British actress
Laura Michelle Kelly
|
---|
|
Born
| (
1981-03-04
)
4 March 1981
(age 43)
Totton
, Hampshire, England, UK
|
---|
Occupation(s)
| Actress, singer
|
---|
Years active
| 1997?present
|
---|
Spouses
|
Nick Winston
(
m.
2001–2008)
Sean Helleren
(
m.
2019)
|
---|
Children
| 3
|
---|
Laura Michelle Kelly
(born 4 March 1981) is an English actress and singer, best known for originating the roles of
Mary Poppins
in
Mary Poppins
in the
West End
, for which she received the
Olivier Award
for
Best Actress in a Musical
, and
Sylvia Llewelyn Davies
in
Finding Neverland
on
Broadway
.
Early life
[
edit
]
Kelly was born in
Totton
near
Southampton
,
Hampshire
, and moved to a farm on the
Isle of Wight
with her family.
[1]
Her first musical appearance was in
Bugsy Malone
in middle school.
[1]
She studied with a local singing teacher, Barbara Walter, who cast Kelly in amateur productions at local theatres, including Shanklin Stagecoach of Performing Arts School.
[1]
Career
[
edit
]
Musical theatre
[
edit
]
Kelly's West End musical credits include
Beauty and the Beast
,
Whistle Down The Wind
as Swallow (2000) (with a 10-year-old
Jessie J
),
Les Miserables
as Eponine at the
Palace Theatre
(2001),
Mamma Mia!
as Sophie at the
Prince Edward Theatre
(2002), and
My Fair Lady
as
Eliza Doolittle
in the transfer of the National Theatre's production to the
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
(2003).
[2]
She made her Broadway debut as Hodel in the 2004 Broadway revival of
Fiddler on the Roof
.
Mary Poppins
premiered in September 2004 at the
Bristol Hippodrome
, followed in December by its opening in the
West End
at the
Prince Edward Theatre
. For her role as the title character, Kelly earned rave reviews as well as the 2005
Olivier Award
for Best Actress in a Musical.
[3]
She left
Mary Poppins
on 29 October 2005 after more than 400 performances and was succeeded by
Scarlett Strallen
. Kelly then went to Singapore to star in a revival of
A Twist of Fate
in November 2005, produced by the Singapore Repertory Company. It also starred
Anthony Drewe
(who co-wrote the music with Singaporean composer
Dick Lee
).
[4]
In 2006 she returned to the London stage performing in
A Tribute to Dirty Dancing
at
Kenwood House
and
Marble Hill
. Kelly and
Michael Ball
performed at the
Hackney Empire
on 1 August 2006 to celebrate
Anthony Newley
for
BBC Radio Two
which was broadcast on 29 September 2006. Kelly was the Special Guest for
Jools Holland
and His Rhythm and Blues Orchestra on tour during December 2006. On 27 August 2007, Kelly made her
BBC Proms
debut, performing "
The Prayer
" from the film
Quest for Camelot
alongside
Michael Ball
.
[5]
During 2007?08, Kelly played the role of
Galadriel
in the original London production of
The Lord of the Rings ? The Musical
at
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
. The show began previews on 9 May 2007, with an official opening night of 19 June 2007. Kelly played her final performance on 2 February 2008, and was replaced by Abbie Osman.
[
citation needed
]
She played the dual role of a nun and former
Coronation Street
actor
Johnny Briggs
's trophy wife in an
ITV1
production of
Agatha Christie
's
Nemesis
.
[
citation needed
]
Kelly appeared alongside
Kevin Spacey
and
Jeff Goldblum
in
David Mamet
's play
Speed-the-Plow
at London's
Old Vic
theatre from 1 February to 26 April 2008 and at the
Ruhrfestspiele
in
Recklinghausen
,
Germany
, in May 2008.
[
citation needed
]
Kelly voiced "Dorothy", the patient's girlfriend in
Focus on the Family
Radio Theatre's production of
The Screwtape Letters
. This audio-drama was also expanded to include speaking roles for Wormwood, the patient (called "John Hamilton"), and the patient's mother.
Andy Serkis
played Screwtape and
Bertie Carvel
was Wormwood.
[6]
Beginning 12 October 2009, Kelly reprised the role of
Mary Poppins
at the
New Amsterdam Theatre
on Broadway, replacing
Scarlett Strallen
.
