Jennifer Damiano
Encyclopedia
Jennifer Damiano is an American actress and singer, most known for originating the role of Natalie Goodman in Next to Normal on Broadway
. She was nominated for the 2009 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical
for her performance in that musical. She most recently appeared in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
on Broadway as Mary Jane Watson
; the musical opened officially on June 14, 2011.
. From a very early age, she took voice lessons and joined a children's theatre, The Random Farms Kids' Theater, playing parts such as Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz", the title role in Cinderella, Gertrude in "Seussical
" and Marion Paroo in "The Music Man
". Her father, Mark, owns an amusement company, and her mother Nancy works at a hospital. Damiano is one of three children. Her brother Patrick is a Junior at White Plains High School
, and her sister Elizabeth is an arts management major at Purchase College, where she will graduate in May 2011. As Damiano began her acting career, she stayed enrolled in her hometown's public high school, where she graduated in 2009.
dolls. While continuing to participate in suburban community theater in shows such as "Oliver!
", Damiano continued to perform professionally, in small professional roles in New York City. Off-Broadway
, she appeared in Inner Voices: Solo Voices at the now-defunct Zipper Factory.
On December 10, 2006, at the age of 15, she joined the original cast of the musical "Spring Awakening
" on Broadway
as an ensemble member and understudy for the roles of Anna, Martha, Thea, Ilse. She was the youngest performer in the cast. Damiano was originally hired also to understudy a pre Glee
star Lea Michele
in the leading role, Wendla, but she was not legally able to cover the role because she was under 16 and the role requires brief nudity. She remained in the cast until December 2007, when she began rehearsals for the role of Natalie, the angsty teenage daughter of a woman with manic-depression
in the musical "Next To Normal". She was cast in the role of Natalie for the show's Off-Broadway production at Second Stage Theater. The show later moved to Arena Stage
in Washington, D.C.
for an out of town tryout and eventually to Broadway at the Booth Theatre
. She was nominated for a Tony Award
for her performance. She left the production on July 18, 2010 (along with co-stars Alice Ripley and J. Robert Spencer
).
Following Next to Normal, Damiano originated the role of Mary Jane Watson
in the musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
on Broadway. The show, which began previews on November 28, 2010 and - after a record-setting number of previews - opened officially on June 14, 2011, was originally directed by Julie Taymor
and later by Philip William McKinley of The Boy from Oz
. After almost a year with the show, Damiano played her final performance on November 6, 2011 and was succeeded by Rebecca Faulkenberry of Broadway's Rock of Ages
, from Nov. 10.
in the episode entitled "It's a Wonderful Lie." She is also interviewed in the December/January 2010 issue of Teen Vogue talking about Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.
for her work in Next To Normal as Natalie on Broadway. She was also nominated for the Helen Hayes Award
for her performance in that musical.
In his review in the New York Times following the 2009 Broadway opening, Ben Brantley
observed, "The notion that personality is fragile, always on the edge of decomposition, is exquisitely reflected in Ms. Damiano’s astringent, poignant Natalie". Peter Marks of the Washington Post said she "locates a new depth of adolescent disdain and need."
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...
. She was nominated for the 2009 Tony Award for Best Performance by a 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....
for her performance in that musical. She most recently appeared in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is a rock musical with music and lyrics by U2's Bono and The Edge and a book by Julie Taymor, Glen Berger, and Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. The musical is based on the Spider-Man comics created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, published by Marvel Comics, as well as the 2002...
on Broadway as Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson, often shortened to MJ, is a fictional supporting character appearing, originally, in Marvel comic books and, later, in multiple spin-offs and dramatizations of the Spider-Man titles as the best friend, love interest, and one-time wife of Peter Parker, the alter ego of Spider-Man...
; the musical opened officially on June 14, 2011.
Early life
Damiano was born in White Plains, New YorkWhite Plains, New York
White Plains is a city and the county seat of Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located in south-central Westchester, about east of the Hudson River and northwest of Long Island Sound...
. From a very early age, she took voice lessons and joined a children's theatre, The Random Farms Kids' Theater, playing parts such as Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz", the title role in Cinderella, Gertrude in "Seussical
Seussical
is a musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty based on the books of Dr. Seuss that debuted on Broadway in 2000. The play's story is a rather complex amalgamation of many of Seuss's most famous books. After a Broadway run, the production spawned two US national tours and a UK tour...
" and Marion Paroo in "The Music Man
The Music Man
The Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
". Her father, Mark, owns an amusement company, and her mother Nancy works at a hospital. Damiano is one of three children. Her brother Patrick is a Junior at White Plains High School
White Plains Public Schools
The White Plains Public School District is a public school district located in White Plains, New York. The district enrollment is 6,901 students in 8 schools in grades Pre-K - 12. The district superintendent is Dr...
, and her sister Elizabeth is an arts management major at Purchase College, where she will graduate in May 2011. As Damiano began her acting career, she stayed enrolled in her hometown's public high school, where she graduated in 2009.
Theater
At the age of nine, Damiano made her professional debut in New York City playing Samantha and Josefina in a show based on the American GirlAmerican Girl
American Girl is a line of dolls, books, and accessories.American Girl may also refer to:* American Girl , a magazine published by the American Girl company* American Girl , a 2002 American film...
dolls. While continuing to participate in suburban community theater in shows such as "Oliver!
