The movie Maestro details the complicated, dramatic relationship between legendary conductor-composer Leonard Bernstein and his wife, Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein. The movie, which hit Netflix on Dec. 20, stars Bradley Cooper as Leonard and Carey Mulligan as Felicia, and it's already gotten a ton of awards show buzz.
But Maestro also raises a lot of questions about Leonard’s life, especially considering his children, Nina, Jamie, and Alexander, appear in the movie. At one point, Bernstein's daughter Jamie confronts her dad about rumors she's heard regarding his sexuality, and the two share an emotional, moving moment together.
So, who are Leonard Bernstein’s kids and where are they today? Here’s a breakdown.
Jamie Bernstein
Jamie is Leonardo’s daughter and the oldest of his children. She was born in 1952 and is currently 71 years old. In 2018, she published the book, Famous Father Girl: A Memoir of Growing Up Bernstein.
Jamie told People that it was “overwhelmingly thrilling” to see the movie in New York’s David Geffen Hall, where her father used to conduct. “It's like having a very strange dream, where you're in your house but it's sort of not your house, and you're with your parents but they're sort of not your parents but they are," she said of seeing the movie. "It has that sort of dreamlike quality for us. But what a ride.”
Alexander Bernstein
Alexander is Leonard’s second child. He was born in 1955, and is 68 years old today. Alexander president of Artful Learning, Inc., an educational model that is designed to stimulate and deepen academic learning through the arts, as well as the founding chairman of The Leonard Bernstein Center For Learning.
Alexander taught for five years in Brooklyn as a second grade teacher, and as a middle school drama teacher, according to The Bernstein Experience. He has a background in acting and has a Master's degree in English education from New York University, as well as a Bachelor's degree from Harvard University.
Nina Bernstein Simmons
Nina, born in 1962, is 61 years old. She's an actress who used to perform at the American Repertory Theatre, according to The Bernstein Experience. She’s worked with the Library of Congress to make sure that the Bernstein Archives are digitally available to the public.
She also worked for five years on the film, Leonard Bernstein: A Total Embrace, which covered her sister Jamie’s experience bringing their father’s music and teaching legacy to new audiences. “I had the sense that I was part of something very special,” Nina told PBS in 1997 of growing up in her household.
Nina has been working as a food educator in underserved communities since 2008.
