Brian Delate

Brian Delate was born in Trenton, New Jersey, but grew up mostly in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. His father, Joseph, was a gifted tennis player and World War II veteran. His mother, Patricia, held a key position at Gallup and Robinson in Princeton, New Jersey. Delate was a below-average student for the most part, unless his passion was ignited by such things as sports, sailing, and tennis. After graduating from high school in 1967, he worked in a record store for a year before going into the army in 1968.

He spent 1969 in Vietnam as a decorated non-commissioned officer. After addressing a long-time reading problem, he became an above-average student while attending Bucks County Community College, where he discovered theatre, then transferred to Rider University, where he received a BFA with a theatre track in directing and acting. He spent a good part of his senior year at Princeton's McCarter Theatre where he was selected to be a directing intern.

He was also nominated for inclusion in the Who's Who of Colleges and Universities for 1975. After college graduation, Delate moved to New York City and spent his first few years adapting, both professionally and personally, to the novelty and pace of the city.

Delate's first professional acting work (and his very special association with the New York Shakespeare Festival) began in 1981, when he was cast in both of the plays performed in Central Park that summer - Henry IV, Part I and The Tempest.

Other plays followed (including Joseph Papp's Hamlet with Diane Venora), and in 1984-1985, Delate received critical acclaim for his performance in the award-winning play, Tracers, which had successful runs in both New York (NYSF) and London (Royal Court). An abundance of daytime television and commercial work followed.

His daughter Tirsa, after having graduated Cum Laude from Bryn Mawr College will graduate with an MFA from Cal State University in May 2020.