Hank Nuwer as the Professor in "Something in the Living Room" by Kavelina Torres, University of Alaska Film and Theater, 2024.
Hank Nuwer plays a diverse range of characters in regional theater, spanning Shakespearean rulers, authority figures, complex fathers, and seasonal personas. Best known as an author, newspaper columnist, and journalism professor based in Fairbanks, Alaska, his acting repertoire heavily features stage productions with the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) and local theater associations.
His prominent acting roles generally fall into the following types of parts:
Authority Figures and Antagonists
Ruthless Men: In November, 2026, Nuwer. plays villain Henry Potter in the Fairbanks Shakespeare classic holiday play, It’s a Wonderful Life.
He also starred as Harry Fatt, a self-serving, anti-union corporate supervisor in UAF’s production of STRIKE!. Hank Nuwer as arrogant Harry Fatt, 2025
Royalty: He has taken on Shakespearean authority figures, notably playing Prince Escalus in Romeo and Juliet.
Dramatic and Complex Family Roles: He took on the emotionally challenging role of Ed Boone, the father navigating a fractured relationship with his son, in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
Elderly Figures: He played “The Old Man” in Shakespeare’s King Lear.
Intellectuals: He played “The Professor” and Cora Alice’s lover and mentor in the University of Alaska’s production of Something in the Living Room. LEFT: Donetta Singh Tritt and Hank Nuwer as assassins in a University of Alaska (Fairbanks) Theater production of Something in the Living Room, 2024
Meta-Theatrical Roles: He stepped into show-business parts as both the Director and the Announcer in Neil Simon’s The Sunshine Boys. He portrayed the Chief Inspector (Inspector Hubbard) in the classic thriller Dial M for Murder.
From Eric Pope of Rochester Institute of Technology: “RIT’s Fraternity & Sorority Life was honored to have the internationally renowned hazing prevention expert, Hank Nuwer, as our Hazing Prevention Week Keynote speaker. Professor Nuwer was able to share powerful stories on how hazing has impacted the lives of not only the victims but the families, friends, and others which really hit home to our community. . . .Hearing the stories about how others have suffered has only strengthened my resolve to continue fighting against this evil. “
Hank Nuwer as Lovborg in Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler, 1975 Hank Nuwer and cast of Something in the Living Room take bows after a University of Alaska performance.
Hank Nuwer brings a wealth of experience to STRIKE!, stepping into the role of Harry Fatt, a brash and self-serving company man. “I wanted the part of Harry Fatt and tried out just for that role,” Nuwer shares. “Symbolically, he’s a Fatt Cat, a plush bum with a supervisor’s title and men in his care whose lives and well-being he abuses.” With a background in both Shakespearean theatre and investigative journalism, Nuwer embraces the show’s themes of power, struggle, and resilience. His portrayal of Fatt offers a striking contrast to the hardworking characters fighting for justice, making STRIKE! a thought-provoking and unforgettable experience. —University of Alaska College of Liberal Arts (Fairbanks campus)
Whimsical Stage Characters: He took on the fantasy character Mulch and an angry Santa Claus in Ken Ludwig’s T’was the Night Before Christmas. [
One-Man Educational Shows: Leveraging his background as the leading international expert on campus hazing, Nuwer writes and performs his own educational one-man plays—such as Death of a Rookie
Nuwer Specifics: 5’09” and 205 pounds.
Accents: Can do most, particularly Eastern street accents.
Primary residence: Alaska. Secondary residences: Indiana and Warsaw, Poland
“Look Down” song rehearsal, UAF Strike! Hank Nuwer (center) as Harry Fatt
Hank Nuwer as arrogant Harry Fatt, 2025 
LEFT: Donetta Singh Tritt and Hank Nuwer as assassins in a University of Alaska (Fairbanks) Theater production of Something in the Living Room, 2024 
He portrays warm, festive figures like Kris Kringle in Miracle on 34th Street.
