Laura Benanti
Encyclopedia
Laura Benanti is an American actress of television, film and Broadway theatre
noted for her award winning performance as Louise in the 2008 production of Gypsy.
, the daughter of Linda Wonneberger, a vocal coach and former actress, and Martin Vidnovic
, a Broadway
actor and singer. She is of Yugoslavian
-German
-Irish
-Native American
heritage. When quite young, her parents divorced and she moved to Kinnelon, New Jersey
, with her mother and her stepfather Salvatore Benanti, a psychotherapist, whose name she took and whom she has referred to as her father.
Benanti remembers being "very serious" and "a bit of an ugly duckling" as a child, and was intensely interested in musical theatre
, which distanced her from other children. (In 2008, Benanti told The New York Times that she drew on this loneliness in her portrayal of the neglected Louise in Gypsy
.) Though her parents refused to let Laura audition for professional theatre, Laura appeared in several high school and community productions, including Evita (as Peron's mistress), Follies
(as Young Heidi), and Into the Woods
(as Cinderella). At 16, Benanti played the title role in her high school production of Hello, Dolly!
and won a Paper Mill Playhouse
Rising Star Award for Outstanding Actress in a high school production. She graduated from Kinnelon High School
in 1997.
. Benanti auditioned for the show's producers and was considered too mature-looking to play Liesl, but, after several call-backs, was signed at the age of 18 to play one of the nuns and to understudy Rebecca Luker
as Maria. Benanti played the role for two weeks during Luker's vacation, and, at 19, took over the role when Luker left the production. Playbill
's Michael Buckley later wrote that Benanti "was an absolutely wonderful Maria[...]As do others, I believe that had she opened in the show, Benanti would have been an overnight sensation." When she was cast in The Sound of Music, Benanti had attended New York University
for two weeks; the dean recommended she go on leave to take the job.
In 1999, Benanti appeared in the Broadway revue Swing!
, for which she received a Tony nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical
. In 2000, she co-starred with Donna Murphy in the critically acclaimed City Center Encores! concert production of the Leonard Bernstein-Betty Comden-Adolph Green musical "Wonderful Town." In 2002, Benanti played Cinderella (a role she had played as a teenager) in the Broadway revival of Into the Woods, and received both a Tony nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical and a Drama Desk nomination for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
. During a mid-performance pratfall
in Into the Woods, Benanti fractured her neck, herniating two discs directly onto her spinal cord
and cutting off spinal fluid, a condition that sometimes leads to paralysis
. The injury was misdiagnosed and Into the Woods producers asked Benanti not to mention her injury; when she began missing performances due to neck problems, rumors spread that Benanti was behaving unprofessionally, something that she calls "really hurtful. I had a serious injury and there was absolutely no way I could have done the show. I tried to. I tried to go back and do it but I physically couldn't." Benanti was eventually replaced in the show by Erin Dilly
. Eight months after her initial injury, Benanti was rediagnosed and received surgery that could have damaged her voice but was successful, though as of 2005 she still experienced neck pain and myelopathy
.
Three weeks after undergoing spinal surgery, Benanti started previews in March 2003 for the Broadway revival of Nine
, in which she played Claudia, a movie star who inspires Guido, a director played by Antonio Banderas
. She left the show in September 2003. From April 2006 to December 2006 she played Julia Sullivan in the Broadway musical The Wedding Singer
. In July 2007, Benanti played in a three-week limited run of the musical Gypsy
in the Encores!
production at the New York City Center
as Louise, alongside Patti LuPone
as Rose and Boyd Gaines
as Herbie. In March 2008, the production transferred to Broadway, where it ran until January 2009 and received widespread critical acclaim. Benanti's performance as Louise was praised, with The New York Times
s Ben Brantley
declaring it "the performance of her career". She won several awards, including a Tony for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical, a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical, and an Outer Critics Circle Award
for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical.
Benanti appeared in The Public Theater's world premiere production of Christopher Durang
's play Why Torture Is Wrong, And the People Who Love Them, from April 6, 2009 to April 26.
She next appeared in the Lincoln Center Theater production of Sarah Ruhl
's In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play)
beginning October 22, 2009, and opening November 19, 2009, at the Lyceum Theatre
.
