Frances Conroy Biography (2)

Conroy has originated roles in new plays by Arthur Miller (The Last Yankee, Ride Down Mount Morgan, Broken Glass), Edward Albee (The Lady from Dubuque), David Hare (The Secret Rapture), and Neil Simon (The Dinner Party), to name but a few of the playwrights with whom she has collaborated. She also appeared in Albee's Three Tall Women.

She attended the Julliard School's Drama Division and, afterwards, toured with The Acting Company, founded by John Houseman, before embarking on an extensive theatre career, on and off-Broadway, with companies such as Lincoln Center and Joseph Papp's Public Theatre. She has had the honor of sharing the stage with Irene Worth and other greats of the American theater. Along the way she garnered a Tony nomination for her performance in The Ride Down Mount Morgan and Drama Desk nominations for In The Summer House, Othello and The Rehearsal. She received the Drama Desk Award for her performance in The Secret Rapture and an Obie Award for Miller's The Last Yankee.

Ms. Conroy's film credits include The Crucible, Scent of a Woman, Sleepless in Seattle, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Rocket Gibraltar (with Burt Lancaster in his last role), and the Woody Allen films Manhattan, Crimes & Misdemeanors and Another Woman.

Independent film work includes Terence Davies' Neon Bible, Tina Rathborne's The Joy That Kills, Gene Wilder's Murder In a Small Town, Perry Miller-Adato's Eugene O'Neill and Carl Sandburg, Charles Busch's Die Mommy, Die, Rebecca Miller's Angela, and Marya Cohen's Developing.

Most recently, she was nominated for an Emmy as Best Actress for her portrayal of Ruth Fisher in the award winning HBO series Six Feet Under.

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