Idina Menzel
Encyclopedia
Idina Kim Menzel is an American actress, singer and songwriter
. She is widely known for originating the roles of Maureen in Rent
and Elphaba
in Wicked
.
, New York
. Her mother, Helene, is a therapist, and her father, Stuart Mentzel, worked as a pajama salesman. Her family is Jewish; her grandparents immigrated from Russia
and Eastern Europe
. Her family lived in Marlboro Township, New Jersey
from when she was in kindergarten to third grade, but she was raised in Syosset, New York
, with her younger sister Cara, and later changed her last name to Menzel to better reflect the pronunciation the Mentzel family had adopted in America. When Menzel was 15 years old, her parents divorced and she began working as a wedding and bar mitzvah singer, a job which she continued throughout her time at New York University
's Tisch School of the Arts
. She earned a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in Drama at NYU prior to being cast in Jonathan Larson
's rock musical
Rent
. She was friends with actor Adam Pascal
before they worked together in Rent
.
, which became her first professional theater job and her Broadway
debut. Rent opened off-Broadway
at the New York Theatre Workshop
on January 26, 1996, but it moved to Broadway's Nederlander Theatre
due to its popularity. For her performance as Maureen Johnson in the original cast of the musical, Menzel received a Tony
nomination as Best Featured Actress in a Musical
. Her final performance in the musical was on July 1, 1997.
Following the success of Rent, Menzel released her first solo album entitled Still I Can't Be Still on Hollywood Records
, Menzel also originated the role of Dorothy in Summer of ’42 at Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut
, starred as Sheila in the New York City Center Encores!
production of Hair
and appeared on Broadway as Amneris in Aida
. Menzel earned a Drama Desk Award
nomination for her performance as Kate in the Manhattan Theatre Club's 2000 off-Broadway
production of Andrew Lippa
's The Wild Party
. Her other off-Broadway
credits include the pre-Broadway run of Rent and The Vagina Monologues
.
In 2003, Menzel starred with actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth
on Broadway in Wicked
, a musical by Stephen Schwartz
and Winnie Holzman
based upon the popular 1995 Gregory Maguire
novel
. Menzel received the 2004 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical
for her portrayal of Elphaba
, the Wicked Witch of the West
. On her second-to-last performance of Wicked on January 8, 2005, she fell through a trap door and cracked a lower rib. The injury prevented her from performing in the January 9 show. Menzel did, however, make a special out-of-costume appearance at that performance, performed her final song, and received a 5 minute long standing ovation
. Menzel was replaced by Elphaba standby Shoshana Bean
.
Following Wicked, Menzel appeared off-Broadway
in the Public Theater
's production of See What I Wanna See
, a Michael John LaChiusa
-penned musical whose run ended in December 2005, for which she received Drama Desk Award
and Drama League Award
nominations. She reprised her Tony Award-winning role as Elphaba
in the West End
production of Wicked when it opened at London's Apollo Victoria Theater on September 7, 2006. During her run, she was the highest paid female performer in the West End at $30,000 per week. Menzel finished her West End run on December 30, 2006. She was succeeded by Elphaba
standby Kerry Ellis
.
Menzel played the role of Florence in the 21st Anniversary concert of Chess
at the Royal Albert Hall
, London
from May 12–13, 2008 alongside Kerry Ellis
, Adam Pascal
and Josh Groban
.
In 2008, Menzel headlined the Powerhouse Theatre's reading of Steven Sater
and Duncan Sheik
's musical Nero from July 11–13, performing the role of Nero's mistress, Poppea.
, The Tollbooth, Water, Ask the Dust
, Enchanted, and Rent
, in which she and five other original cast members reprised their stage roles. As a singer, Menzel is known for her wide vocal range and her use of the 'belt
' technique.
Menzel performed at the 1998 Lilith Fair
summer concert festival and continues to write and perform original music. She has toured extensively and frequently performs in various venues throughout New York City
. She produced and released her debut album, Still I Can't Be Still, for Hollywood Records
in 1998. One single from the album, "Minuet", made the Radio & Records
CHR/Pop Tracks chart at #48 in October 1998.
Her second album, Here, was released independently by Zel Records in 2004. Menzel has contributed to soundtracks, including those for the film The Other Sister and the ABC
television dramedy Desperate Housewives
. She also appears on Ray Charles's album Genius and Friends, which was released in 2005, on the track "I Will Be There." In 2007, she appeared on the Beowulf
soundtrack singing the end credits song, "A Hero Comes Home". Also in 2007, Menzel's powerful singing voice led her to be asked to accompany the baritone
British X-Factor
runner-up Rhydian Roberts
on his debut album, duetting on the song "What if".
Her third solo album, I Stand
, was released on January 29, 2008. It includes many new songs, including the lead single, "Brave", the title track "I Stand", and a song released on EP, "Gorgeous". The album debuted at #58 in the Billboard 200, making it the first solo album by Menzel to make the charts. There are five versions of this album: the original version, the special limited edition, the iTunes version, the Barnes & Noble edition, and the Borders edition. Menzel wrote many of the songs on her album.
On April 1, 2008, Menzel kicked off her 2008-2009 "I Stand" tour in support of her new album performing 4 sold out legs. The concert at the Fredrick Rose Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City was filmed for the PBS series "Soundstage". Menzel was joined by special guests, superstar Josh Groban
and saxophonist Ravi Coltrane
.
On November 11, 2008, Menzel released a new single in conjunction with Koerner Hall. The single entitled "Hope" was written by Paul Hampton
and all the songs proceeds go to Stand Up 2 Cancer.
On November 27, 2008, Menzel performed "I Stand" on the M&M Candies float as part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
.
Menzel has a recurring guest star role in the television series Glee
, playing Shelby Corcoran, the coach of the rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline. When the series first premiered, Glee fans had noted a strong physical resemblance between Menzel and Lea Michele
who portrays the character Rachel Berry
. According to her husband, actor Taye Diggs
, Menzel expressed interest in possibly guest starring as the biological mother of Rachel. The character was introduced in the April 13, 2010 episode "Hell-O"
, and it was revealed in the May 18, 2010 episode, "Dream On", that Shelby is, in fact, Rachel's biological mother, having answered an ad from Rachel's two gay
dads looking for a 'mother' to help them have a baby. Lea Michele
and Idina Menzel sing "I Dreamed a Dream
" from Les Misérables
and "Poker Face
" originally by Lady Gaga
together. Menzel will be returning to Glee in Season 3 episode "I Am Unicorn
", and will appear in at least 12 episodes. She will come back as a teacher causing trouble for Rachel, Quinn, Puck, and former flame Will Schuster.
