ERNEST
BENTLEY
Ernest Bentley is an actor, writer, and avid reader. A native Detroiter, Ernest began to study acting seriously while in high school at Cass Tech, under the direction of Marilyn G. McCormick, the 2016 recipient of the Tony Award for Excellence in Theatre Education.
From Cass, Ernest continued on to the University of Minnesota, joining the U of M/Guthrie Theater Actor Training Program Class of 2011. After successfully earning his BFA, Ernest immediately went to work for the Guthrie Theater as an actor, accepting his AEA card with his first professional show, The Burial at Thebes, directed by Marcela Lorca.
After two national tours with The Acting Company in 2012 and 2014, Ernest returned to Detroit, where he began school at Wayne State University. Originally enrolled as a student of German, Ernest auditioned for and was accepted into the Hilberry Theater, the MFA acting company at Wayne State. During his tenure there, he played a wide range of difficult characters, including Ebenezer Scrooge (Christmas Carol), Miss Roj (Colored Museum), and the Fool (King Lear). He earned two nominations for Encore Michigan's Wilde Award while at the Hilberry: Best Actor, A Christmas Carol, and Best Supporting Actor, Colored Museum.
In the summer of 2017, Ernest returned to the Guthrie Theater as one of twelve actors selected to participate in the Guthrie Experience for Actors in Training, established by the late Ken Washington. He is an alumnus of the 20th company.
Ernest is a serious learner, who loves to laugh as much as he does having an impassioned discussion about history or current events. High among his passions are reading and the study of black history. He taught himself German, and after two years of consistent study, had gained enough proficiency to test into the intermediate German language college course at Wayne State, his first and only German class. He is inspired by the writings and teachings of such authors as: Richard Wright, Carl Jung, James Baldwin, and Stephen King.
Ernest Bentley is a confident young man, with a captivating talent for acting. He is genuine and generous, and he is ready to go to work!
“It’s hard to believe the actors in this professional theater company are college students. Ernest Bentley, a second-year graduate student, gives an impeccable performance as Ebenezer Scrooge. His meanness and disdain for sentiment are palpable at the beginning of the play where he spares no one a “Bah! Humbug,” as is his heartfelt turnaround […]” - Tanya Gadzik, Encore Michigan
"One of the standout performances in the show is Bentley’s Miss Roj, who tells us of her life at a gay disco, while downing too many drinks. Miss Roj is filled with rage and pride, the victim of double prejudice, being called a monkey in public and a faggot at home." - Amy J Parrent, Encore Michigan
"Ernest Bentley is outstanding as the world-wise Fool and puts his soulful tenor to good use while dispensing wisdom." - Patrice Nolan, Encore Michigan
"Bentley’s interpretation of Lear’s 'all licensed' Fool is sometimes revelatory. I am usually two ticks behind the Fool’s riddles, but Bentley, a Detroit-born actor currently based in New York, delivers these musings with such wit and clarity that their meanings are easy to decipher." - John Monaghan, Detroit Free Press
It’s likely that members of the 2017 Guthrie Experience class will find [...] success.
They certainly are a talented bunch." - Rohan Preston, Star Tribune
"Louise deserves to take a lover, and the first of the suitors — Frank Versati (Ernest Bentley)–is a perfect candidate. Bentley gives a charming performance as the poet/Casanova, who is bound and determined to bed Louise." - Tanya Gadzik Encore Michigan
"Breayre Tender and Ernest Bentley are breathtakingly beautiful as the Princess of France and Ferdinand, the King of Navarre." - Frank Anthony Polito, Encore Michigan