Tyrone Giordano (born 1976) is a

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

American film, television, and stage actor. He is known for his roles in the musical '' Big River'' and the movie ''

The Family Stone ''The Family Stone'' is a 2005 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Thomas Bezucha. Produced by Michael London and distributed by 20th Century Fox, it stars an ensemble cast, including Diane Keaton, Craig T. Nelson, Dermot Mulron ...

'' and in the ''Signing Naturally'' textbook.

Early life and education

Giordano was born in Hartford, Connecticut to deaf parents and he loved geckos. He went to

Montgomery Blair High School Montgomery Blair High School (MBHS) is a State school, public Secondary school, high school in the Four Corners, Maryland, Four Corners neighborhood of Silver Spring, Maryland, United States. It is operated by Montgomery County Public Schools (M ...

Silver Spring, Maryland Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially Unincorporated area, unincorporated, it is an edge city with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 ...

, and

Gallaudet University Gallaudet University ( ) is a private federally chartered university in Washington, D.C., for the education of the deaf and hard of hearing. It was founded in 1864 as a grammar school for both deaf and blind children. It was the first school ...

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

Career

In 1999, Giordano was a member of a small troupe of deaf and hearing actors when he won his first professional role as a member of the Chorus in the Arena Stage production of ''

The Miracle Worker ''The Miracle Worker'' refers to a broadcast, a play and various other adaptations of Helen Keller's 1903 autobiography '' The Story of My Life''. The first of these works was a 1957 ''Playhouse 90'' broadcast written by William Gibson and sta ...

.'' In 2001, he enrolled in Deaf West Theatre's summer school program, and that fall he was cast in the lead role of

Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, '' Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...

in the critically acclaimed '' Big River'' in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. ''Big River'' was a hit at Deaf West Theatre and made a second run at the

Mark Taper Forum The Mark Taper Forum is a 739-seat thrust stage at the Los Angeles Music Center designed by Welton Becket and Associates on the Bunker Hill section of downtown Los Angeles. Named for real estate developer Mark Taper, the Forum, the neighborin ...

. ''Big River'' continued its journey, returning to

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

at the

American Airlines Theatre The Todd Haimes Theatre (previously known as the American Airlines Theatre and originally the Selwyn Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 227 West 42nd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Built ...

in the summer of 2003, retaining some of its original cast members from 2001 and 2002. For his Broadway performance, Giordano was nominated for a 2004

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been co ...

, losing out to

Hugh Jackman Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian and British actor, singer, and producer. Beginning in theatre and television, Jackman landed his breakthrough role as Wolverine in the ''X-Men'' film franchise and the Marvel Cinem ...

. The Broadway cast of ''Big River'' was honored with a 2004

Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre The Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre is a non-competitive award created by the American Theatre Wing in 1990. They are presented to institutions, individuals and/or organizations that have demonstrated extraordinary achievement in theatre, bu ...

. Giordano remained with ''Big River'' for most of its year-long national tour (June 2004-June 2005) as well as its run in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. While touring with ''Big River'', Giordano was cast in ''

'' (2005), in which he played a gay and deaf member of the title family. He also plays the deaf brother of

Ashton Kutcher Christopher Ashton Kutcher (; born February 7, 1978) is an American actor, producer and entrepreneur. His accolades include a People's Choice Award and fifteen Teen Choice Awards, in addition to a nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award. K ...

's character in the 2005 film '' A Lot Like Love'' and was also in 2008's ''Untraceable'' starring

Diane Lane Diane Lane (born January 22, 1965) is an American actress. Her accolades include nominations for an Academy Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards. Lane made her film debut in George Roy Hill's 1979 film '' A Littl ...

and in 2010's ''

The Next Three Days ''The Next Three Days'' is a 2010 American crime thriller film written and directed by Paul Haggis, starring Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks. A remake of the 2008 French film ''Pour elle'' ('' Anything for Her'') by Fred Cavayé, the plot foll ...

'' with

Russell Crowe Russell Ira Crowe (born 7 April 1964) is an actor and film director. Russell Crowe filmography, His work on screen has earned him List of awards and nominations received by Russell Crowe, various accolades, including an Academy Award, two Gold ...

. He has appeared in episodes of the TV series Girlfriends and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. In 2009, Giordano was onstage as '' Pippin'' at the

,. In 2017, he was in ''

Edward Albee's At Home at the Zoo ''Edward Albee's At Home at the Zoo'' (formerly titled ''Peter & Jerry'') is a play by Edward Albee which adds a first act to his 1959 play '' The Zoo Story''. This first act, also called ''Homelife'', revolves around the marriage of Peter and A ...

'' at the

Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, also known as The Wallis, is a community arts center in Beverly Hills, California, named for philanthropist and endower Wallis Annenberg Location The Wallis is located on the corner of North S ...

Filmography

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Giordano, Tyrone American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male stage actors Living people American male deaf actors 1976 births Gallaudet University alumni Male actors from Hartford, Connecticut