On July 19, 2010, Menzel performed "Defying Gravity
" and "What I Did For Love
" in front of President Barack Obama
and First Lady Michelle Obama
at A Broadway Celebration: In Performance at the White House. The concert aired on PBS
October 20, 2010.
In April 2010, Menzel returned to concert stage embarking on a tour with different symphony orchestras. Her performances included collaborations with the New York Philharmonic
, the Boston Pops Orchestra
, and the North Carolina Symphony
. Menzel continues her symphony tour throughout the United States. In October 2011, Menzel returned to London to perform a one night only concert in the United Kingdom
at the Royal Albert Hall
with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
with Marvin Hamlisch
conducting. Menzel's concert stop in Toronto was filmed at Koerner Hall on November 17th and 18th, 2011 for her second PBS special, airing in early 2012. She was accompanied by the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony with Marvin Hamlisch
conducting. The concert was recorded for a live album set to be released in early 2012.
Menzel will be a part of a brand new musical drama series created by Bob Kushell
on ABC
about a single mother with a teenage daughter struggling to make ends meet by working at a diner and as a wedding singer, which Menzel actually worked as prior to Rent. The series is in development.
She has also said that she will be going back to the studio to work on new songs.
, her co-star from the original Broadway production of Rent
. They have a son, Walker Nathaniel Diggs, born in 2009.
They have a Yorkshire Terrier named Sammy Davis Jr. and two cats named Ella and Coltrane, also known as their "Jazz Cats" because they were named after jazz performers Ella Fitzgerald
and John Coltrane
.
Annual Charity Coronation Ball, Night of A Thousand Gowns on March 21, 2009. Other Honorary Chairs for the evening's charity event included Sir Elton John CBE
, Patti LuPone
, John Cameron Mitchell
, Joan Rivers
and Dame Robin Strasser
.
On May 17, 2009, Menzel performed at a special benefit concert in Atlanta, Georgia
to raise money for the Pace Academy
Diversity Program in coordination with the Ron Clark Academy. The event resulted in the funding of two scholarships for Ron Clark Academy students to attend Pace Academy. The event was organized and hosted by Philip McAdoo, a former Rent cast member and current Diversity Program Director at Pace Academy.
In 2010, Menzel founded the A BroaderWay Foundation with husband Taye Diggs as a means of supporting young people in the arts. A BroaderWay sponsors camp programs, theater workshops, innovative educational programming and offers scholarships and opportunities to experience professional performances. In Summer 2011, Camp BroaderWay welcomed young girls from under-served metro New York communities to a 10-day performing arts camp, run by Menzel and a team of acclaimed professional Broadway artists including Taye Diggs. During this camp the girls collaborated with Broadway artists to write an original musical that was performed at a theatre in New York. The camp took place at Belvoir Terrace Summer Camp
in Lenox, MA.
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
. She is widely known for originating the roles of Maureen in Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
and Elphaba
Elphaba
Elphaba Thropp is a fictional character in Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, as well as in the Broadway and West End adaptations, Wicked. In the original L. Frank Baum book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the West is unnamed and little...
in Wicked
Wicked (musical)
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
.
Early life
Menzel was born in QueensQueens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Her mother, Helene, is a therapist, and her father, Stuart Mentzel, worked as a pajama salesman. Her family is Jewish; her grandparents immigrated from Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
. Her family lived in Marlboro Township, New Jersey
Marlboro Township, New Jersey
-Weather:Marlboro is located close to the Atlantic Ocean. Due to the location Marlboro Township has on the Eastern Seaboard, the following weather features are noted:*On average, the warmest month is July where the average high is and the average low is ....
from when she was in kindergarten to third grade, but she was raised in Syosset, New York
Syosset, New York
Syosset is a hamlet in Nassau County, New York, in the northeastern section of Town of Oyster Bay near the North Shore of Long Island. The population was 18,829 at the 2010 census...
, with her younger sister Cara, and later changed her last name to Menzel to better reflect the pronunciation the Mentzel family had adopted in America. When Menzel was 15 years old, her parents divorced and she began working as a wedding and bar mitzvah singer, a job which she continued throughout her time at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
's Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts
Tisch School of the Arts is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University ....
. She earned a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in Drama at NYU prior to being cast in Jonathan Larson
Jonathan Larson
Jonathan Larson was an American composer and playwright noted for the serious social issues of multiculturalism, addiction, and homophobia explored in his work. Typical examples of his use of these themes are found in his works, Rent and tick, tick... BOOM!...
's rock musical
Rock musical
A rock musical is a musical theatre work with rock music. The genre of rock musical may overlap somewhat with album musicals, concept albums and song cycles, as they sometimes tell a story through the rock music, and some album musicals and concept albums become rock musicals...
Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
. She was friends with actor Adam Pascal
Adam Pascal
Adam Pascal is an American actor and singer known for his performance as Roger Davis in the original cast of Jonathan Larson's musical Rent on Broadway 1996, the 2005 movie version of the musical, and the Broadway Tour of Rent in 2009...
before they worked together in Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
.
Theatre career
In 1995, Menzel auditioned for RentRent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
, which became her first professional theater job and her Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut. Rent opened off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
at the New York Theatre Workshop
New York Theatre Workshop
__notoc__New York Theatre Workshop is an Off-Broadway theatre noted for its productions of new works. Located at 79 East 4th Street between Second Avenue and the Bowery in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, it houses a 198-seat theatre for its mainstage productions, and a...
on January 26, 1996, but it moved to Broadway's Nederlander Theatre
Nederlander Theatre
David T. Nederlander Theatre is a 1,232-seat Broadway theatre located at 208 West 41st Street, in New York City . One of the Nederlander Organization's nine Broadway theatres, the legacy of the theatre began with David Tobias Nederlander, for whom the theatre is named.Built by Walter C...
due to its popularity. For her performance as Maureen Johnson in the original cast of the musical, Menzel received a Tony
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
nomination as Best Featured Actress in a Musical
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical
This is a list of the winners and nominations of the Tony Award for the Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical. The award, introduced in 1950, was previously named as Best Performance by a Featured or Supporting Actress in a Musical until 1976....
