BERNARD BRAGG
"A Life Well Lived"
The world was a stage for Deaf performer, playwright, director,
Fanwood alumnus, and friend, Bernard Bragg, '47.
Bernard was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1928, to deaf parents. He
enrolled in NYSD at the age of five where he remained until
his high school graduation in 1947. He became interested in
theater at an early age and had some of his earliest
performances right here on this very campus!
One of his earliest mentors as a young Fanwood student was
none other than Robert F. Panara, a renowned teacher and
poet who taught Bragg and nurtured his interest in the arts.
Bernard always reminded friends and family that Fanwood
was and continued to be “home” – and that he would not have
had his successes in his life, were it not for the School.
We hope you enjoy the pictures of his time here as a young
student, a performer, and as a graduate of Fanwood. We also
treasure the moments captured of his time with his mentor,
Marcel Marceau, and all his accomplishments.
On November 16, 2018, Fanwood students and staff members
paid tribute to him and his "Life Well Lived" in the Bernard
Bragg Theatre, named in his honor back in 2016.
He entertained and inspired us all. His legacy will be forever
remembered, and and he will be dearly missed.
Gone, but never forgotten. May he rest in peace.