Benanti has also appeared in the World AIDS Day concerts of Pippin
and Children of Eden
. These concerts were co-founded by her best friend, Jamie McGonnigal
and former Miss America Kate Shindle.
Benanti recently appeared in the new musical Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
which played Broadway from October 8, 2010, until December 28, 2010. Benanti received a Tony Award
nomination, and won the Drama Desk Award
and Outer Critics Circle Award
for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance.
sitcom Starved (2005), which received mixed reviews but which Benanti described as "a good experience. I got a lot of camera experience, which was something I just hadn't had." A year later, she appeared in two films: Take the Lead
, in which she reunited with her Nine co-star Antonio Banderas as his love-sick assistant, and Falling for Grace, in which she played a princess. In 2008, Benanti had a recurring role on the ABC
television series Eli Stone
. In 2011 she was cast in the NBC
series The Playboy Club
(which was canceled after 3 episodes). Benanti played the wife of Dr. Atticus Sherman on episode 11 of season two of The Big C
, entitled "Fight Or Flight." Despite her forays into screen work, Benanti remains devoted to the stage, and has stated that "musicals are a great American art form. We've got apple pie, jazz and musical theater. I want to do this my whole life." Benanti will guest star on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
as Detective Nick Amaro's wife, who returns from overseas and she and Amaro must figure out where their relationship stands. Benanti, will film one episode with the potential of a multi-episode arc.
and Maury Yeston
. She also appears as a guest artist on the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C.
's live album, You've Got to Be Carefully Taught: The Songs of Hammerstein & Sondheim, taken from a performance at the Kennedy Center
in June 2002. She can now be heard on the cast album of Gypsy, which was released in August 2008 from Time/Life Records, and on the new studio cast album
of Rodgers and Hammerstein
's Allegro
, which was released by Sony Classics in February 2009. A songwriter and guitarist, Benanti has written songs privately since at least the early 2000s; in 2005, she said that she was working on a folk-rock solo CD, though "Musical theatre is my first love[...]I want to take my music and orchestrate it in a kind of old fashioned style, and take some standards and 'popularize' them—do a true crossover. I'm working on it."
, in the early 2000s; they married on July 25, 2005, and divorced in 2006. In September 2007, Benanti married the actor Steven Pasquale
, with whom she had appeared in the 2005 World AIDS Day "dream cast" concert of The Secret Garden
.
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
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...
noted for her award winning performance as Louise in the 2008 production of Gypsy.
Early years
Benanti was born in New York CityNew 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...
, the daughter of Linda Wonneberger, a vocal coach and former actress, and Martin Vidnovic
Martin Vidnovic
Martin Vidnovic is an American actor and singer.Born in Falls Church, Virginia, Vidnovic made his Broadway debut in the ill-fated Home Sweet Homer which, following a one-year tour, closed on opening night...
, a 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...
actor and singer. She is of Yugoslavian
Yugoslavs
Yugoslavs is a national designation used by a minority of South Slavs across the countries of the former Yugoslavia and in the diaspora...
-German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
-Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
-Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
heritage. When quite young, her parents divorced and she moved to Kinnelon, New Jersey
Kinnelon, New Jersey
Kinnelon is a Borough in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 10,248. It is a low density, suburban community, with many parks and trails....
, with her mother and her stepfather Salvatore Benanti, a psychotherapist, whose name she took and whom she has referred to as her father.
Benanti remembers being "very serious" and "a bit of an ugly duckling" as a child, and was intensely interested in musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, which distanced her from other children. (In 2008, Benanti told The New York Times that she drew on this loneliness in her portrayal of the neglected Louise in Gypsy
Gypsy: A Musical Fable
Gypsy is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Gypsy is loosely based on the 1957 memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous striptease artist, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business...
.) Though her parents refused to let Laura audition for professional theatre, Laura appeared in several high school and community productions, including Evita (as Peron's mistress), Follies
Follies
Follies is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The story concerns a reunion in a crumbling Broadway theatre, scheduled for demolition, of the past performers of the "Weismann's Follies," a musical revue , that played in that theatre between the World Wars...