. Her final performance in the musical was on July 1, 1997.
Following the success of Rent, Menzel released her first solo album entitled Still I Can't Be Still on Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by Disney Music Group, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.-History:Hollywood Records was founded in 1989 by then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner with the idea of expanding the music operations of the company and to develop and promote...
, Menzel also originated the role of Dorothy in Summer of ’42 at Goodspeed Opera House in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, starred as Sheila in the New York City Center Encores!
Encores!
Encores! Great American Musicals in Concert is a program that has been presented by New York City Center since 1994. Encores! is dedicated to performing the full score of musicals that rarely are heard in New York City...
production of Hair
Hair (musical)
Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot. A product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement...
and appeared on Broadway as Amneris in Aida
Aida (musical)
Aida is a musical with music by Elton John, lyrics by Tim Rice, and book by Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, and David Henry Hwang, and produced by Walt Disney Theatrical....
. Menzel earned a Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
nomination for her performance as Kate in the Manhattan Theatre Club's 2000 off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
production of Andrew Lippa
Andrew Lippa
Andrew Lippa is an American composer, lyricist, book writer, performer, and producer. He is a resident artist at the Ars Nova Theater in New York City.-Biography:...
's The Wild Party
The Wild Party (Lippa musical)
The Wild Party is a musical with book, lyrics, and music by Andrew Lippa. It is based on Joseph Moncure March's 1928 narrative poem of the same name...
. Her other off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
credits include the pre-Broadway run of Rent and The Vagina Monologues
The Vagina Monologues
The Vagina Monologues is an episodic play written by Eve Ensler which ran at the Off Broadway Westside Theatre after a limited run at AFRICA in 1996. Ensler originally starred in the production which was produced by David Stone, Nina Essman, Dan Markley, The Araca Group, Willa Shalit, Mike Skipper...
.
In 2003, Menzel starred with actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth
Kristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical...
on Broadway in Wicked
Wicked (musical)
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
, a musical by Stephen Schwartz
Stephen Schwartz (composer)
Stephen Lawrence Schwartz is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over four decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as Godspell , Pippin and Wicked...
and Winnie Holzman
Winnie Holzman
Winnie Holzman is an American dramatist, screenwriter and poet. She created the ABC television series My So-Called Life, which earned her an Emmy Award nomination for writing in 1995...
based upon the popular 1995 Gregory Maguire
Gregory Maguire
Gregory Maguire is an American writer. He is the author of the novels Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, and many other novels for adults and children...
novel
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, is a parallel novel published in 1995 written by Gregory Maguire and illustrated by Douglas Smith. It is a revisionist look at the land and characters of Oz from L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, its sequels, and the...
. Menzel received the 2004 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical
Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical
The Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical is the Tony Awards award given to the actress who was voted as the best leading actress in a musical, whether a new production or a revival...
for her portrayal of Elphaba
Elphaba
Elphaba Thropp is a fictional character in Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, as well as in the Broadway and West End adaptations, Wicked. In the original L. Frank Baum book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the West is unnamed and little...
, the Wicked Witch of the West
Wicked Witch of the West
The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character and the most significant antagonist in L. Frank Baum's children's book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
. On her second-to-last performance of Wicked on January 8, 2005, she fell through a trap door and cracked a lower rib. The injury prevented her from performing in the January 9 show. Menzel did, however, make a special out-of-costume appearance at that performance, performed her final song, and received a 5 minute long standing ovation
Standing ovation
A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim...
. Menzel was replaced by Elphaba standby Shoshana Bean
Shoshana Bean
Shoshana Elise Bean is an American stage actress and singer known for her roles in Broadway musicals. She is best known for playing Elphaba on Broadway in the musical Wicked.-Early life and education:...
.
Following Wicked, Menzel appeared off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
in the Public Theater
Public Theater
The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as The Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers. It is headquartered at 425 Lafayette Street in the former Astor Library in the East Village...
's production of See What I Wanna See
See What I Wanna See
See What I Wanna See is a musical by Michael John LaChiusa based on three short stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa: "Kesa and Morito", "In a Grove" and "The Dragon". The story is told in two parts with two prologues. Each prologue involves the medieval lovers/killers Kesa and Morito...
, a Michael John LaChiusa
Michael John LaChiusa
Michael John LaChiusa is an American musical theatre and opera composer, lyricist, and librettist. He is best known for complex, musically challenging shows such as Hello Again, Marie Christine, The Wild Party, and See What I Wanna See...
-penned musical whose run ended in December 2005, for which she received Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
and Drama League Award
Drama League Award
The Drama League Awards, created in 1935, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing...
nominations. She reprised her Tony Award-winning role as Elphaba
Elphaba
Elphaba Thropp is a fictional character in Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, as well as in the Broadway and West End adaptations, Wicked. In the original L. Frank Baum book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the West is unnamed and little...
in the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
production of Wicked when it opened at London's Apollo Victoria Theater on September 7, 2006. During her run, she was the highest paid female performer in the West End at $30,000 per week. Menzel finished her West End run on December 30, 2006. She was succeeded by Elphaba
Elphaba
Elphaba Thropp is a fictional character in Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, as well as in the Broadway and West End adaptations, Wicked. In the original L. Frank Baum book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the West is unnamed and little...
standby Kerry Ellis
Kerry Ellis
Kerry Jane Ellis is an English stage actress and singer who is best known for her work in musical theatre and subsequent crossover into music...
.
Menzel played the role of Florence in the 21st Anniversary concert of Chess
Chess (musical)
Chess is a musical with music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, formerly of ABBA, and with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story involves a romantic triangle between two top players, an American and a Russian, in a world chess championship, and a woman who manages one and falls in love with the other;...
at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
from May 12–13, 2008 alongside Kerry Ellis
Kerry Ellis
Kerry Jane Ellis is an English stage actress and singer who is best known for her work in musical theatre and subsequent crossover into music...
, Adam Pascal
Adam Pascal
Adam Pascal is an American actor and singer known for his performance as Roger Davis in the original cast of Jonathan Larson's musical Rent on Broadway 1996, the 2005 movie version of the musical, and the Broadway Tour of Rent in 2009...
and Josh Groban
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow "Josh" Groban is an American singer-songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. His four solo albums have been certified at least multi-platinum, and in 2007, he was charted as the number-one best selling artist in the United States with over 21 million records in that country...
.
