Bryan Batt

Bryan Batt is an American actor born on March 1, 1963, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is widely recognized for his portrayal of Salvatore Romano, the closeted art director at the Sterling Cooper agency, in the AMC drama series Mad Men. Though he has worked in film and television, his career has been rooted primarily in theater, with Broadway credits spanning from 1982 to 2004.

Batt grew up in New Orleans, where his family founded and operated the Pontchartrain Beach amusement park. His mother, Gayle (Mackenroth), was an amateur actress, dancer, and civic activist. He completed his secondary education at Isidore Newman School, a preparatory school in New Orleans, before attending Tulane University, where he was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.

His Broadway career encompassed productions including Cats, Starlight Express, Sunset Boulevard, La Cage aux Folles, and A Saturday Night. His work in the musical adaptation of Saturday Night Fever earned him a caricature at Sardi's, one of New York City's more distinctive theatrical honors. Prior to his Broadway work, Batt performed in regional productions including the role of Che in Evita at Carousel Dinner Theater, Kenickie in Grease at Darien Dinner Theater, and Dick Dickerson in Trixie True, Teen Detective with the Boston Post Road Stage Company. He also appeared in several productions at New Orleans Center Stage, playing Paris in Romeo and Juliet, John in The Lover, and Jeep in Action.

In 2010, Batt published a memoir titled She Ain't Heavy, She's My Mother, released by Random House, which focused on his relationship with his mother, who died in December of that year. The following year, Clarkson Potter Publishers released his second book, Big, Easy Style, centered on interior design and home furnishings. On September 28, 2014, Batt married his longtime partner Tom Cianfichi, an event planner. Together, they own Hazelnut, a home decor and furnishings store located on Magazine Street in New Orleans.