Amanda Brugel

Pointe Claire resides in a sleepy part of Montreal Island known as West Island. People unfamiliar with the term tend to think it's a separate island somewhere west of Montreal however, this part of West Island is home to all things from Lachine west to the City of Lachine west. Amanda Brugel is said to be born on the West Island. However, this is not true. Brugel grew up in Courtice close to Oshawa Ontario. She had a dream to become a dancer, but a growth spurt led to her growing beyond the dancers she was with. According to an article in the Toronto Star, she revealed that in heels she was six feet and one inch tall. When I grew out of my male partners, I quit. Some former dancers switch to acting and in Brugel's case it was a suggestion from an instructor in drama at high school that encouraged her to go in that direction. She was a teacher at the time who advised her to go after a role in the annual school production. The school's production was a success and she was selected to play the principal part for Anne of Green Gables after she auditioned for. It led to an Fine Arts Talent Scholarship at York University where she attended the Theater Program which she graduated with an Associate of Fine Arts degree in 2000. Through the years since Brugel has been offered roles in more than 60 productions across both small and large screens. She attracted the most attention when she landed the part of Rita in the award-winning show The Handmaid's Tale (pictured below). Brugel was the character Rita in The Handmaid's Tale, a series that was filmed over ten years ago.