Who Played Polonius in Hamlet

Polonius is a role in Hamlet, a play that opened Broadway in 1938.

William Shakespeare’s Hamlet tells the story of the young prince of Denmark, who discovers that his father has been murdered by his uncle. His uncle has married Hamlet’s mother, and claimed the throne...

43 actors have played Polonius in Hamlet.

View full cast of Hamlet →

Performer	Production	Opened
G. H. Andrews	Broadway Hamlet	1864
Edwin Varrey	Broadway Hamlet	1900
Edwin Varrey	Broadway Hamlet	1902
Edwin Varrey	Broadway Hamlet	1903
Guy Lane	Broadway Hamlet	1904
W.H. Crompton	Broadway Hamlet	1904
Giles Shine	Broadway Hamlet	1905
Samuel K. Chester	Broadway Hamlet	1905
St. Clair Bayfield	Broadway Hamlet	1912
Elwyn Eaton	Broadway Hamlet	1913
Lark Taylor	Broadway Hamlet	1913
Frank Peters	Broadway Hamlet	1915
Frank Peters	Broadway Hamlet	1917
Albert Bruning	Broadway Hamlet	1918
Frank Peters	Broadway Hamlet	1919
John S. O'Brien	Broadway Hamlet	1922
Moffat Johnston	Broadway Hamlet	1923
Albert Bruning	Broadway Hamlet	1925
Ernest Lawford	Broadway Hamlet	1925
Philip Quin	Broadway Hamlet	1930
John Daly Murphy	Broadway Hamlet	1931
P. J. Kelly	Broadway Hamlet	1934
Arthur Byron	Broadway Hamlet	1936
Aubrey Mather	Broadway Hamlet	1936
George Graham	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Raymond Johnson	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Raymond Johnson	Broadway Hamlet	1939
Thomas Chalmers	Broadway Hamlet	1945
Harry Sheppard	Broadway Hamlet	1946
Eric Maxon	Broadway Hamlet	1947
Pierre Bertin	Broadway Hamlet	1952
Joseph O'Conor	Broadway Hamlet	1958
Hume Cronyn	Broadway Hamlet	1964
Philip Coolidge	Broadway Hamlet	1964
Ben Aris	Broadway Hamlet	1969
Mark Dignam	Broadway Hamlet	1969
Richard Woods	Broadway Hamlet	1969
James Gallery	Broadway Hamlet	1975
Larry Gates	Broadway Hamlet	1975
James Cromwell	Broadway Hamlet	1992
John Newton	Broadway Hamlet	1992
Gordon Langford-Rowe	Broadway Hamlet	1995
Peter Eyre	Broadway Hamlet	1995
Ian Drysdale	Broadway Hamlet	2009
Ron Cook	Broadway Hamlet	2009
Edmund Lewis	Off-Broadway Bedlam's Hamlet	2013
Daniel Pearce	Off-Broadway Hamlet	2023
Geoffrey Streatfeild	West End Hamlet	2025
Matthew Cottle	Off-Broadway Hamlet	2026

Other Roles in Hamlet

Role	Production	Opened
Ambassador	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Bernardo	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Captain	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Claudius	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Cornelius	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Ensemble	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Fortinbras	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Francisco	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Gentleman	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Gertrude	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Ghost	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Gravedigger	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Guildenstern	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Hamlet	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Horatio	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Lady in Waiting	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Laertes	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Marcellus	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Ophelia	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Osric	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Page	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Player	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Player King	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Player Queen	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Polonius	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Priest	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Reynaldo	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Rosencrantz	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Sailor	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Second Gravedigger	Broadway Hamlet	1938
Voltemand	Broadway Hamlet	1938

“Polonius” Also Appears In

Production	Type	Year
Hamlet	Off-Broadway	2005
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead	Broadway	1967
Hamlet	Off-Broadway	0

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