In 2008, Menzel headlined the Powerhouse Theatre's reading of Steven Sater
Steven Sater
-Life and Career:Born in Evansville, Indiana, Sater attended Washington University in St. Louis as an undergraduate. Due to an apartment fire Sater was forced to jump from his balcony and damaged his spine, as well as several other limbs...
and Duncan Sheik
Duncan Sheik
Duncan Scott Sheik is an American singer-songwriter and composer. Sheik initially found success as a singer, most notably for his 1996 debut single "Barely Breathing". He later expanded his work to include compositions for motion pictures and the Broadway stage, leading him to involvement in the...
's musical Nero from July 11–13, performing the role of Nero's mistress, Poppea.
Film, television, recording and singing career
Menzel's film roles include appearances in Just a Kiss, Kissing Jessica SteinKissing Jessica Stein
Kissing Jessica Stein is a 2001 independent romantic comedy film, written and co-produced by the film's stars, Jennifer Westfeldt and Heather Juergensen. The film also stars Tovah Feldshuh and is directed by Charles Herman-Wurmfeld...
, The Tollbooth, Water, Ask the Dust
Ask the Dust (film)
Ask the Dust is a 2006 film based on the book Ask the Dust by John Fante. The movie was written and directed by Robert Towne. Tom Cruise served as one of the film's producers. The film was released on a limited basis on March 17, 2006...
, Enchanted, and Rent
Rent (film)
Rent is a 2005 American musical drama film directed by Chris Columbus. It is an adaptation of the Broadway musical of the same name, in turn based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème. The film depicts the lives of several Bohemians and their struggles with sexuality, cross-dressing, drugs, life...
, in which she and five other original cast members reprised their stage roles. As a singer, Menzel is known for her wide vocal range and her use of the 'belt
Belt (music)
Belting refers to a specific technique of singing by which a singer produces a loud sound in the upper middle of the pitch range. It is often described as a vocal register although some dispute this since technically the larynx is not oscillating in a unique way...
' technique.
Menzel performed at the 1998 Lilith Fair
Lilith Fair
Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during the summers of 1997 to 1999, and was revived in the summer of 2010. It...
summer concert festival and continues to write and perform original music. She has toured extensively and frequently performs in various venues throughout New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. She produced and released her debut album, Still I Can't Be Still, for Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records
Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by Disney Music Group, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.-History:Hollywood Records was founded in 1989 by then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner with the idea of expanding the music operations of the company and to develop and promote...
in 1998. One single from the album, "Minuet", made the Radio & Records
Radio & Records
Radio & Records was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It originally started out as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006, up until its final issue in 2009.-History:The company was founded in 1973 and...
CHR/Pop Tracks chart at #48 in October 1998.
Her second album, Here, was released independently by Zel Records in 2004. Menzel has contributed to soundtracks, including those for the film The Other Sister and the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television dramedy Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives
Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
. She also appears on Ray Charles's album Genius and Friends, which was released in 2005, on the track "I Will Be There." In 2007, she appeared on the Beowulf
Beowulf (2007 film)
Beowulf is a 2007 American animated fantasy film written by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary inspired by the Old English epic poem of the same name. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the film was created through a motion capture process similar to the technique he used in The Polar Express...
soundtrack singing the end credits song, "A Hero Comes Home". Also in 2007, Menzel's powerful singing voice led her to be asked to accompany the baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
British X-Factor
The X Factor (UK)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...
runner-up Rhydian Roberts
Rhydian Roberts
Rhydian James Roberts , popularly known as Rhydian, is a classically trained Welsh baritone and crossover artist. He rose to fame on The X Factor in 2007...
on his debut album, duetting on the song "What if".
Her third solo album, I Stand
I Stand
-External links:* *...
, was released on January 29, 2008. It includes many new songs, including the lead single, "Brave", the title track "I Stand", and a song released on EP, "Gorgeous". The album debuted at #58 in the Billboard 200, making it the first solo album by Menzel to make the charts. There are five versions of this album: the original version, the special limited edition, the iTunes version, the Barnes & Noble edition, and the Borders edition. Menzel wrote many of the songs on her album.
On April 1, 2008, Menzel kicked off her 2008-2009 "I Stand" tour in support of her new album performing 4 sold out legs. The concert at the Fredrick Rose Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City was filmed for the PBS series "Soundstage". Menzel was joined by special guests, superstar Josh Groban
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow "Josh" Groban is an American singer-songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. His four solo albums have been certified at least multi-platinum, and in 2007, he was charted as the number-one best selling artist in the United States with over 21 million records in that country...
and saxophonist Ravi Coltrane
Ravi Coltrane
Ravi Coltrane is an American post-bop jazz saxophonist. Co-owner of the record label RKM Music, he has produced artists such as pianist Luis Perdomo , guitarist David Gilmore and trumpeter Ralph Alessi....
.
On November 11, 2008, Menzel released a new single in conjunction with Koerner Hall. The single entitled "Hope" was written by Paul Hampton
Paul Hampton
Paul Hampton is an American actor, singer, lyricist and writer. He is listed as one of one hundred major architects of American rock and roll in the British rock journal "Footsoldiers and Kings." While he was a sophomore at Dartmouth College, he was signed to Columbia Records and Columbia...
and all the songs proceeds go to Stand Up 2 Cancer.
On November 27, 2008, Menzel performed "I Stand" on the M&M Candies float as part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, often shortened to Macy's Day Parade, is an annual parade presented by Macy's. The tradition started in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States along with America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit, and four years younger than...
.
Menzel has a recurring guest star role in the television series Glee
Glee (TV series)
Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that airs on Fox in the United States, and on GlobalTV in Canada. It focuses on the high school glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues...
, playing Shelby Corcoran, the coach of the rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline. When the series first premiered, Glee fans had noted a strong physical resemblance between Menzel and Lea Michele
Lea Michele
Lea Michele Sarfati , known professionally as Lea Michele, is an American actress and singer. Michele began working professionally as a child actress on Broadway in productions such as Ragtime and Les Misérables. She originated the role of Wendla in the musical Spring Awakening and currently plays...
who portrays the character Rachel Berry
Rachel Berry (Glee)
Rachel Berry is a fictional character and de facto female lead from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actress Lea Michele, and has appeared in Glee from its pilot episode, first broadcast on May 19, 2009. Rachel was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad...