(as Young Heidi), and Into the Woods
Into the Woods
Into the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986, and premiered on Broadway in 1987. Bernadette Peters' performance as the Witch and Joanna Gleason's portrayal of the Baker's Wife brought acclaim...
(as Cinderella). At 16, Benanti played the title role in her high school production of Hello, Dolly!
Hello, Dolly! (musical)
Hello, Dolly! is a musical with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and a book by Michael Stewart, based on Thornton Wilder's 1938 farce The Merchant of Yonkers, which Wilder revised and retitled The Matchmaker in 1955....
and won a Paper Mill Playhouse
Paper Mill Playhouse
Paper Mill Playhouse is a regional theatre with approximately 1200 seats, located in Millburn, New Jersey, less than 25 miles from Manhattan. Due to its location, it can draw from the pool of actors who live in New York City. Its location, as well as its focus on producing large-scale shows, makes...
Rising Star Award for Outstanding Actress in a high school production. She graduated from Kinnelon High School
Kinnelon High School
Kinnelon High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Kinnelon in Morris County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Kinnelon Public Schools....
in 1997.
Theatre
In 1998, Paper Mill's then-artistic director Robert Johanson recommended Benanti for the role of Liesl in a Broadway revival of The Sound of MusicThe Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
. Benanti auditioned for the show's producers and was considered too mature-looking to play Liesl, but, after several call-backs, was signed at the age of 18 to play one of the nuns and to understudy Rebecca Luker
Rebecca Luker
Rebecca Luker is an American musical theatre actress and soprano who has appeared in several prominent Broadway productions.-Life and career:...
as Maria. Benanti played the role for two weeks during Luker's vacation, and, at 19, took over the role when Luker left the production. Playbill
Playbill
Playbill is a monthly U.S. magazine for theatregoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most Playbills are printed for particular shows to be distributed at the door...
's Michael Buckley later wrote that Benanti "was an absolutely wonderful Maria[...]As do others, I believe that had she opened in the show, Benanti would have been an overnight sensation." When she was cast in The Sound of Music, Benanti had attended 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...
for two weeks; the dean recommended she go on leave to take the job.
In 1999, Benanti appeared in the Broadway revue Swing!
Swing!
Swing! is a musical conceived by Paul Kelly with music by various artists. It celebrates the music of the Swing era of jazz , including many well-known tunes by artists like Duke Ellington, William "Count" Basie, Benny Goodman and others...
, for which she received a Tony nomination 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....
. In 2000, she co-starred with Donna Murphy in the critically acclaimed City Center Encores! concert production of the Leonard Bernstein-Betty Comden-Adolph Green musical "Wonderful Town." In 2002, Benanti played Cinderella (a role she had played as a teenager) in the Broadway revival of Into the Woods, and received both a Tony nomination for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical and a Drama Desk nomination for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical was first awarded in the 1974-1975 Drama Desk Awards and has subsequently been awarded every year. In the 1993-1994 Drama Desk Awards the award was given under the name of Outstanding Supporting Actress - Musical...
. During a mid-performance pratfall
Physical comedy
Physical comedy, also known as slapstick, is a comedic performance relying mostly on the use of the body to convey humour.Physical comedy, whether conveyed by a pratfall , a silly face, or the action of walking into walls, is a common and rarely subtle form of comedy...
in Into the Woods, Benanti fractured her neck, herniating two discs directly onto her spinal cord
Spinal cord
The spinal cord is a long, thin, tubular bundle of nervous tissue and support cells that extends from the brain . The brain and spinal cord together make up the central nervous system...
and cutting off spinal fluid, a condition that sometimes leads to paralysis
Paralysis
Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
. The injury was misdiagnosed and Into the Woods producers asked Benanti not to mention her injury; when she began missing performances due to neck problems, rumors spread that Benanti was behaving unprofessionally, something that she calls "really hurtful. I had a serious injury and there was absolutely no way I could have done the show. I tried to. I tried to go back and do it but I physically couldn't." Benanti was eventually replaced in the show by Erin Dilly
Erin Dilly
Erin Dilly is an American actress. She is most noted for her portrayal of Truly Scrumptious in the 2005 musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, for which she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical and the Outer Critics Circle Award.Dilly was raised in...
