34 | JANUARY 16 • 2019 

I

n between professional stage 
roles, Leslie Ann Handelman 
became a certified fitness 
instructor. Besides keeping her-
self strong, she helps others build 
strong bodies in ways she first 
learned at a gym near a St. Louis 
theater. 
Ironically, in her current role 
as Elvira in Noel Coward’
s Blithe 
Spirit, she abandons body to 
portray the apparition of a writ-
er’
s late first wife. Her entrance 
into the action comes as she 
is conjured up in a séance and 
supposedly is seen and heard 
only by the writer (portrayed 
by Timothy C. Goodwin), who 
thought he was doing general 
research for his next book. 
The comedy, being presented 
through Feb. 2 at the Meadow 
Brook Theatre in Rochester, sets 
up predicaments centered on the 
author and his past and current 
(Dani Cochrane) wives.
 “I read this play for the first 
time probably 20 years ago, and 
I wanted to start doing it soon,
” 
says Handelman, 38, who grew 
up in West Bloomfield, lives in 
Chicago and returns for her sev-
enth role at Meadow Brook.
“It’
s like being on the wish list 
for a very long time, and I’
m so 
excited to finally get to work on 
it with friends — other actors, 
designers, a director and stage 
crew I’
ve worked with before. It’
s 
great fun.
“In the construct of the play, 
the other characters think 
the author has lost his mind. 
Although they don’
t see me, they 
see flowers and vases moving. 
When I step into this role, I feel 
I get the license to be a little bit 
ridiculous.
”
While attending West 
Bloomfield High School, 

Handelman first admitted to 
herself that she wanted to be an 
actress but was a little nervous 
about telling anybody else.
She thought she would con-
nect with theater by being a 
physical therapist on national 
tours and help the actors stay 
healthy, but she set aside that 
idea when talking with her par-
ents, Nancy and 
Bill Handelman, 
who were very 
supportive of her 
acting interests.
Handelman 
earned a bachelor’
s 
degree at Syracuse 
University and 
master’
s degree 
at the University 
of Illinois. A play, 
The Blank Page, written by Kitty 
Dubin and produced by the 
Jewish Ensemble Theatre (JET), 
became her official professional 
Michigan debut.
She soon moved to Chicago 
and spent the last 13 years based 
there while working all over 

the Midwest. She has appeared 
in The Merchant of Venice for 
the Cardinal Stage Company 
in Indiana, The Rivals for Door 
Shakespeare in Wisconsin 
and A Christmas Carol for the 
Nebraska Theatre Caravan in 
addition to productions around 
Illinois.
Handelman, whose family 
has been active 
with Adat Shalom 
Synagogue, recalls 
taking part in two 
school productions 
with Jewish themes 
— Fiddler on the 
Roof in high school 
and Backsliding in 
the Promised Land
in college. For the 
second, she coached 
a non-Jewish cast member in 
saying Kaddish.
Two sisters followed in 
Handelman’
s career direction. 
Amy Handelman, living in 
California, can be seen doing TV 
commercials. Elyse Handelman, 
in New York, worked in theater 

lighting design before moving 
into architectural interests.
Aside from stage appearanc-
es, Handelman has performed 
in mock trials for a law firm. 
Responsibilities require mem-
orizing a tremendous amount 
of material to serve as a wit-
ness. Senior lawyers in the firm 
become judges to evaluate new 
lawyers.
“When I do musicals, I’
m par-
ticularly thankful I spent time 
working on my fitness,
” says 
Handelman, married to mar-
keting specialist Michael Bokor. 
“Musicals are very grueling and 
physically challenging. I come 
in with stamina and the muscle 
and energy to do them.
“Blithe Spirit is the first play 
I’
ve done since becoming a 
mother. I was working in the 
play Sheer Madness at Meadow 
Brook in the fall of 2017 when 
I found out I was pregnant with 
twins. This play was written 
about 75 years ago, and it’
s so 
funny how the jokes resonate 
today.
” 

Arts&Life

theatre

SUZANNE CHESSLER 
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Fit and Ready 

Local actress returns to play a
writer’
s late fi
 rst wife in Blithe Spirit. 

SEAN CARTER PHOTOGRAPHY

Leslie Ann Handelman, 
Timothy C. Goodwin and 
Katie Akers in Blithe Spirit 
at Meadow Brook Theatre

details
Blithe Spirit runs
through Feb. 2
at the Meadow
Brook Theatre in
Rochester. $36-$46. 
(248) 377-3300
mbtheatre.com. 

