Philip Mark QuastAM (born 30 July 1957)^[1] is an Australian actor andbass-baritone singer. He has won theLaurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical three times, making him the first actor to have three wins in that category. He is perhaps best known for his role as InspectorJavert in the stage musicalLes Misérables and in theLes Misérables: The Dream Cast in Concert.

He is also well-known for numerous other theatre roles, notable ones beingGeorges Seurat/George inSunday in the Park with George (which won him aLaurence Olivier Award), Archibald Craven and Dr. Neville Craven inThe Secret Garden,Judge Turpin inSweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, George Banks inMary Poppins, Georges inLa Cage aux Folles, Juan Peron inEvita, Fred Anderson inA Christmas Carol, andThe Wolf andCinderella's Prince inInto the Woods.

He is also known for appearances in film and for his roles in television shows such asUltraviolet,Brides of Christ, andPlay School.

Quast, one of three children, was born in 1957 inTamworth, New South Wales.^[2] His family lived and worked on a mixed, but predominantly turkey, farm.^[3] He graduated from theNational Institute of Dramatic Art in 1979.

After graduating fromNIDA in 1979 Quast began his career in the resident acting company of theState Theatre Company of South Australia. In the early 1980s he appeared in plays such asThe Mystery Plays of Wakefield,Three Sisters,On the Wallaby,Pericles,A Month in the Country,As You Like It,Pygmalion,A Hard God,No End of Blame,The Threepenny Opera,Shark Infested Waters,Candide withNimrod Theatre Company, and a musical adaption ofCarmen which he debuted with theMelbourne Theatre Company.^[4]

Quast shot to prominence in 1987 asJavert in the original Australian production ofLes Misérables, winning him a Sydney Critic Award and aMo Award. In 1989, he traveled toLondon to reprise the role on theWest End stage.^[5] Quast never expected to gain such a prominent role, going to the auditions hoping simply for a place in the chorus.^[6] Unable to sight-read music, he walked off the stage at the audition but was called back byClaude-Michel Schönberg and eventually given the part asJavert.^[6]

Quast credits much of his success as Javert to stage directorTrevor Nunn. "Javert for me is not theWicked Witch of the West," Quast has said. "In fact, there is very little material to work with in the script. Trevor would say things in passing like 'Have you read the Ten Commandments recently?' That's all he would say. If you're thirsty enough, you can follow it up ... there was the whole basis of our legal system and the explanation for the whole ofLes Mis. For me, that's inspired directing. That's why he's such an awesome man."^[6]

When playing Javert, Quast gained a reputation as a perfectionist and began experiencing intense bouts of stagefright. "I had a terrible time," he said. "It took me a month to get over it. At one stage I wasn't sleeping at all but lying awake planning speeches to the audience about being sorry and could I start again."^[6]

In 1981, Quast began appearing as a presenter on the Australian children's showPlay School, a program he would return to on-and-off again for 17 years.

From 1982 to 1983, he appeared in a recurring role as Dr Rod Hawkins in Australian medical soap operaThe Young Doctors for 20 episodes. From 1984 to 1985, he had another recurring role as Bob 'Mitch' Mitchell in Australian drama soap operaSons and Daughters for 30 episodes. Quast appeared in several miniseries includingColour in the Creek (1985),Flight into Hell,Fields of Fire (both 1987) andCassidy (1989). He also made guest appearances inPatrol Boat,A Country Practice andSpecial Squad.

Quast also appeared in several Australian films includingEmoh Ruo (1985),Army Wives (1986, TV movie),Around the World in Eighty Ways,To Market To Market (both 1987) andThe First Kangaroos (1988).

Quast's stage success continued as he won the coveted role ofGeorges Seurat and his act 2 counterpart George in the original London production ofStephen Sondheim'sSunday in the Park with George for theRoyal National Theatre.

