Kenneth Edward Ruta, age 89, was born Chicago, Illinois.

He is the cherished son of the late Edward and Eleanore Ruta, loving brother of Gayl Sorrentino, brother-in-law to Frank Sorrentino, fond uncle to the late Thomas, Jeffrey and Jeanette Birks. Ken is also survived by five great nephews and one great niece. 

Ken attended Northwestern University where he found his love of the theatre which brought him to many years attending the Goodman Theatre.

Ken often told a story of sneaking into a small theatre in Chicago when he was 10 years old where he ended up backstage watching from the wings. Later he discovered that he had seen the legendary Laurette Taylor in the Glass Menagerie.

--His on and off-broadway credits include Inherit the Wind, Separate Tables, Duel of Angels, Under Milkwood, Ross, The Three Sisters, Doctor Faustus, and The Elephant Man.

--He worked with a number of theatre royalty over his career, A national tour of The Elephant Man with David Bowie, and in productions with Zoe Caldwell and Jessica Tandy. He also worked with Vivien Leigh in Duel of Angels.

--He was selected in 1963 by Tyrone Guthrie to be a founding member of the Guthrie Theatre, which he opened as The Ghost to George Grizzard's Hamlet. He served 12 seasons with the Guthrie Theatre as actor, teacher, and Associate Artistic Director.

--He was a founding member of Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, an Associate Artist with The Old Globe Theatre and had an over 25-year association with The Arizona Theatre Company.

He came to San Francisco in 1967 to join the company at American Conservatory Theatre. Since his ACT debut at the Geary, Ken has participated in more than 70 productions. He played Scrooge in A Christmas Carol and for the past several years he played Marley’s Ghost in the production. In 2021 he read Jupiter and Belarius in Shakespeare’s Cymbeline at ACT Strand theatre in a cast made up largely of his beloved MFA students.

75 years of performing include working with most of the leading LORT Theatre Companies in the US including the Lyric Opera of Chicago, Minnesota Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony. He also toured in the one-man production Oscar Wilde: Diversions and Delights.

Ken had a twinkle in his eye and a wicked sense of humor. He was always happy to share the stories of his long career.

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