Amanda Brugel

(February 27 2010 - Toronto ON) Pointe Claire is a sleepy community on the part of Montreal that is known as the West Island. It is a part of the island that has been called "the West Island." West Island has a lot of different communities. People who have never been aware of it frequently think it is a separate island facing west. It is often cited as the birthplace of Amanda Brugel but while that is the case, her time there was short. Brugel was raised on Courtice just outside Oshawa within Ontario. Her first ambition was to be a dancer. But, a growing spurt caused her to outgrow all of the dance partners she was able to have. In an article published by Toronto Star, she revealed her height in heels as six feet and one inch tall. After I became too big for my male friends, I quit. Many former dancers turn to acting, and in Brugel's case it was a nudge from an instructor in drama at high school who encouraged her to go in that direction. She was encouraged to take part in an audition in her school's production. Following a trial, she ended up as the leading lady in Anne of Green Gables. This led to the award of a Fine Arts Talent Scholarship at York University where she attended the Theatre Program and earned a Bachelor in Fine Arts degree in 2000. Over the past 20 years, her roles on television and the big screen have been numerous. The role of Rita from the award-winning show The Handmaid's Tale was her most notable. Brugel was the sole Canadian cast member in the season 1 of the series, and not seen much.