Bella Merlin, professor of theatre, film, and digital production, has been nominated for her most recent theatre performances in “Henry VI Part 2.” The play was performed at Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, Massachusetts.  

Merlin received a nomination by Berkshire Theater Critics for outstanding actress in a supporting role and nominated as best actor in a play by BroadwayWorld, Berkshires.

“Whether or not one actually wins is not the be-all-and-end-all, so I'm very humbled and honored either way,” said Merlin, who has been acting for over 30 years, integrating the academy and the industry through screen and stage. Her areas of practice-based research include acting processes, fact-based drama, song-and-story, Stanislavsky, and Shakespeare.

BroadwayWorld is a theatre news website based in New York. Berkshire Theatre Critics Association is a Massachusetts-based non-profit established in 2017. The organization was established by the late theatre critic Larry Murray.

In a theatre review by critic J. Peter Bergman, Merlin’s work is praised as “one of her finest stellar performances. She is beautiful, emotionally moving, and remarkably riveting as she descends the ladder of personal importance in her arena. Later, she plays a sea captain, several rebels, and a swordsman with equal effectiveness. This is a triumph for the actress.”