Bryan Batt '81 Named Recipient of 2009 Distinguished Alumnus Award

Bryan Batt moved a full house of friends and family to tears and laughter when he accepted the Alumni Association’s 2009 Distinguished Alumnus Award at an event in April.

Batt is an award-winning actor currently playing Salvatore Romano on AMC’s hit show, “Mad Men,” and he is the owner of a local high-end design shop called Hazelnut. Batt said he was proud and humbled by this lovely acknowledgment from the institution that gave him so much.

Kitty Greenberg, former head of Newman’s drama department, introduced Batt, as did his childhood friend, Leanne Opotowsky Moses ‘81.

Being in the third grade play made Batt want to be an actor, he told the crowd of friends, fellow alumni and family gathered in the Krohn Foyer outside Henson Auditorium. “The play was “Twas the Night Before Christmas,” he said. “And I was Rudolph. Only there is no Rudolph in ‘The Night Before Christmas.’ But my mom worked up this wonderful number with tap shoes, and my nose lit up and at one point I was doing a handstand upside down.” The audience went wild, and Batt was hooked.

“Whenever I think of Newman, I have these warm, wonderful memories,” Batt said. “Was it perfect? No. But that’s not what education is about. You fall down, you learn. But what I did learn at Newman is that failure is not an option. You have to keep on trying. You can’t give up. And civic activism was born in me here. We were taught at an early age to give back to your community.”

He finished by saying “I can’t believe you’re giving an award to someone who is just living a happy life.”

He thanked his teachers, including Warreene Dart, Mrs. Plotkin, Mr. Guillot and A.J. and Michael Guma. “And thank you to Coach Fitz and Coach Hecker, who were so kind to me though I showed no ability whatsoever. And to Kitty Greenberg, who really did stop me in a hallway and said ‘I saw you perform as a kid and I know you want to try out for my play so why don’t you.’ At Newman, teachers are out there looking to say the right thing at the right time.”

Finally he said of Newman, “I found my life’s friends here and my life’s passion.”

Batt graduated from Tulane University and took to the Broadway boards shortly thereafter. He has appeared in leading and principal roles in nine Broadway shows and numerous Off Broadway productions including: La Cage Aux Folles, Beauty and the Beast, Seussical the Musical, Sunset Blvd., Saturday Night Fever, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Cats, and Starlight Express. Off Broadway credits include: Forbidden Broadway Strikes Back and Forbidden Broadway Cleans Up Its Act. Batt is most proud of originating the role of Darius in Paul Rudnick's groundbreaking comedy, Jeffrey, in both New York and Los Angeles. He won the Drama Desk Award for his performance and recreated the role opposite Patrick Stewart in the Hollywood film adaptation. Recently Batt was named "Vocalist of the Year" by Back Stage magazine for his New York one man show.

Batt’s series “Mad Men” is a runaway hit: It has received 6 Emmys, 3 Golden Globes, the Peabody, and numerous Writing and Director's Guild awards. In January, Batt received the coveted Screen Actor's Guild award for Best Ensemble Acting in a Drama Series.

In 2003, Batt and his partner of 20 years, Tom Cianfichi, opened Hazelnut, a nationally noted fine gifts and home furnishings store in New Orleans. The Magazine Street store and his award-winning fabric design, "New Orleans Toile," have been featured in numerous publications including The New York Times, House Beautiful, Southern Accents, Town & Country and InStyle. After Katrina, a portion of all sales of the signature fabric raised funds for Second Harvest Food Bank, under the direction of Batt's lifetime friend and fellow Newman graduate, Leann Moses '81. Hazelnut's other causes include Children's Hospital, The Human Rights Campaign, Save The Oaks and The Anti Defamation League.

Since Katrina, Batt has hosted, performed and appeared in countless fundraisers and philanthropic events both in New York and New Orleans benefiting Habitat For Humanity, the Contemporary Arts Center, LA-SPCA, Preservation Resource Center, New Orleans Museum of Art, Friends of City Park, YaYa and many more. In 2005, just weeks after returning from evacuation, he founded Magazine Street Retail Relief, now a much-anticipated yearly event, in an effort to jump-start commerce for local merchants.

Batt has worked tirelessly for causes dearest to his heart. For the last 15 years he has been a major force in raising millions for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids; locally he sits on the boards of Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre and N.O. Aids Task Force.

Other Honors include OUT magazine's "Artist of the Year," Human Rights Campaign's "Equality Award," and Gambit's Big Easy Award "Entertainer of the Year."