Karl Backus

Karl Laurence Backus is an American actor and art director who appeared in multiple productions of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in the 1980s and 90s, a San Diego production of Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde, and the films Skin: The Movie (2018), Thane of East County (2015), and Walking with the Enemy (2013). Backus has multiple ensemble nominations at the Idyllwild International Festival of Cinema. and in 2015, he was with the San Diego Film Commission.

Backus is a member of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. He became a member around 1986 assigned to visit over 170,000 students annually across eight states in the Western United States, including Alaska and Hawaii.

Reception Phyllis Wolfe at The Des Moines Register said his performance as Malcolm in Macbeth "hones his battle ax with a low, resounding ring downstage" and brought clarity to his lines. Ron Cowan at Statesman Journal said his performance in Moliere Plays Paris "is briefly but unforgettably seen as a king who offhandedly invents the musical comedy." Steven Winn at SFGate said Backus' scene in Arcadia was the best one, playing "a bored king who is both generous and high-handed." George Weinberg-Harter at Backstage Magazine said Backus' performance as Edward Carson in Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde was the "understated seriousness of a complete legal professional."

Personal life Backus was born to Joyce and Laurence Backus of Central Point, Oregon. in theatre arts. Backus earned a master's degree in 1992 at Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training. Backus graduated from the Portfolio Center in 1999 and married Summer King in 2000. He studied with José Quintero, Oleg Tabakov and did high school theater with Shelley Malil in 1981.

Stage credits +Theater performancesYearTitleRoleLocationNotesCloud NineBetty / GerryAmerican College Theatre FestivalRegional winner A Midsummer Night's Dream The Shoemaker's Holiday Two Gentlemen of Verona June Coriolanus 2004Thief RiverMiddle-aged RayDiversionary Theatre, San Diego, CaliforniaBy Lee Blessing

Accolades