By Rita Charleston

“I knew acting would be fun and a great way to meet girls. And it was,” said Anthony Lawton, a Roxborough resident for the past 11 years who is currently starring in Walnut  Street Theatre's 2015-2016 Independence Studio on 3 production of Eugene O'Neill's drama, “A Moon for the Misbegotten,” running through Feb. 7. Philadelphia audiences are the first to see this production before it becomes the sixth national tour of a Walnut Street production.

So how has acting worked out for Lawton, now 49, in terms of meeting females? “I dated a lot of actors and married one, but that ended badly. None of the other relationships lasted more than a few months. The one exception is my current partner of 10 years, whom I also met in the theater. I have a son, Declan, 12, by my second wife. That marriage, too, ended in divorce … But if I had it to do over again, I would most certainly again choose acting as a profession; it suits me better than any other profession would.”

The O’Neill classic that Lawton is starring in centers on a Connecticut farm on a barren patch of earth in 1923 where two lost souls find hope under a lover's moon. One of those “lost souls” is Josie Hogan, a boisterous woman with a quick tongue and tarnished reputation. It's been a hard and lonely life for Josie, working the Tyrone farm with her bullying father. But when James Tyrone Jr.'s mother dies, he returns to the farm to settle the estate. And one night he opens his heart to Josie. Sparks fly, and hope burns anew as these two “misbegotten” people come together.

Appearing in the role of James Tyrone Jr. is Lawton, who has acted professionally since 1992. Originally from California, Lawton didn’t catch the acting bug until he was about 21 and a student at Notre Dame University. “I had been majoring in Great Books with an eye to becoming a teacher. In fact, I received my B.A. in Great Books but then made the change and ultimately received my M.F.A. in Acting from Temple University after moving here because it seemed that all the work I was getting was in Philadelphia.”

Indeed, work has been plentiful over the years for Lawton, but this is the first time he's performing in an American classic. “This is a very difficult role to do in a very difficult play,” Lawton said. “My character displays an enormous depth of suffering and complexity, so to make him feel real and come to life is very challenging … For me, it's important to find out how much I have in common with my character to make him seem as real as possible. In this play we know James has made some mistakes along the way — who hasn't? — but in his heart of hearts, he’s a romantic.”

For the last several years, Lawton has been performing his solo versions of C.S. Lewis' “The Great Divorce,” C. S. Lewis' “The Screwtape Letters,” Shel Silverstein's “The Devil and Billy Markham” as well as Lawton's autobiographical play, “Heresy” and Lawton's original fairy tale, “The Foocy.”

Lawton's solo performances have prompted a spate of rhapsodic reviews. For example, the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote, “Now this is storytelling. Anthony Lawton holds us rapt; you can feel the intensity of the audience's attention with his masterful performance in 'The Great Divorce' . . . Each character . . . comes to life through Lawton's voice as he walks that fine line between the dramatic and the narrative. He brings the old-fashioned, very literary vocabulary to life.”

The Broad Street Review has written, “. . . . brilliantly conceived and performed by Anthony Lawton . . . Lawton's one-man, one-act play of just 75 minutes constitutes as intelligent and provoking an evening as I’ve spent at the theater in a long time; it’s often devastatingly funny as well.”

In addition to performing in more than 30 plays locally, Lawton has been in films such as “Unbreakable,” “Invincible” and “Law-Abiding Citizen,” off-Broadway  plays

and television shows such as “Hack,” “Cold Case” and “America's Most Wanted.” He said he enjoys living in Roxborough because “I love having a garden and being close to Wissahickon Creek. The commute is a little more trouble than I like, but it's worth it.”

For more information about Walnut Street Theatre, visit WalnutStreetTheatre.org. For times and ticket information for “Moon for the Misbegotten,” call 215-574-3550. For more about Lawton, visit www.anthonylawtonactor.com