Marjan Neshat
Iranian-American actress
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marjan Neshat is an Iranian actress. In 2025, her performances in the play English gave her a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play.
Marjan Neshat | |
|---|---|
| Born | Tehran, Iran |
| Education | State University of New York at Purchase |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2002–present |
Early life
Born in Tehran, her family left Iran in 1984, when she was eight years-old, following incidents that caused them to fear for their safety. She had an uncle living in Seattle who managed to help get them visas to the United States. Neshat had wanted to be an actress from a young age. She moved to New York City in 1998 and studied at State University of New York at Purchase.[1][2][3]
Career
Stage
She made her Off-Broadway debut in 2002 in Donna Spector play Golden Ladder.[2] She also appeared Off-Broadway in a production of The Seagull with Dianne Wiest and Alan Cumming in 2008.[3][1] From 2021 she appeared Off-Broadway in a series of celebrate plays including Sylvia Khoury's Selling Kabul, the Sanaz Toossi Wish You Were Here, and David Cale play Sandra.[2]
In 2022, she first appeared in Sanaz Toossi play English portraying Marjan, the teacher, when it premiered off-Broadway for the Atlantic Theater Company at the Linda Gross Theatre.[4] It debuted on Broadway at the Roundabout Theatre Company's Todd Haimes Theatre in January 2025.[5] He performance won her an Obie Award and in 2025, she became the first Iranian-born actress ever nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play.[1][6][3] The play also won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.[7]
| Year | Title | Role | Venue | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Golden Ladder | Mary Scaccia | Off-Broadway, Players' Theatre | |
| 2008 | The Seagull | Masha | Off-Broadway, Classic Stage Company | |
| 2016 | Queens | Aamani/Nasima | Off-Broadway, Women's Project Theatre | |
| 2019 | Joan | Performer | Off-Broadway, Colt Coueur | |
| 2020 | Selling Kabul | Afiya | Off-Broadway, Playwrights Horizons | |
| 2022 | Wish You Were Here | Nazanin | Off-Broadway, Playwrights Horizons | |
| Sandra | Performer | Off-Broadway, Vineyard Theatre | ||
| 2025 | English | Marjan | Broadway, Todd Haimes Theatre |
Film and television
Her film credits include Sex and the City 2 (2010) and Rockaway (2017). Her television roles include New Amsterdam, Quantico, Elementary and Blue Bloods.[1] In 2025, she played a secondary role in the Netflix thriller series The Night Agent, in which she portrayed an Iranian mother whose daughter in New York takes risks to get her out of Iran.[2]
Awards and nominations
| Award | Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tony Award | 2025 | Best Featured Actress in a Play | English | Nominated | |
| Drama Desk Award | 2022 | The Sam Norkin Off-Broadway Award | Won | ||
| Drama League Award | 2025 | Distinguished Performance | English | Nominated | |
| Obie Awards | 2022 | Special Citation | Won | ||
| 2023 | Special Citation | Won | |||
Personal life
She has a son, Wilder.[1]