 His intention at the time was to be a classical actor, and his hero was Laurence Olivier.When Bartenieff returned to the United States, he worked with Andre Gregory's Theatre for the Living Arts in Philadelphia.For a number of years in the 1960s, Bartenieff worked with Gregory in Philadelphia, on Broadway, for Joe Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival, and in "cross-disciplinary" showcases at the Judson Poets Theatre at the Judson Church in Greenwich Village.