Anna Madeley

Age: 32

Hometown: London, England

Currently: Making her Broadway debut as spitfire Oxford scholar Celia opposite Matthew Broderick in Roundabout Theatre Company’s revival of The Philanthropist.

London, Baby: Born and bred in London, Madeley was exposed to the city’s arts and culture early on. “You’d hop on the tube and go down to the National [Theatre] and see whatever you wanted as a teenager,” she recalls. “I was very lucky to have that on my doorstep.” The proximity to theater meant a young Anna had plenty of opportunities to dabble in the arts, starting out as a dancer before making her stage debut in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Merry Wives of Windsor at age eight. The experience quickly put her on the path to performing: “That whole world [of being] in the green room playing pool and eating crisps, then doing the show? I fell in love with it then.” After high school, Madeley continued her studies at London’s Central School of Speech and Drama. “I don’t remember having [aspirations] to do anything else. But no one in my family is into theater so it was quite random!”

Fresh out of drama school, Madeley found steady employment at the some of the biggest theaters in Britain including her old stomping ground, the Royal Shakespeare Company before taking on a day job in 2005. “I temped at Harrods selling hand cream. You see lots of unemployed dancers and actors doing that. It was horrible!” she says with a laugh. Luckily the gig only lasted four days, after which the Donmar Warehouse gave her a starring part in director David Grindley’s revival of The Philanthropist opposite Simon Russell Beale. More on that later. The Royal National Theater also called, offering the striking actress the title role in their acclaimed Coram Boy. Madeley enjoyed the challenge of playing a sexy professor and an 18th-century schoolboy simultaneously. “I was rehearsing Coram Boy during the day and doing The Philanthropist at night, which was mad! But it was wonderful. I’ve been very lucky in the variety of roles I’ve played.”

Breaking Out:

Hitting the Screen: With 2005 as her breakout year, Madeley’s career hit its stride with a varied collection of film and television roles, including sassy nurse Samantha Beaumont on the BBC series The Royal, aristocratic Lady Celia Ryder in Brideshead Revisited, and a Dutch prostitute in Martin McDonagh’s dark comedy In Bruges, co-starring Colin Farrell. Trained in the theater, the actress explains that her lessons in acting for the screen happened on-set. “I had scenes with Colin and Brendan [Gleeson], and it was such an experience watching these people go about their craft, because it’s so different from the stage. You do a million takes and all but one end up on the editing room floor. That was really fascinating.”

Philandering, Again: Last fall, word came that the Donmar’s Philanthropist would cross to Broadway, and Madeley became the lone member of the London cast to reprise her role. The actress jumped at the opportunity to revisit the part of Celia, a strong-willed Oxford scholar whose engagement to the title character gets rocky when his overt niceness causes trouble. “I loved doing the show in London, but it was a few years ago,” she says. “Your perspective changes with time, so it’s lovely to re-explore the part with that in mind.” Playing opposite a new cast, including leading man Matthew Broderick, has also been a breeze. “Matthew and [London co-star] Simon are very different people, but Matthew is very, very funny and brings his own strong choices to the part. I’m always laughing.” As for performing a Brit comedy on Broadway? “If there’s one reference I’ve noticed, it’s that I don’t think American audiences get what croquet is! But otherwise I think it’s translated very well. I’m really pleased with the response it’s getting.”

Bright Lights, Big City: Overall, Madeley is loving life in New York. “I’ve been here as a tourist a couple of times before—I actually did the Circle Line tour this week with some friends,” she says with enthusiasm. “Right now I’ve been eating, sleeping, then doing the show, but I’ve bought my New York guide and there are lots of things I want to see and do.” And if Madeley has her way, this won’t be the last you’ll see of her on a Broadway stage. “I’d love to do a musical,” she confesses. “I’ve not done one so far, except a bit of singing in Coram Boy, so that would be lovely!”