Amanda Brugel

(February 27th, 2010 - Toronto ON) Pointe Claire is a quiet community located on that part of the island of Montreal known as the West Island. The West Island, to those who are unfamiliar with it, is a large part that stretches from Lachine to the west. Amanda Brugel was born there and her time there was short. Brugel grew on Courtice located just outside Oshawa in Ontario. Her first ambition was to be a dancer. However, a growth spurt caused her to outgrow all of the dance partners she was able to have. In an article published by Toronto Star, she revealed that she wore heels and was six feet and one inches tall. Once I was bigger than the size of my male companion then I slowed down. A lot of former dancers go on to acting and in the case of Brugel, it was a nudge from a high school drama teacher who led her in the right direction. Her teacher advised her to audition to play the character of Anne for their school's annual production. The student tried it out, and ended up playing the role of the main character in Anne of Green Gables. This led to her being awarded the Fine Arts Talent Scholarship from York University. In 2000 she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts at York University. Over the last 20 years, Brugel's work has been seen on the small and large screen. She gained the most fame when she was offered the role as Rita in the acclaimed television show The Handmaid's Tale. Brugel was the sole Canadian actor on the show in the season 1 and only appeared occasionally.