. According to her husband, actor Taye Diggs
Taye Diggs
Scott Leo "Taye" Diggs is an American theatre, film and television actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles in the Broadway musical Rent, the motion picture How Stella Got Her Groove Back, and the television series Private Practice...
, Menzel expressed interest in possibly guest starring as the biological mother of Rachel. The character was introduced in the April 13, 2010 episode "Hell-O"
Hell-O (Glee)
"Hell-O" is the 14th episode of the American television series Glee. The episode premiered on the Fox network on April 13, 2010. It was written by series creator Ian Brennan and directed by Brad Falchuk. In "Hell-O", cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester attempts to sabotage the relationship between...
, and it was revealed in the May 18, 2010 episode, "Dream On", that Shelby is, in fact, Rachel's biological mother, having answered an ad from Rachel's two gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
dads looking for a 'mother' to help them have a baby. Lea Michele
Lea Michele
Lea Michele Sarfati , known professionally as Lea Michele, is an American actress and singer. Michele began working professionally as a child actress on Broadway in productions such as Ragtime and Les Misérables. She originated the role of Wendla in the musical Spring Awakening and currently plays...
and Idina Menzel sing "I Dreamed a Dream
I Dreamed a Dream
"I Dreamed a Dream" is a song from the musical Les Misérables. It is a solo that is sung by the character Fantine during the first act. The music is by Claude-Michel Schönberg, with orchestrations by John Cameron...
" from Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
and "Poker Face
Poker Face (Lady Gaga song)
"Poker Face" is a song by American recording artist Lady Gaga from her debut album, The Fame. Produced by RedOne, it was released as the album's second single in late 2008 for some markets and in early 2009 for the rest of the world...
" originally by Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...
together. Menzel will be returning to Glee in Season 3 episode "I Am Unicorn
I Am Unicorn
"I Am Unicorn" is the second episode of the third season of the American musical television series Glee, and the 46th overall. The episode was written by series co-creator Ryan Murphy, directed by series co-creator Brad Falchuk, and first aired on September 27, 2011 on Fox in the United States...
", and will appear in at least 12 episodes. She will come back as a teacher causing trouble for Rachel, Quinn, Puck, and former flame Will Schuster.
On July 19, 2010, Menzel performed "Defying Gravity
Defying Gravity (song)
"Defying Gravity" is the signature song from the musical Wicked, composed by Stephen Schwartz, originally recorded by Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth on November 10, 2003, and released on December 16, 2003...
" and "What I Did For Love
A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line is a 1975 musical about Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. The book was authored by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante, lyrics were written by Edward Kleban, and music was composed by Marvin Hamlisch....
" in front of President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
and First Lady Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is the wife of the 44th and incumbent President of the United States, Barack Obama, and is the first African-American First Lady of the United States...
at A Broadway Celebration: In Performance at the White House. The concert aired on PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
October 20, 2010.
In April 2010, Menzel returned to concert stage embarking on a tour with different symphony orchestras. Her performances included collaborations with the New York Philharmonic
New York Philharmonic
The New York Philharmonic is a symphony orchestra based in New York City in the United States. It is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five"...
, the Boston Pops Orchestra
Boston Pops Orchestra
The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, that specializes in playing light classical and popular music....
, and the North Carolina Symphony
North Carolina Symphony
The North Carolina Symphony is an American orchestra based in Raleigh, North Carolina, with sixty-nine full time musicians. The orchestra performs in Meymandi Concert Hall and performs occasionally with the Carolina Ballet and the The Opera Company of North Carolina. In 2007, the organization...
. Menzel continues her symphony tour throughout the United States. In October 2011, Menzel returned to London to perform a one night only concert in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
with Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Frederick Hamlisch is an American composer. He is one of only thirteen people to have been awarded Emmys, Grammys, Oscars, and a Tony . He is also one of only two people to EGOT and also win a Pulitzer Prize...
conducting. Menzel's concert stop in Toronto was filmed at Koerner Hall on November 17th and 18th, 2011 for her second PBS special, airing in early 2012. She was accompanied by the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony with Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Frederick Hamlisch is an American composer. He is one of only thirteen people to have been awarded Emmys, Grammys, Oscars, and a Tony . He is also one of only two people to EGOT and also win a Pulitzer Prize...
conducting. The concert was recorded for a live album set to be released in early 2012.
Menzel will be a part of a brand new musical drama series created by Bob Kushell
Bob Kushell
Bob Kushell is a writer and producer for The Simpsons. As of December 2008, Kushell began hosting his own talk show, Anytime with Bob Kushell, on Crackle.-Writing credits:Samantha WhoThe VirginThe Break UpThe AffairThe Park...
on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
about a single mother with a teenage daughter struggling to make ends meet by working at a diner and as a wedding singer, which Menzel actually worked as prior to Rent. The series is in development.
She has also said that she will be going back to the studio to work on new songs.
Personal life
Menzel is married to actor Taye DiggsTaye Diggs
Scott Leo "Taye" Diggs is an American theatre, film and television actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles in the Broadway musical Rent, the motion picture How Stella Got Her Groove Back, and the television series Private Practice...
, her co-star from the original Broadway production of Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
. They have a son, Walker Nathaniel Diggs, born in 2009.
They have a Yorkshire Terrier named Sammy Davis Jr. and two cats named Ella and Coltrane, also known as their "Jazz Cats" because they were named after jazz performers Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Jane Fitzgerald , also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an American jazz and song vocalist...
and John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
.
Charity
Menzel was an Honorary Chair of the Imperial Court of New York'sImperial Court System
The International Imperial Court System is one of the oldest and largest predominantly gay organizations in the world. The court raises money for charity through large annual fancy-dress costume balls in communities throughout North America and numerous smaller fundraisers each year...
Annual Charity Coronation Ball, Night of A Thousand Gowns on March 21, 2009. Other Honorary Chairs for the evening's charity event included Sir Elton John CBE
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Patti LuPone
Patti LuPone
Patti Ann LuPone is an American singer and actress, known for her Tony Award-winning performances as Eva Perón in the 1979 stage musical Evita and as Madame Rose in the 2008 Broadway revival of Gypsy, and for her Olivier Award-winning performance as Fantine in the original London cast of Les...
, John Cameron Mitchell
John Cameron Mitchell
John Cameron Mitchell is an American writer, actor, and director. He is best known for his motion pictures Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Shortbus and Rabbit Hole.- Early life:...
