Kiril Kulish
{{short description|American actor, dancer, and singer (born 1994)}}
{{Infobox person
| image = Kiril Kulish.jpg
| caption = Kulish in 2012
| birthname = Kiril Jacob Kulish
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1994|02|16}}
| birth_place = San Diego, California, U.S.
| yearsactive = 2008–present
| occupation = {{flatlist|
- Actor
- dancer
- singer}}
| website = [http://www.kirilkulish.com/ KirilKulish.com]
}}
Kiril Jacob Kulish (born February 16, 1994) is an American actor, singer and dancer who is best known for portraying the title role in the original American production of Billy Elliot the Musical, which earned him a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical, making him one of the youngest winners of the award.
Early and personal life
Kulish was born in San Diego, California, on February 16, 1994. His parents, Raisa Kulish and Phil Axelrod, are Jewish immigrants from Ukraine.{{Cite web|url=https://boysballet.wordpress.com/2008/05/15/i-have-the-urge-to-dance-wherever-i-am/|title = 'I have the urge to dance wherever I am'|date = 15 May 2008}} His older brother, Victor, is a singer/songwriter and recording engineer, and his older sister Beata is a TV/film producer.{{Cite web|url=http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080511/news_1a11view.html|title = The San Diego Union-Tribune - San Diego, California & National News}}{{Cite web |url=http://www.thejewishadvocate.com/news/2009-06-12/arts/033.html |title=Jewish performances capture multiple Tonys | www.thejewishadvocate.com | The Jewish Advocate |access-date=2012-12-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405120716/http://www.thejewishadvocate.com/news/2009-06-12/arts/033.html |archive-date=2012-04-05 |url-status=dead }} He grew up speaking Russian, Ukrainian, and English.{{Cite web|url=http://www.kirilkulish.com/about.html|title = Welcome to Kiril Kulish's website}} He started studying ballet at age five and ballroom dancing at age 8. He studied at the San Diego Academy of Ballet, and was the youngest male to be admitted to their junior company.[http://www.kirilkulish.com/about.html Kulish Official site] kirilkulish.com, accessed March 11, 2009 Kiril was the winner of the Junior division Grand Prix at the Youth America Grand Prix in 2006, 2007, and 2008 [http://www.yagp.org/eng/nyc07.php Youth America Grand Prix listing, 2007] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130416075155/http://www.yagp.org/eng/nyc07.php |date=2013-04-16 }} yagp.org and won the Hope Award in the Pre-Competitive division in 2006.[http://www.yagp.org/eng/nyc06.php Youth America Grand Prix listing, 2006] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120730011027/http://www.yagp.org/eng/nyc06.php |date=2012-07-30 }} yagp.org
Kiril Kulish won first place in Latin Ballroom at the USA National Dance Championships in 2006 and 2007.[http://www.kirilkulish.com/about.html Kulish Official site] kirilkulish.com, accessed December 25, 2012
In 2012 and 2013 Kiril Kulish became the Youth USA Champion in Latin Dance Sport and will represent USA in Beijing and Paris.
