Amanda Brugel

Pointe Claire in Montreal's West Island is a tiny quiet town. It is the West Island, to those who are unfamiliar with it, is a vast region that runs from Lachine until the west. Amanda Brugel was born there, but her time there was short. Brugel grew-up in Courtice near Oshawa in Ontario. The first goal she had was to be a dancer however a rapid growth rate resulted in her outgrowing her dance partner. In an article published by Toronto Star, she revealed that she wore heels and was 6 feet 1 inches tall. The moment I outgrew any male partner then I slowed down. Many former dancers turn to acting and in the case of Brugel, it was a nudge from an instructor in drama at high school which encouraged her to go in that direction. It was the teacher who recommended she go after a role in the annual school production. She tried out and ended up playing the leading role for the role in Anne of Green Gables. The show led her to receive a Fine Arts Talent Scholarship at York University where she attended the Theater Program which she graduated with an Associate of Fine Arts degree in the year 2000. For the past twenty years, Brugel's roles in the world of television and on the screen have been varied. Her role as Rita from the award winning show The Handmaid's Tale was her most memorable. Brugel is the sole Canadian on the Season 1 The Handmaid's Tale cast and only seen occasionally was the only Canadian.