[7]
Kelly temporarily left the cast of
Mary Poppins
on 6 March 2011, where she was replaced by originator
Ashley Brown
, to shoot a film. She returned to the production on 19 July 2011.
[8]
[9]
She played her final performance on 9 October 2011 and was replaced by Steffanie Leigh.
[10]
Kelly and former London co-star
Gavin Lee
performed as Mary Poppins and Bert in the
America Celebrates 4 July at Ford's Theatre
in front of President
Barack Obama
and First Lady
Michelle Obama
on 6 June 2010. The special aired on 2 July 2010 on
ABC
.
[11]
Kelly once again reunited with Lee when he returned to the role of Bert in the Broadway production of
Mary Poppins
on 24 August 2010.
[12]
Kelly starred as Anna Leonowens in a production of
The King and I
at
the Muny
from 6?12 August 2012.
[13]
She also starred as Ensign Nellie Forbush in the Muny production of
South Pacific
from 8?14 July 2013.
[14]
She reprised the role of Eliza in a concert version of
My Fair Lady
at the
Kennedy Center
in Washington, D.C., on 5 May 2013.
[15]
On 2 June 2014, it was announced that Kelly would star as Sylvia Llewelyn Davies in the world premiere of the new musical,
Finding Neverland
, which played at the
American Repertory Theater
from July through September 2014.
[16]
She reprised the role in the Broadway production, which opened on 15 April 2015 at the
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre
.
[17]
She stayed with the production until it closed on 21 August 2016.
In November 2016, Kelly began a North American tour starring as Anna Leonowens in
The King and I
.
[18]
She stayed with the show until 17 March 2018.
In 2018, she was announced as the lead in the
Encores!
production of
Me and My Girl
, alongside former Mary Poppins co-star
Christian Borle
.
She plays the role of Julie, one of the Cavendish family, in the musical
The Royal Family of Broadway
at the
Barrington Stage Company
(Massachusetts) in June 2018 to July 2018.
[19]
Recording artist
[
edit
]
Kelly released her debut single, "There Was A Time", through
EMIs
Angel label for download only on 17 April 2006. The single enjoyed Record of the Week status on
BBC Radio 2
. This single is from her debut solo album,
The Storm Inside
which was released on 1 May 2006. The album includes six original songs and six covers, including three songs which Kelly wrote herself and a cover of
Keane
's "Somewhere Only We Know", which predated the Lily Allen cover and has a similar arrangement.
A new single, "What's It All For?" (written by singer
Judie Tzuke
) was released as a digital download on 5 March 2007. It was followed by the release of her album, also titled
What's It All For?
, with the three new tracks and a selection of others from
The Storm Inside
, which was released in 2006.
Kelly also recorded a song for the radio-dramatization of
The Screwtape Letters
that she starred in as Dorothy, the patient's girlfriend. The song was called, "This is a War".
[20]
Film
[
edit
]
Kelly made her feature film debut in 2007 as
Lucy Barker
in the
Tim Burton
/
DreamWorks
film
Sweeney Todd
.
[21]
Her first starring role was in the 2013 film
Goddess
, playing a mother of young twins in an isolated farmhouse in
Tasmania
, who finds unexpected fame when performances of her songs go
viral
on the Internet without the knowledge of her absent husband, played by
Ronan Keating
.
Personal life
[
edit
]
In 2001 Kelly married choreographer
Nick Winston
. They divorced after seven years of marriage. On 24 January 2019, she married Sean Helleren in Maui, Hawaii. They had a son in 2019.
[22]
They had a daughter in 2021.
[23]
They had a second daughter in 2022.
[24]
She is the third of four children and the only girl. She comes from a
Christian
family. She has said that her faith is an important part of her life, and that she prays before every show.
[25]
When asked what three items she would take to a desert island, she said, "My
Bible
,
iPhone
and my
guitar
."
[26]
Filmography
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
O'Brien, Jon.
"Laura Michelle Kelly Biography"
.
allmusic.com
. Retrieved
26 May
2012
.
- ^
My Fair Lady
listing
Archived
17 September 2010 at the
Wayback Machine
www.albemarle-london.com, retrieved 1 December 2009
- ^
"Olivier Awards, 2005"
.
officiallondontheatre.co.uk
. Archived from
the original
on 20 December 2008
. Retrieved
1 December
2009
.
