's production of the 40s comedy His Girl Friday.

FILM CREDITS:

Philip Quast's film credits include Emoh Ruo (1985), To Market, To Market (1987), Around the World in 80 Ways (1987) Napoleon (1996), The Caterpillar Wish (2006) and most recently Clubland/Introducing the Dwights (2007), starring Brenda Blethyn. He has also appeared in the telemovies Army Wives (1986) and The First Kangaroos (1988). His latest movie The Devil's Double, where he plays the role of Saddam Hussein, has just been released worldwide.

TELEVISION CREDITS:

Television credits include Play School with ABC TV, the mini-series Flight Into Hell (1985), Colour in the Creek (1986), Fields of Fire (1987), Cassidy (1989), Brides of Christ (1991, which won the AFI Award for best mini-series), guest-star roles in A Country Practice (1984), Police Rescue (1991), Patrol Boat and a featured role as General Cornelius in the US mini-series Cleopatra (1999) for the Hallmark Channel. He also played The Minister in the ABC's AFI Award-winning drama series, The Damnation of Harvey McHugh (1994).

In the UK he appeared in the television series All Good Friends and The Governor (1996, Series 2), an episode of the popular series Inspector Morse (1998) and as the former priest turned modern-day vampire-hunter, Pearse J Harman, in the critically-acclaimed sci-fi drama series Ultraviolet (1998). Latest TV credits in the UK include: Me and Mrs Jones (2002) and the Christmas episode of the series Midsomer Murders (2004), both with ITV, and two guest appearances in the popular medical series Holby City and Silent Witness on BBC Television. In early 2010 Philip Quast has appeared in Series 2 of the Australian drama Bed of Roses.

Other musical achievements include an appearance in Once in a Blue Moon (1994), a celebration of Australian musicals with ABC TV; The Stars Come Out - a concert to open the 2000 Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras; and The Night of 1000 Voices at the Royal Albert Hall in 1999, 2003 and 2010, various Cabaret evenings during the 2003 Chichester Festival Theatre season and a Special Guest appearance at An Evening with Jason Robert Brown at the New Players Theatre in September 2004.

RECORDINGS:

Solo album: Philip Quast - Live at the Donmar.

Cast Albums: Mary Poppins (2010 Original Australian Cast); Evita (2006 London Recording); South Pacific (NT); The Secret Garden (Australian Highlights and Royal Shakespeare Company); The Fix; Les Misérables Complete Symphonic Recording; Paris.

Concerts: Les Misérables Tenth Anniversary Concert; Once in a Blue Moon.

Other recordings: Listen Up!, Lift Off Live, the Napoleon Soundtrack and 4 Play School albums.

Non-musical recording: the BBC Radio drama The Honourable Schoolboy (2010).

Philip Quast has been doing pro bono teaching in some of the UK's best-known theatre schools: the Royal Academy of Music, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, the Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

(Source: various theatre programmes)