, Joan Rivers
Joan Rivers
Joan Rivers is an American comedian, television personality and actress. She is known for her brash manner; her loud, raspy voice with a heavy New York accent; and her numerous cosmetic surgeries...
and Dame Robin Strasser
Robin Strasser
Robin Strasser is an American actress.Strasser is best known for her Daytime Emmy Award-winning portrayal of Dr. Dorian Lord on the ABC daytime soap opera One Life to Live. Strasser stepped into the role in March 1979, first appearing Friday, April 13, 1979 and left in 1987, returning from...
.
On May 17, 2009, Menzel performed at a special benefit concert in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
to raise money for the Pace Academy
Pace Academy
Pace Academy is a K-12 college preparatory private school, located at 966 West Paces Ferry Road in the Buckhead area of Atlanta, Georgia. Pace has approximately 1040 students.-History:...
Diversity Program in coordination with the Ron Clark Academy. The event resulted in the funding of two scholarships for Ron Clark Academy students to attend Pace Academy. The event was organized and hosted by Philip McAdoo, a former Rent cast member and current Diversity Program Director at Pace Academy.
In 2010, Menzel founded the A BroaderWay Foundation with husband Taye Diggs as a means of supporting young people in the arts. A BroaderWay sponsors camp programs, theater workshops, innovative educational programming and offers scholarships and opportunities to experience professional performances. In Summer 2011, Camp BroaderWay welcomed young girls from under-served metro New York communities to a 10-day performing arts camp, run by Menzel and a team of acclaimed professional Broadway artists including Taye Diggs. During this camp the girls collaborated with Broadway artists to write an original musical that was performed at a theatre in New York. The camp took place at Belvoir Terrace Summer Camp
Belvoir Terrace Summer Camp
Belvoir Terrace is a performing arts summer camp for girls near Lenox, Massachusetts, USA.It is a place where girls can learn and expand their abilities and knowledge of theatre, art, music, and dance....
in Lenox, MA.
Theatre, film and television credits
| Start year | Production | Role | Notes and awards |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Rent Rent (musical) Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème... |
Maureen Johnson |
|
| 2000 | Kate |
Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category... for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical |
|
| 2000 | Summer of '42 Summer of '42 Summer of '42 is a 1971 American coming-of-age drama film based on the memoirs of screenwriter Herman Raucher. It tells the story of how Raucher, in his early teens on his 1942 summer vacation on Nantucket Island, off the coast of New England, embarked on a one-sided romance with a woman, Dorothy,... |
Dorothy |
|
| 2001 | Hair Hair (musical) Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot. A product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement... |
Sheila |
|
| 2001 | Aida Aida (musical) Aida is a musical with music by Elton John, lyrics by Tim Rice, and book by Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, and David Henry Hwang, and produced by Walt Disney Theatrical.... |
Amneris |
|
| 2002 | Performer |
|
|
| 2002 | Funny Girl (concert) | Fanny Brice |
|
| 2003 | Wicked Wicked (musical) Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard... |
Elphaba |
Kristin Chenoweth Kristin Chenoweth is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown , for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical... ) Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical was first awarded at the 1974-1975 Drama Desk Awards and has been awarded every year since... Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on and Off-Broadway and were begun during the 1949-1950 theater season. The awards are decided upon by theater critics who review for out-of-town newspapers, national publications, and other media outlets... for Best Lead Actress in a Musical Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1935, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing... for Distinguished Performance |
| 2005 | See What I Wanna See See What I Wanna See See What I Wanna See is a musical by Michael John LaChiusa based on three short stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa: "Kesa and Morito", "In a Grove" and "The Dragon". The story is told in two parts with two prologues. Each prologue involves the medieval lovers/killers Kesa and Morito... |
Kesa / The Wife (Lily) / The Actress (Deanna) |
Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category... for Best Lead Actress in a Musical Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1935, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing... for Distinguished Performance |
| 2006 | Wicked Wicked (musical) Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard... (London) |
Elphaba |
West End theatre West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking... cast |
| 2008 | Chess in Concert Chess (musical) Chess is a musical with music by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, formerly of ABBA, and with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story involves a romantic triangle between two top players, an American and a Russian, in a world chess championship, and a woman who manages one and falls in love with the other;... (concert) |
Florence Vassy |
|
| 2008 | Nero | Poppea |
|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Kissing Jessica Stein Kissing Jessica Stein Kissing Jessica Stein is a 2001 independent romantic comedy film, written and co-produced by the film's stars, Jennifer Westfeldt and Heather Juergensen. The film also stars Tovah Feldshuh and is directed by Charles Herman-Wurmfeld... |
Bridesmaid | |
| 2002 | Just a Kiss Just a Kiss (2002 film) Just a Kiss is a dark comedy and was the first feature film directed by actor-turned-filmmaker Fisher Stevens. Fisher also is credited with playing the harmonica . Patrick Breen wrote the screenplay adapted from his own off-Broadway play and starred in the film... |
Linda | |
| 2004 | Raquel Cohen-Flaxman | ||
| 2004 | Water | Jessy Turner | Unreleased |
| 2005 | Rent Rent (film) Rent is a 2005 American musical drama film directed by Chris Columbus. It is an adaptation of the Broadway musical of the same name, in turn based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème. The film depicts the lives of several Bohemians and their struggles with sexuality, cross-dressing, drugs, life... |
Maureen Johnson | Nominated – 2005 Northeastern Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress Nominated – 2005 Northeastern Critics Award for Best Ensemble Nominated – 2005 Broadcast Film Critics Award for Best Ensemble Nominated – 2005 Washington Film Critics Award for Best Ensemble |
| 2006 | Ask the Dust Ask the Dust (film) Ask the Dust is a 2006 film based on the book Ask the Dust by John Fante. The movie was written and directed by Robert Towne. Tom Cruise served as one of the film's producers. The film was released on a limited basis on March 17, 2006... |
Vera Rivkin | |
| 2007 | ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway is an American documentary film, the first feature film directed by Dori Berinstein, a Broadway Producer, Writer and Filmmaker. Berinstein completed the film in 2005. The film premiered at the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival... |
as Herself | Recorded her own rendition of "Lullaby of Broadway Lullaby of Broadway (song) "Lullaby of Broadway" is a popular song with music written by Harry Warren and lyrics by Al Dubin, published in 1935. The song was introduced by Wini Shaw in the musical film, Gold Diggers of 1935, and, in an unusual move, it was used as background music in a sequence in the Bette Davis film... " for the end credits |