Oliver!
Oliver! is a British musical, with script, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens....
", Damiano continued to perform professionally, in small professional roles in New York City. 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...
, she appeared in Inner Voices: Solo Voices at the now-defunct Zipper Factory.
On December 10, 2006, at the age of 15, she joined the original cast of the musical "Spring Awakening
Spring Awakening
Spring Awakening is a rock musical adaptation of the controversial 1892 German play of the same title by Frank Wedekind. It features music by Duncan Sheik and a book and lyrics by Steven Sater. Set in late-19th century Germany, it concerns teenagers who are discovering the inner and outer tumult of...
" on 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...
as an ensemble member and understudy for the roles of Anna, Martha, Thea, Ilse. She was the youngest performer in the cast. Damiano was originally hired also to understudy a pre 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...
star 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...
in the leading role, Wendla, but she was not legally able to cover the role because she was under 16 and the role requires brief nudity. She remained in the cast until December 2007, when she began rehearsals for the role of Natalie, the angsty teenage daughter of a woman with manic-depression
Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder or bipolar affective disorder, historically known as manic–depressive disorder, is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a category of mood disorders defined by the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated energy levels, cognition, and mood with or without one or...
in the musical "Next To Normal". She was cast in the role of Natalie for the show's Off-Broadway production at Second Stage Theater. The show later moved to Arena Stage
Arena Stage
Arena Stage is a not-for-profit regional theater based in Southwest Washington, D.C. Its declared mission"is to produce huge plays of all that is passionate, exuberant, profound, deep and dangerous in the American spirit. Arena has broad shoulders and a capacity to produce anything from vast epics...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
for an out of town tryout and eventually to Broadway at the Booth Theatre
Booth Theatre
The Booth Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 222 West 45th Street in midtown-Manhattan, New York City.Architect Henry B. Herts designed the Booth and its companion Shubert Theatre as a back-to-back pair sharing a Venetian Renaissance-style façade...
. She was nominated for a Tony Award
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...
for her performance. She left the production on July 18, 2010 (along with co-stars Alice Ripley and J. Robert Spencer
J. Robert Spencer
Robert John Spencer is an American actor and singer, who was nominated for a Tony Award for his work in the Broadway musical Next to Normal....
).
Following Next to Normal, Damiano originated the role of Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson, often shortened to MJ, is a fictional supporting character appearing, originally, in Marvel comic books and, later, in multiple spin-offs and dramatizations of the Spider-Man titles as the best friend, love interest, and one-time wife of Peter Parker, the alter ego of Spider-Man...
in the musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is a rock musical with music and lyrics by U2's Bono and The Edge and a book by Julie Taymor, Glen Berger, and Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. The musical is based on the Spider-Man comics created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, published by Marvel Comics, as well as the 2002...
on Broadway. The show, which began previews on November 28, 2010 and - after a record-setting number of previews - opened officially on June 14, 2011, was originally directed by Julie Taymor
Julie Taymor
Julie Taymor is an American director of theater, opera and film. Taymor's work has received many accolades from critics, and she has earned two Tony Awards out of four nominations, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design, an Emmy Award and an Academy Award nomination for Original Song...
and later by Philip William McKinley of The Boy from Oz
The Boy from Oz
The Boy from Oz is a jukebox musical based on the life of singer/songwriter Peter Allen and featuring songs written by him. The book is by Nick Enright. The production had its world premiere, directed by Gale Edwards, at Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney, Australia, on 5 March 1998 and toured Brisbane,...
. After almost a year with the show, Damiano played her final performance on November 6, 2011 and was succeeded by Rebecca Faulkenberry of Broadway's Rock of Ages
Rock of Ages
"Rock of Ages" is a popular Christian hymn by Reverend Augustus Montague Toplady written in 1763 and first published in The Gospel Magazine in 1775....
, from Nov. 10.
Other appearances
Damiano appeared on Gossip GirlGossip Girl (TV series)
Gossip Girl is an American teen drama television series based on the book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series was created by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, and premiered on The CW on September 19, 2007...
in the episode entitled "It's a Wonderful Lie." She is also interviewed in the December/January 2010 issue of Teen Vogue talking about Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.
Reviews and awards
Damiano was nominated for the 2009 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a MusicalTony 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....
for her work in Next To Normal as Natalie on Broadway. She was also nominated for the Helen Hayes Award
Helen Hayes Award
A Helen Hayes Award is a theater award named for the famed actress Helen Hayes to recognize excellence in professional theater in the Washington, D.C. area since 1983. The awards are managed by Linda Levy Grossman. and presented by the Washington Theatre Awards Society.-Awards:The Helen Hayes...
for her performance in that musical.
In his review in the New York Times following the 2009 Broadway opening, Ben Brantley
Ben Brantley
Benjamin D. "Ben" Brantley is an American journalist and the chief theater critic of The New York Times.-Life and career:...
observed, "The notion that personality is fragile, always on the edge of decomposition, is exquisitely reflected in Ms. Damiano’s astringent, poignant Natalie". Peter Marks of the Washington Post said she "locates a new depth of adolescent disdain and need."
Broadway credits
External links
- Article on Damiano at RandomFarms.com