Biography

Double-jointed, marionette-style movement

In his memoir, "Final Dress" (1983), John Houseman ruefully remembers the time he discovered that Azito had had his Juilliard student I.D. photo taken while in full drag...

Azito was nominated for a 1980 Tony Award for his role of the Sergeant in "The Pirates of Penzance". He later reprised the role on film in The Pirates of Penzance (1983).

Tony's nomination for a 1981 Tony Award was in the category of Best Performance by a Featured Actor. He studied at Juilliard, was seen in many off-and off-off-Broadway cutting edge productions. His incredible skill at dance and physical comedy gave the impression he was made of rubber.

Won a Drama Desk Award for his performance as the Sergeant in "The Pirates of Penzance".

In the 1976 New York production of "The Threepenny Opera" by Joseph Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival, Azito gave a memorable performance in a role not written into the script, a choral figure who had no lines, but appeared in most of the scenes doing a kind of visual commentary on the action.

When I started out, I thought I was going to be a Shakespearean actor...Then I decided I was too weird-looking, too tall and thin - I'm 6 foot 3. But that's helped me as a dancer. I've known a lot of dancers who were ten times better than me, but who were short. Turns out the market wants 'em tall and thin, so I got jobs and they didn't.