| 2007 | Enchanted | Nancy Tremaine |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Hercules: The Animated Series Hercules: The Animated Series Hercules is an animated series based on the 1997 film of the same name and the Greek myth. The series follows teenage Hercules training as a hero as well as trying to adjust to life. With his free-spirited friend Icarus, his future-seeing friend Cassandra and his teacher Philoctetes , he battles... |
Circe | 1 episode |
| 2004 | Rescue Me Rescue Me (TV series) Rescue Me is an American television drama series that premiered on the FX Network on July 21, 2004, and concluded on September 7, 2011. The series focuses on the professional and personal lives of a group of New York City firefighters in the fictitious Ladder 62 / Engine 99 firehouse.The show... |
Carol | 1 episode |
| 2005 | Kevin Hill Kevin Hill Kevin Hill is an American legal drama that aired on UPN during the 2004-2005 TV season.-Synopsis:The series stars Taye Diggs as the title character, a lawyer who has to balance his professional career and his love life with having custody of Sarah, his 10 month old cousin... |
Francine Prescott | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Private Practice | Lisa King | 2 episodes |
| 2009 | Great Performances Great Performances Great Performances, a television series devoted to the performing arts, has been telecast on Public Broadcasting Service public television since 1972... |
Florence Vassey | 1 episode |
| 2010-present | Glee Glee (TV series) Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that airs on Fox in the United States, and on GlobalTV in Canada. It focuses on the high school glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues... |
Shelby Corcoran | Recurring character. 5 episodes in Season 1 Glee (season 1) The first season of the musical comedy-drama television series Glee originally aired on Fox in the United States. The pilot episode was broadcast as an advanced preview of the series on May 19, 2009, with the remainder of the season airing between September 9, 2009 and June 8, 2010... . 6 episodes in Season 3 Glee (season 3) A third season of the Fox musical comedy-drama television series Glee was commissioned on May 23, 2010 while the first season aired. It premiered on September 20, 2011, and is being produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Ryan Murphy Television, with executive producers Dante Di Loreto and... |
| 2010 | Wonder Pets Wonder Pets Wonder Pets is an American animated children's television series. It debuted on March 3, 2006, on the Nick Jr. block of the Nickelodeon cable television network and Noggin on the same day... |
The Queen of Hearts | 1 episode, Adventures in Wonderland, special guest star |
| 2010 | Sesame Street Sesame Street Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The... |
Herself | 1 episode |
| 2011 | The Glee Project The Glee Project The Glee Project is an American reality television series from Oxygen. It serves as an audition for the FOX TV series Glee. Although originally planned to begin broadcasting in late May 2011, The Glee Project premiered on June 12, 2011... |
Herself | Season 1 episode 2: "Theatricality" |
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
UK UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
||||||||
| Still I Can't Be Still Still I Can't Be Still Still I Can't Be Still is Idina Menzel's debut album, recorded and released in 1998. After selling less than 10,000 copies in the US and missing the Billboard 200, Menzel's label put the album out of print, making it much sought after by the time she rose to greater fame in Wicked... |
|
— | — | ||||||
| Here |
|
— | — | ||||||
| I Stand I Stand -External links:* *... |
Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies... |
58 | 54 | ||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US AC |
US Dance |
AUT Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
CAN Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
|||||
| 1998 | "Minuet" | — | — | — | — | — | Still I Can't Be Still | ||
| 2006 | "Take Me or Leave Me" | — | — | 32 | — | — | Rent Rent (film soundtrack) RENT: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is an album containing 28 tracks of music from the film Rent, an adaptation of the Broadway musical. The 2-disc soundtrack, containing 28 tracks, was produced by Rob Cavallo and released on September 27, 2005... (soundtrack) |
||
| 2007 | "Defying Gravity Defying Gravity (song) "Defying Gravity" is the signature song from the musical Wicked, composed by Stephen Schwartz, originally recorded by Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth on November 10, 2003, and released on December 16, 2003... " |
— | — | 5 | 72 | — | I Stand | ||
| "Brave Brave (Idina Menzel song) "Brave" is the second single from Idina Menzel's third studio album I Stand. The song was written by Menzel and Glen Ballard and was released on November 6, 2007. It reached the Top 20 on the Adult Contemporary chart peaking at #19 on March 29, 2008.... " |
— | 19 | — | — | — | ||||
| "Gorgeous" | — | — | 3 | — | — | ||||
| 2008 | "Hope" | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album song | ||
| 2010 | "Funny Girl" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "I Dreamed a Dream I Dreamed a Dream "I Dreamed a Dream" is a song from the musical Les Misérables. It is a solo that is sung by the character Fantine during the first act. The music is by Claude-Michel Schönberg, with orchestrations by John Cameron... " (with Lea Michele Lea Michele Lea Michele Sarfati , known professionally as Lea Michele, is an American actress and singer. Michele began working professionally as a child actress on Broadway in productions such as Ragtime and Les Misérables. She originated the role of Wendla in the musical Spring Awakening and currently plays... ) |
31 | — | — | — | 45 | Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers -Sales and chart performance:The album debuted at number one on the American, Australian, Canadian, and Irish charts. It sold 136,000 copies in its first and 63,000 in its second week of release in the US, and saw the Glee cast beat the record previously set by The Beatles in 1966, for shortest... |
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| "Poker Face Poker Face (Lady Gaga song) "Poker Face" is a song by American recording artist Lady Gaga from her debut album, The Fame. Produced by RedOne, it was released as the album's second single in late 2008 for some markets and in early 2009 for the rest of the world... " (with Lea Michele Lea Michele Lea Michele Sarfati , known professionally as Lea Michele, is an American actress and singer. Michele began working professionally as a child actress on Broadway in productions such as Ragtime and Les Misérables. She originated the role of Wendla in the musical Spring Awakening and currently plays... ) |
20 | — | — | — | 26 | Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers Glee: The Music, Volume 3 Showstoppers -Sales and chart performance:The album debuted at number one on the American, Australian, Canadian, and Irish charts. It sold 136,000 copies in its first and 63,000 in its second week of release in the US, and saw the Glee cast beat the record previously set by The Beatles in 1966, for shortest... |
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| 2011 | "Somewhere" (with Lea Michele Lea Michele Lea Michele Sarfati , known professionally as Lea Michele, is an American actress and singer. Michele began working professionally as a child actress on Broadway in productions such as Ragtime and Les Misérables. She originated the role of Wendla in the musical Spring Awakening and currently plays... ) |
75 | — | — | — | — | Glee: The Music, Volume 7 | ||