In1991 he won his firstLaurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical as Georges Seurat / George. Quast was under a large amount of stress when preparing forSunday in the Park with George, as he struggled to master Sondheim's complicated musical scores (Sondheim told him: "you don't play tennis against people you can beat."), learn to paint and sketch for the play, all while awaiting the birth of his first son, who was due five days after opening night.^[7]

In 1993 he returned to Australia to play inSydney Theatre Company productions ofWilliam Shakespeare'sCoriolanus and Sondheim'sInto the Woods, in which he playedThe Wolf/Cinderella's Prince. He then played Dunois inBernard Shaw’sSaint Joan in the West End and on a UK tour in 1994. In 1994–96 he spent two seasons with theRoyal Shakespeare Company, performing as Fred/Chorus inA Christmas Carol, and King of Navarre in Shakespeare'sLove's Labour's Lost, as well as Lodovico inThe White Devil, Banquo inMacbeth, and Achilles inTroilus and Cressida. Before returning for a second season with the RSC, he spent some time back in Australia, performing in the national tour ofThe Secret Garden as Dr. Neville Craven – along withAnthony Warlow andMarina Prior.^{[citation needed]}

Quast continued to appear in both Australian and British television roles throughout the 1990s. In 1995 he starred in the miniseriesThe Damnation of Harvey McHugh as The Minister, Michael Muldoon for 13 episodes. From 1995 to 1996 he appeared as Simon Lennox in British drama seriesThe Governor for 4 episodes, and in 1998 he played Father Pearse J. Harman in 6 episodes ofUltraviolet. In 1999 he played Cornelius in a 1999 miniseries adaptation ofCleopatra. He also had guest roles inPolice Rescue, the miniseriesBrides of Christ,Crime Story andInspector Morse.

He had a sole film role in the 1990s, playing Bradley in 1999 thrillerThe Fall.

Quast played the part of Javert on theLes Misérables Complete Symphonic Recording, and inHey, Mr. Producer, a concert in honour ofSir Cameron Mackintosh.

Though mainly a baritone, Quast has played some roles written for tenors, namely George (see above),Candide, and Archibald Craven inThe Secret Garden. Although he is known for his serious roles, he has also performed comedic parts, such as his 2004 appearance as the pompous Miles Gloriosus in a limited run revival ofA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at theRoyal National Theatre.

Quast more recently played the supporting role ofJuan Peron inAndrew Lloyd Webber's 2006 production ofEvita at theAdelphi Theatre in London. He was nominated for an Olivier award for this role. In July 2007, Quast performed the role ofJudge Turpin in a concert version ofSweeney Todd at London'sRoyal Festival Hall.^[8]

He was most recently in theMenier Chocolate Factory production ofJerry Herman'sLa Cage aux Folles as Georges.^[9] Quast rejoined the cast ofLa Cage on 4 May 2009 withRoger Allam. Coincidentally, both actors have performed in the role of Javert inLes Misérables. From July 2010, he played Mr. Banks in the Australian premiere production ofMary Poppins at Melbourne'sHer Majesty’s Theatre, a partCameron Mackintosh offered to him in the bathroom ofThe Ivy in London. He won the 2010 VictorianGreen Room Award (Melbourne's top theatre awards) for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for his performance. He also won the 2011Helpmann Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical forMary Poppins.

In March 2014, New York audiences were treated to a special limited engagement ofSweeney Todd at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. Quast, in his New York stage debut, performed as Judge Turpin, withBryn Terfel as Sweeney Todd andEmma Thompson as Mrs. Lovett. The show was scheduled to be broadcast as part of Live at Lincoln Center's television special in September 2014.

In 2003, Quast appeared as Antonio inShakespeare'sThe Merchant of Venice, directed byGale Edwards and as Trigorin inChekhov'sThe Seagull, directed bySteven Pimlott, both at theChichester Festival Theatre. In 2012, he played the role ofSir Humphrey Appleby in an Australian production ofYes, Prime Minister. In August/September 2012, he performed the role of Walter Burns inMelbourne Theatre Company’s production ofHis Girl Friday. In November 2013 he joinedHugo Weaving andRichard Roxburgh inSydney Theatre Company’s production ofSamuel Beckett'sWaiting For Godot. In May/June 2014, Quast played the role of Pastor Manders inHenrik Ibsen’s playGhosts at the Melbourne Theatre Company directed byGale Edwards.^[10]