Acting career
= ''Billy Elliot the Musical'' =
At a press launch in New York on April 22, 2008, it was announced that Kulish would be one of three boys to play the title role in the original Broadway production of Billy Elliot the Musical, along with David Álvarez and Trent Kowalik. Kulish performed in the musical's first preview performance on October 1, 2008.{{Cite web|url=http://london.broadway.com/shows/billy-elliot/photos/billy-elliot-kicks-up-its-heels-as-previews-begin/|title = Homepage}} On June 7, 2009, Kulish, along with Trent Kowalik and David Álvarez, won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical, becoming one of the youngest winners of the award.{{cite web| url = http://broadwayworld.com/article/2009-Tony-Award-Winners-David-Alvarez-Trent-Kowalik-and-Kiril-Kulish-For-Best-Leading-Actor-in-a-Musical-20090608#| title = 2009 Tony Award Winners: David Alvarez, Trent Kowalik, and Kiril Kulish For 'Best Leading Actor in a Musical'}} In all, Billy Elliot was nominated for 15{{cite news|title='Billy Elliot' Leads Tony Nominations|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 5 May 2009|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/06/theater/theaterspecial/06tony.html?pagewanted=all|access-date=10 March 2012|last1 = Healy|first1 = Patrick}} Tony Awards, and won 10, including Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical. Kulish's last performance in Billy Elliot was on Saturday October 3, 2009.{{cite web |url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/132342-Ko_and_Hennig_Will_Join_Cast_of_Broadway%27s_Billy_Elliot_Kulish_Gwynne_Bologna_Depart |title=Playbill News: Ko and Hennig Will Join Cast of Broadway's Billy Elliot; Kulish, Gwynne, Bologna Depart |website=www.playbill.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090903194935/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/132342-Ko_and_Hennig_Will_Join_Cast_of_Broadway's_Billy_Elliot_Kulish_Gwynne_Bologna_Depart |archive-date=2009-09-03}}
=Later Work=
Film:
Sonata (Pre-Production) Landon Goldberg
Crossing Young Andrei
Damaged Brad
Choreographer
Chasing Mem’ries Musical at the Geffen Playhouse starring Tyne Daly and Robert Forster
Television:
Dancing with the Stars Pro
HBO Anthology Series Secret Service Style Agent-Co Star
The 63rd Annual Tony Awards Himself
Good Morning America Himself
NBC Sports Special Himself
ABC The View Billy Elliot
ABC Live with Regis and Kelly Himself
ABC Live with Regis and Michael Himself
CBS Morning Show Himself
ABC Daytime Salutes BC/EFA Himself
(Full List Available upon request)
Theater/Performance:
“Baz — A Musical Tour de Force” Las Vegas (Baz Lehrman show)
In late 2009, Kulish performed the lead role in the ballet The Nutcracker.{{Cite web|url=http://www.broadway.com/buzz/tony-award-winning-billy-elliot-alum-kiril-kulish-star-nutcracker/|title = Tony Award-Winning Billy Elliot Alum Kiril Kulish Flies into Florida Nutcracker}} In 2010, he attended the ballroom championship at USA Dance Southwest Regional Championship in Long Beach, CA. On October 27, 2012, Kiril performed alongside Jon Secada, Debbie Gravitte, Liz Callaway, and a host of award-winning singers from around the world in Loving the Silent Tears: A New Musical at the Shrine Theater in Los Angeles.{{Cite web|url=http://www.silenttearsmusical.com/musical/|title=The Musical - Loving the Silent Tears|date=15 September 2012 }} In 2016, Kulish joined season 22 of Dancing with the Stars as a professional dancer in their troupe.
Kulish currently resides in San Diego, Los Angeles, and New York.
Theatre credits
| class="wikitable"
! colspan="5" style="background: LightSteelBlue;"| |
| Year
! Title ! Role ! Theatre ! Note |
|---|
| rowspan="1" style="text-align:center;" |1 October 2008- 3 October 2009 |style="text-align:center;"|Billy Elliot: The Musical |style="text-align:center;"|Billy |style="text-align:center;"|Broadway debut |
| rowspan="1" style="text-align:center;" |2009 holiday season
| |Occidental Grand Aruba |style="text-align:center;"|Palm Beach |
| rowspan="1" style="text-align:center;" |27 October 2012
|Loving the Silent Tears | |style="text-align:center;"|Los Angeles, California |
Accolades
| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
! colspan=7 style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Awards | ||||||
| Year | Award | Category | Role | Show | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009
| Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical | Billy Elliot |{{won}} |
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://www.kirilkulish.com}}
- {{IBDB name}}
- {{IMDb name|2987700}}
{{TonyAward MusicalLeadActor 2001-2025}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kulish, Kiril}}
Category:American male child actors
Category:American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent
Category:American male stage actors
Category:Jewish American male actors
Category:Male actors from San Diego
Category:Theatre World Award winners
Category:American male dancers