View source for Tony Azito

{{Short description|American actor and dancer (1948–1995)}}

'''Tony Azito''' (born '''Antonio Zito'''; July 18, 1948 – May 26, 1995) was an American [[eccentric dance]]r and [[character actor]].<ref name=obit/> He was best known for [[Comedy|comedic]] and [[grotesque]] parts, which were accentuated by his [[hyperextended]] body.

==Education==
Azito was part of the [[Juilliard School]]'s Group I, the first students admitted to the drama division directed by [[John Houseman]] in 1968. His classmates included [[Patti LuPone]] and [[Kevin Kline]]. Soon after arriving at Juilliard, Azito became influenced by [[Choreography|choreographer]] [[Anna Sokolow]] and began studying [[modern dance]]. At {{convert|6|ft|3|in|cm|abbr=on}}, he was an unusual candidate for dance training. Azito's younger brother, Arturo Azito, was a dancer and performed with [[Eliot Feld]] and the [[Boston Ballet]].

His interest in dance aggravated Houseman, who was anxious about the number of [[gay]] men in Group I and had already clashed with Azito over a [[cross-dressing]] incident.<ref>Kevin Grubb, "The Eccentricities of Tony Azito," ''[[Dance Magazine]]'' 58 (September 1984), p. 78.</ref><ref>[[Andrea Olmstead]], ''Juilliard: A History'' (Champaign: [[University of Illinois Press]], 1999), p. 228.</ref> Partially as a result of this conflict with Houseman, Azito left Juilliard without finishing a degree and spent two years performing in Sokolow's company as Antonio Azito.

==Theatrical career==
Returning to drama in the mid-1970s, Azito began working in [[off-Broadway]] and [[off-off-Broadway]] theater. He quickly began working with the director [[Wilford Leach]], who would be one of Azito's most frequent employers until Leach's death in 1988. He performed in a number of productions at [[La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club]], where Leach was [[artistic director]].

In 1971, he performed in ''The Red, White, and Black'' at La MaMa, directed by John Dillon and written by [[Eric Bentley]] with music by Brad Burg. The show was co-produced by La MaMa and the [[Columbia University School of the Arts]] Theatre Division.<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/831 "Production: ''Red, White, and Black, The'' (1971)". ]</ref> He then appeared in Leach and John Braswell's 1973 production of ''[[Carmilla]]'' with the E.T.C. Company of La MaMa. ''Carmilla'' featured music by [[Ben Johnston (composer)|Ben Johnston]] and was part of the company's [[repertoire]] throughout the early 1970s.<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/692 "Production: ''Carmilla'' (1973)".]</ref> He also did [[Theatrical technician|tech]] for Jeffrey Weiss' ''Pushover'' at La MaMa<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1309 "Production: ''Pushover'' (1973)".]</ref> and appeared in La MaMa's "Christmas fete for children of all ages", ''...And All the Trimmings'', written by Bernard Roth and directed by William Duffy<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1322 "Production: ''And All the Trimmings...'' (1973)".]</ref> in 1973.

In 1974, he appeared in Nancy Fales' ''Ark'', with music by [[Sonelius Smith]] and directed by [[Ralph Lee]] at La MaMa.<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1454 "Production: ''Ark'' (1974)".]</ref> He also appeared in Nancy Heikin's ''Frame'', which was produced by La MaMa at the Washington Square Church (135 W. 4th St.) in 1974.<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1360 "Production: ''Frame'' (1974)".]</ref> He appeared with the E.T.C. Company of La MaMa in Wilford Leach's ''C.O.R.F.A.X. (Don't Ask)'' at La MaMa in early 1974,<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1326 "Production: ''C.O.R.F.A.X. (Don't Ask)'' (1974)". ]</ref> then toured the show in Europe with the company later that same year.<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/3240 "Tour: ETC Company European Tour (1974)".]</ref> In 1975, Azito was featured in the ''Cotton Club Gala'', with music by [[Aaron Bell (musician)|Aaron Bell]].<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1492 "Production: ''Cotton Club Gala'' (1975a)".]</ref><ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1542 "Production: ''Cotton Club Gala'' (1975b)".]</ref> He reprised his role in ''Carmilla'' at La MaMa in 1976.<ref>La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. [https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Occurrences/1526 "Production: ''Carmilla'' (1976)".]</ref>

Azito made his [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] debut in [[Richard Foreman]]'s 1976 [[Revival (theatre)|revival]] of ''[[The Threepenny Opera]]'' for the [[New York Shakespeare Festival]], in a dancing role ("Samuel") created especially for him. Critics were intrigued by what soon became Azito's style of dance, which made him look like a somewhat off-kilter [[marionette]] and was accompanied by stylized facial expressions. An interviewer once described Azito as "a bit like [[Buster Keaton]] injected with [[Silly Putty]]."<ref>Robert Berkvist, "His Constabulary Duty is to Keep 'Pirates' Bubbling," [[The New York Times|''The'' ''New York Times'']] September 27, 1981, p. D4.</ref> This production also began Azito's association with [[Joseph Papp]]'s New York Shakespeare Festival, which continued with another [[Bertolt Brecht|Brecht]]-[[Kurt Weill|Weill]] musical, ''[[Happy End (musical)|Happy End]]'' (1977).

Azito's best-known stage role was in a third production for the New York Shakespeare Festival, as the Sergeant of Police in the 1980 Broadway revival of ''[[The Pirates of Penzance]]'', starring [[Linda Ronstadt]] and [[Kevin Kline]]. His performance earned him a [[Tony Award]] nomination and a [[Drama Desk Award]], and he reprised the role in [[The Pirates of Penzance (film)|the 1983 film adaptation directed by Leach]].