Quast has appeared in numerous television roles throughout the 2000s. In 2001 he played Michael Fielding MP in Australian satirical comedy seriesCorridors of Power and Tim Price in 7 episodes of Australian comedy/drama seriesBed of Roses in 2010. In 2016 he played the role of Senior Constable Gordon in superhero parody seriesThe Justice Lease as well as Lincoln Priest in legal seriesJanet King. In 2018 Quast appeared as Arthur Appleyard in theminiseries reimagining of the 1975 AustralianPeter Weir classicPicnic at Hanging Rock. In 2020, he had two further television roles – as Professor Quentin Ratchett in comedy/drama seriesOperation Buffalo and as Phillip Walford inBetween Two Worlds. Since 2024 he has been playing Dr Sandy Green in Australian-Indian romance/drama seriesFour Years Later.

He also guested in several British series including medical dramaHolby City, murder mystery seriesMidsomer Murders, and crime drama seriesSilent Witness. He also had a guest role in Australian TV dramaMiss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries.

Quast appeared in several 2000s film roles. He played Richard (oppositeCaroline Goodall) in British filmMe & Mrs Jones (2002). He appeared as Carl alongsideWendy Hughes andSusie Porter inThe Caterpillar Wish (2006), and the following year played Ronnie oppositeRebecca Gibney inClubland. He portrayedSaddam Hussein in 2011 internationally released filmThe Devil's Double (alongsideDominic Cooper). Quast was in the 2015 political newsroom dramaTruth playing real life politicianBen Barnes, alongside an all-star cast includingCate Blanchett andRobert Redford. He also had a part in the 2016Mel Gibson-directed war biopicHacksaw Ridge as Judge, which also starredAndrew Garfield,Sam Worthington,Hugo Weaving andRachel Griffiths. In 2022 he played Tanner Blue inDark Noise.

While Quast has expressed a desire to continue working in TV and film, and teach acting, he no longer intends to act in plays or musicals, because of the heavy schedule involved.^[11]

Quast and his wife Carol have three sons (Edwin, Harry and Toby).^[12][13] He also teaches at theNational Institute of Dramatic Art inSydney, Australia.^[14] During theCOVID-19 pandemic, Quast continued teaching throughZoom calls.^[15]

Quast married Carol in 1981 and they were married for almost ten years before having the first of their three sons. He has been noted for his humble nature, stating he doesn't seek after fame and is concerned that success is measured by notoriety instead of the respect of one's peers. He doesn't keep any of his awards, instead sending them to his parents' home in Australia.^[16]

Quast was named as one of the 25 Most Beautiful People for 1996 inWho Weekly magazine. In an article for the magazine he said, "The problem with this business is that you have to supposedly look as good as you can all the time. And I hate that. My idea of doing my hair is sticking it out of the window of a car when it's wet."^[17]

Abass-baritone, Quast has been universally applauded by critics for his singing voice, which has been described as "warm", and "glorious."^[18] He was named by British newspaperThe Stage as "one of the most notable singing actors to come along in years".^[19]

Quast has a strong passion forfishing, and he spent his time during the COVID-19 pandemic fishing, cooking, pickling and preserving.^[15]

^[27]

^[29]

• Philip Quast atIMDb
• The Philip Quast Continuum: The Official Philip Quast Website
• The Philip Quast Guide
• Winners of the Laurence Olivier Award
• List of articles and interviews (2015 archive copy from The Philip Quast Continuum)

• Members of the Order of Australia
• 1957 births
• Australian male television actors
• Australian male stage actors
• Australian male musical theatre actors
• Australian bass-baritones
• Helpmann Award winners
• Living people
• Australian operatic baritones
• Laurence Olivier Award winners
• National Institute of Dramatic Art alumni
• Australian expatriate male actors in the United Kingdom
• People from Tamworth, New South Wales
• Australian children's television presenters
• 20th-century Australian male singers
• 20th-century Australian male actors
• 21st-century Australian male singers
• 21st-century Australian male actors

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