Background
Christopher Matthew Bentivegna was born in Darby, Pennsylvania (a suburb of Philadelphia) on April 28, 1972. He was raised in New Jersey. He attended Pinelands Regional High School and graduated in 1990 after having won the New Jersey State Governor's Award for excellence in classical music.
In 1994, he received a degree in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory of Music, part of Johns Hopkins University. He moved to northern New Jersey where he divided his time between working in the social services field and being an actor. Some of his acclaimed performances in New Jersey include roles in Mame, The Secret Garden, Forever Plaid, Chess, Tommy, Into the Woods, Falsettos, and Evita. In workshop performances, Bentivegna originated the role of 'The Creature' in what would later become the off-Broadway production of Frankenstein - A New Musical, which is a musicalization of the Mary Shelley novel.1
Bentivegna's diversity as an actor served him well during his stint with New York's Mac Haydn theater playing featured roles in Camelot, Kiss Me, Kate, Victor/Victoria, Li'l Abner, and Evita as Magaldi. His highly acclaimed role of Judas in Andrew Lloyd Weber's Jesus Christ Superstar showcased his tenor range by allowing him to "sing the heck" out of the role.2
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