| "You and I/You and I" (with Matthew Morrison Matthew Morrison Matthew James "Matt" Morrison is an American actor, director, musician, and singer-songwriter. He is best known for starring in multiple Broadway and Off-Broadway productions, including his portrayal of Link Larkin in Hairspray on Broadway, and most notably for his Emmy and Golden Globe nominated... ) |
69 | — | — | — | — | Non-album song | |||
| "Constant Craving Constant Craving "Constant Craving" is a song written by k.d. lang and Ben Mink, and performed by k.d. lang on her album Ingénue. The song first made the charts in 1992, and won her the Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1993 and an MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video... " (with Naya Rivera Naya Rivera Naya Marie Rivera is an American actress and singer known for her role in the musical comedy television series Glee, as cheerleader Santana Lopez.-Early life:... ) |
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| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
Cast recordings
| Year | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Rent (Original Broadway Cast Recording) Rent (albums) Rent is an album of music from the Tony Award- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Rent. It is produced by DreamWorks with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson. The album is a 2-disc collection of every song from the musical; some small segments of narration and spoken dialogue from the play are... |
DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records was an American record label. Founded in 1996 by David Geffen, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg as a subsidiary of DreamWorks SKG, the label operated until 2005 when it was shut down... |
| 2000 | The Wild Party (Lippa) (Off-Broadway) | RCA Victor Broadway RCA Records RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label... |
| 2003 | Wicked (Original Broadway Cast Recording) | Decca Records Decca Records Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades.... |
| 2005 | Rent (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies... |
| 2006 | See What I Wanna See See What I Wanna See See What I Wanna See is a musical by Michael John LaChiusa based on three short stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa: "Kesa and Morito", "In a Grove" and "The Dragon". The story is told in two parts with two prologues. Each prologue involves the medieval lovers/killers Kesa and Morito... (2005 Original Off-Broadway Cast) |
Sh-K-Boom Records Sh-K-Boom Records Sh-K-Boom Records is a record label, a producer of recorded and live entertainment, and an interactive community at www.sh-k-boom.com — all devoted to the mission of bridging the gap between pop music and theater... |
| 2009 | Chess in Concert (Live Recording of 2008 Royal Albert Hall Performance) | Reprise Records Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label, founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operated through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:... |
| 2009 | Highlights from Chess in Concert (Live Recording of 2008 Royal Albert Hall Performance) | Reprise Records Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label, founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operated through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:... |
Miscellaneous
| Year | Song | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | "Follow If You Lead" | The Other Sister (Music From The Motion Picture) The Other Sister The Other Sister is a 1999 romantic comedy film starring Juliette Lewis, Giovanni Ribisi, Diane Keaton, and Tom Skerritt. Garry Marshall directed the film... |
Hollywood Records Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by Disney Music Group, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.-History:Hollywood Records was founded in 1989 by then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner with the idea of expanding the music operations of the company and to develop and promote... |
| 2003 | "How Shall I See You Through My Tears", "The Want of a Nail" (Backing vocals Backing vocalist A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists... ) |
Camp (Music from the Motion Picture) Camp (film) Camp is a 2003 American independent musical film written and directed by Todd Graff, about an upstate New York performing arts summer camp. The film is based on Graff's own experiences at a similar camp called Stagedoor Manor. The film was released in 2003 by IFC Films.-Plot:The film centers on the... |
Decca Records Decca Records Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades.... |
| "I Saw Three Ships I Saw Three Ships "I Saw Three Ships " is a traditional and popular Christmas carol from England. A variant of its parent tune "Greensleeves", the earliest printed version of "I Saw Three Ships" is from the 17th century, possibly Derbyshire, and was also published by William B. Sandys in 1833... " |
Broadway's Greatest Gifts: Carols for a Cure, Vol. 5 | Rock-It Science Records | |
| 2005 | "Damsel In Distress" | Music from and Inspired by Desperate Housewives Music from and Inspired by Desperate Housewives Music from and Inspired by Desperate Housewives is the soundtrack to the ABC television series, Desperate Housewives. It was released alongside the series in 2005 by Hollywood Records and distributed by Universal Music. As the album title implies, much of the music on the album was inspired by the... |
Hollywood Records Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by Disney Music Group, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.-History:Hollywood Records was founded in 1989 by then-Disney CEO Michael Eisner with the idea of expanding the music operations of the company and to develop and promote... |
| "I Will Be There" (duet with Ray Charles Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records... ) |
Genius & Friends Genius & Friends Genius & Friends is a 2005 studio album by rhythm and blues musician Ray Charles, consisting of previously unreleased duets between Charles and musicians recorded during 1997 to 2005... |
Rhino Records | |
| 2007 | "A Hero Comes Home" (End Credit Version) | Beowulf (Music from the Motion Picture) Beowulf (soundtrack) Beowulf is the official soundtrack release for the film of the same name. It contains selections of music from the motion picture which was composed and conducted by composer Alan Silvestri. The album was released on November 20, 2007 from Warner Bros... |
Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies... |
| 2008 | "What If" (duet with Rhydian Roberts Rhydian Roberts Rhydian James Roberts , popularly known as Rhydian, is a classically trained Welsh baritone and crossover artist. He rose to fame on The X Factor in 2007... ) |
Rhydian Rhydian (album) Rhydian is the self-titled debut album by the 2007 X Factor runner-up Rhydian. It was released on 24 November 2008.The album charted at number 3 on the UK Album Chart with first week sales of over 90,000... |
Syco Records |
| 2010 | "Take a Bow" (duet with Elaine Paige Elaine Paige Elaine Paige OBE is an English singer and actress best known for her work in musical theatre. Raised in Barnet, North London, Paige attended the Aida Foster stage school, making her first professional appearance on stage in 1964, at the age of 16... ) |
Elaine Paige and Friends Elaine Paige and Friends Elaine Paige and Friends is a duet album from Elaine Paige, released on November 1, 2010. Phil Ramone produced the album for Rhino/Warner Bros Records. The CD debuted on the UK top 20 chart at #18. Paige toured the UK in concert in support of the recording in the beginning of 2011... |
Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies... |
External links
- Interview with Idina Menzel at TonyAwards.com