- ^
"
'A Twist of Fate' Production History"
.
stilesanddrewe.biz
. Retrieved
28 May
2012
.
- ^
"Prom 58"
.
BBC Proms 2007
. Retrieved
2 September
2007
.
- ^
"The Screwtape Letters"
.
- ^
"Christian Borle Joins Laura Michelle Kelly in Mary Poppins on Broadway"
.
broadway.com
. 28 September 2009.
- ^
Gans, Andrew (20 October 2012).
"Ashley Brown, Broadway's Original Mary Poppins, to Return to New York Cast in March"
.
Playbill
. New York City: Playbill, Inc. Archived from
the original
on 20 October 2012.
- ^
Gans, Andrew (19 July 2011).
"Laura Michelle Kelly Returns to Broadway's 'Mary Poppins' July 19"
.
Playbill
. New York City: Playbill, Inc. Archived from
the original
on 15 September 2011.
- ^
Jones, Kenneth (25 August 2011).
"Steffanie Leigh Will Be Broadway's Next Mary Poppins"
.
Playbill
. New York City: Playbill, Inc. Archived from
the original
on 16 September 2011.
- ^
"Glover, Kelly, Van Dyke et al. Featured in Fourth of July Celebration to Air 7/2"
broadwayworld.com, 2 July 2010
- ^
Gans, Andrew (2 August 2011).
"Gavin Lee Will Return to Broadway Cast of Mary Poppins"
.
Playbill
. New York City: Playbill, Inc. Archived from
the original
on 13 October 2013.
- ^
Blank, Matthew (9 August 2012).
"PHOTO CALL: Laura Michelle Kelly and Kevin Gray Star in The King and I at The Muny"
.
Playbill
. New York City: Playbill, Inc. Archived from
the original
on 4 March 2013.
- ^
"Exclusive: Laura Michelle Kelly, Ben Davis, Loretta Ables Sayre & Josh Young to Lead SOUTH PACIFIC at the MUNY; Runs 7/8-14"
.
BroadwayWorld
. 23 May 2013.
- ^
My Fair Lady, With Gregory Jbara, Laura Michelle Kelly, Cloris Leachman, Jonathan Pryce, Max von Essen, Plays Kennedy Center May 5
Archived
6 May 2013 at the
Wayback Machine
playbill.com
- ^
Breaking News: Jeremy Jordan and Laura Michelle Kelly to Lead FINDING NEVERLAND Cast; Plus Bart, Carmello & More ? Full Cast and Creative Team Announced
broadwayworld.com
- ^
Breaking News: Kelsey Grammer Joins
Finding Neverland
; Laura Michelle Kelly to Reprise Role on Broadway!
, Broadway World, Retrieved 13 November 2014
- ^
Murphy, Linda (3 November 2016).
"Review:
The King and I
wows audiences at PPAC"
.
The Herald News
.
- ^
The Royal Family of Broadway
barringtonstageco.org, retrieved 4 June 2018
- ^
"Laura Michelle Kelly - This Is a War (The Screwtape Letters)"
.
YouTube
.
Archived
from the original on 5 December 2021.
- ^
"News"
.
AllForLaura.com
. 28 February 2007. Archived from
the original
on 30 May 2007
. Retrieved
24 May
2007
.
- ^
"Laura Michelle Kelly?????????? on Instagram: "RAPHAEL is on the mend and his smile is just glorious"
"
.
Instagram
. Retrieved
12 November
2022
.
- ^
"Laura Michelle Kelly?????????? on Instagram: "Introducing Isabela Leonora-Lou Helleren Born feb 5 2021 at 6lb11oz we are leaving the Nicu today and she is already 13 days old I can't believe it"
"
.
Instagram
. Retrieved
12 November
2022
.
- ^
"Laura Michelle Kelly?????????? on Instagram: "Please share in our happiness in welcoming to our family the most delightful new baby bundle Mirielah Ruah-Rose"
"
.
Instagram
. Retrieved
12 November
2022
.
- ^
Broadwaycom (3 February 2016).
"Character Study: FINDING NEVERLAND's Laura Michelle Kelly Gets Ready Backstage"
.
YouTube
.
Archived
from the original on 21 December 2021
. Retrieved
5 March
2016
.
- ^
"Laura Michelle Kelly - Questions and Answers - Interview"
.
www.newyorktheatreguide.com
. Retrieved
5 March
2016
.
External links
[
edit
]
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Artists
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