He then played [[Feste]] in the New York Shakespeare Festival production of ''[[Twelfth Night]]'' directed by Leach in 1986. He went on to perform at [[Radio City Music Hall]], the [[Mark Taper Forum]], and in the [[American National Theater and Academy|American National Theater]] company at the [[Kennedy Center]]. Azito's final Broadway role was in ''[[The Mystery of Edwin Drood (musical)|The Mystery of Edwin Drood]],'' also directed by Leach. While in the touring company for ''The Mystery of Edwin Drood'', both of Azito's legs were badly broken when he was [[Car Accident|hit by a cab]]. It took a few years for Azito to get back on his feet. He went on to perform in a [[Summer stock theatre|summer stock]] revival of ''[[She Loves Me]]'' in [[Stockbridge, Massachusetts]] and in productions of [[Tom Stoppard]]'s ''[[Travesties]]'' and the musical ''Amphigorey''.

==Film and television career==
Azito's most memorable film role was the Police Sergeant in ''[[The Pirates of Penzance (1983 film)|The Pirates of Penzance]]''.

He also appeared in ''[[Union City (film)|Union City]]'' (1980) with [[Debbie Harry]], [[Woody Allen]]'s ''[[Stardust Memories]]'' (1980), ''[[Chattanooga Choo Choo (film)|Chattanooga Choo Choo]]'' (1984), ''[[Private Resort]]'' (1985) with [[Rob Morrow]] and [[Johnny Depp]], ''[[Moonstruck]]'' (1987) with [[Cher]], ''[[Bloodhounds of Broadway (1989 film)|Bloodhounds of Broadway]]'' (1989) with [[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]], and played the lead in the 1976 [[cult film]] ''Apple Pie''.

Azito's final film role was the Librarian in ''[[H.P. Lovecraft's: Necronomicon]]'' (1993). He also had a [[Cameo appearance|cameo]] as one of the party dancers in ''[[The Addams Family (1991 film)|The Addams Family]]'' (1991).

On television, he appeared on episodes of ''[[Miami Vice]]'', ''[[The Equalizer (1985 TV series)|The Equalizer]]'', and ''[[Beacon Hill (television series)|Beacon Hill]]''.

==Death==
Azito continued performing in [[Regional theater in the United States|regional theater]] and the occasional film until 1994. He died of [[HIV/AIDS]] on May 27, 1995, at [[Saint Vincent's Catholic Medical Center]] in [[Manhattan, New York City]], at age 46.<ref name="obit">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/05/27/obituaries/tony-azito-46-stage-actor.html|title=Tony Azito, 46, Stage Actor|first=William|last=Grimes|date=May 27, 1995|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|accessdate=February 4, 2015}}</ref>

==Filmography==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Tony Azito film and television credits<!-- WP:ACCESSIBILITY & MOS:TABLECAPTION -->
|-
! Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes
|-
|1976|| ''Apple Pie'' || Jacques (the Ace) Blinbaum || Film
|-
|1980|| ''[[Night of the Juggler]]'' || Peep Show Cashier || Film
|-
|1980|| ''[[Union City (film)|Union City]]'' || Alphonse Florescu || Film
|-
|1980|| ''[[Stardust Memories]]'' || Fan in Lobby || Film
|-
|1983|| ''[[The Pirates of Penzance (1983 film)|The Pirates of Penzance]]'' || Sergeant || Film
|-
|1984|| ''[[Chattanooga Choo Choo (film)|Chattanooga Choo Choo]]'' || Lucky Pierre || Film
|-
|1985|| ''[[Private Resort]]'' || Reeves || Film
|-
|1987||| ''[[Moonstruck]]'' || Conti || Film
|-
| 1988
| ''[[The Equalizer (1985 TV series)|The Equalizer]]''
| Jameson
| Episode: "[[The Equalizer (1985 TV series) season 3#ep63|Last Call]]"
|-
| 1988
| ''[[Miami Vice]]''
| Miguel Manolo
| 1 episode
|-
|1989|| ''[[Bloodhounds of Broadway (1989 film)|Bloodhounds of Broadway]]'' || Waiter || Film
|-
|1991|| ''[[The Addams Family (1991 film)|The Addams Family]]'' || Digit Addams || Film
|-
|1993|| ''[[H.P. Lovecraft's: Necronomicon]]'' || Librarian (wraparound) || Film (final role)
|}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|0044283}}
* {{IBDB name}}
* {{iobdb name|13694}}
*[https://catalog.lamama.org/Detail/Entities/2617 Azito's page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections]

{{DramaDesk MusicalOutstandingFeaturedActor 1975-1999}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Azito, Tony}}
[[Category:1948 births]]
[[Category:1995 deaths]]
[[Category:AIDS-related deaths in New York (state)]]
[[Category:American gay actors]]
[[Category:American gay musicians]]
[[Category:American LGBTQ dancers]]
[[Category:American male dancers]]
[[Category:American male musical theatre actors]]
[[Category:Drama Desk Award winners]]
[[Category:Male actors from New York City]]
[[Category:20th-century American male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century American singers]]
[[Category:Eccentric dancers]]
[[Category:20th-century American dancers]]
[[Category:20th-century American male singers]]
[[Category:People with HIV/AIDS]]
[[Category:Gay dancers]]
[[Category:Gay singers]]
[[Category:20th-century American LGBTQ people]]