. Eight months after her initial injury, Benanti was rediagnosed and received surgery that could have damaged her voice but was successful, though as of 2005 she still experienced neck pain and myelopathy
Myelopathy
Myelopathy refers to pathology of the spinal cord. When due to trauma, it is known as spinal cord injury. When inflammatory, it is known as myelitis. Disease that is vascular in nature is known as vascular myelopathy....
.
Three weeks after undergoing spinal surgery, Benanti started previews in March 2003 for the Broadway revival of Nine
Nine (musical)
Nine is a musical with a book by Arthur Kopit, music and lyrics by Maury Yeston. The story is based on Federico Fellini's semi-autobiographical film 8½...
, in which she played Claudia, a movie star who inspires Guido, a director played by Antonio Banderas
Antonio Banderas
José Antonio Domínguez Banderas , better known as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish film actor, film director, film producer and singer...
. She left the show in September 2003. From April 2006 to December 2006 she played Julia Sullivan in the Broadway musical The Wedding Singer
The Wedding Singer (musical)
The Wedding Singer is a musical with music by Matthew Sklar, lyrics by Chad Beguelin, and a book by Chad Beguelin and Tim Herlihy. It is based on the 1998 film The Wedding Singer.-Synopsis:Act 1...
. In July 2007, Benanti played in a three-week limited run of the musical Gypsy
Gypsy: A Musical Fable
Gypsy is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Gypsy is loosely based on the 1957 memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous striptease artist, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business...
in the 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 at the New York City Center
New York City Center
New York City Center is a 2,750-seat Moorish Revival theater located at 131 West 55th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues in Manhattan, New York City. It is one block south of Carnegie Hall...
as Louise, alongside 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...
as Rose and Boyd Gaines
Boyd Gaines
Boyd Payne Gaines is an American stage, film, and television actor.Gaines was born in Atlanta, Georgia, to Ida and James Gaines. He has appeared in a number of films and television shows, including Fame, L.A...
as Herbie. In March 2008, the production transferred to Broadway, where it ran until January 2009 and received widespread critical acclaim. Benanti's performance as Louise was praised, with The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
s 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:...
declaring it "the performance of her career". She won several awards, including a Tony for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical, a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical, and an Outer Critics Circle Award
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 Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical.
Benanti appeared in The Public Theater's world premiere production of Christopher Durang
Christopher Durang
Christopher Ferdinand Durang is an American playwright known for works of outrageous and often absurd comedy. His work was especially popular in the 1980s.- Life :...
's play Why Torture Is Wrong, And the People Who Love Them, from April 6, 2009 to April 26.
She next appeared in the Lincoln Center Theater production of Sarah Ruhl
Sarah Ruhl
Sarah Ruhl is an American playwright. She is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship.-Biography:Ruhl was born in Wilmette, Illinois. Originally, she intended to be a poet. However, after she studied under Paula Vogel at Brown University , she was convinced to switch to playwrighting...
's In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play)
In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play)
In the Next Room is a play by Sarah Ruhl. It concerns the early history of the vibrator, when doctors used it as a clinical device to bring women to orgasm as treatment for "hysteria." Other themes include Victorian ignorance of female sexual desire, motherhood and breastfeeding, and jealousy...
beginning October 22, 2009, and opening November 19, 2009, at the Lyceum Theatre
Lyceum Theatre
- United Kingdom :* Lyceum Theatre, London, a 2,000-seat West End theatre located in the City of Westminster* Lyceum Theatre , an Edwardian period Grade II listed building and theatre* Lyceum Theatre , a 1068-seat theatre in the City of Sheffield...
.
Benanti has also appeared in the World AIDS Day concerts of Pippin
Pippin (musical)
Pippin is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Roger O. Hirson. Bob Fosse, who directed the original Broadway production, also contributed to the libretto...
and Children of Eden
Children of Eden
Children of Eden is a two-act musical play with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by John Caird. The musical is based on the Book of Genesis. Act I tells the story of Adam and Eve, Cain, and Abel, and Act II deals with Noah and the Flood...
. These concerts were co-founded by her best friend, Jamie McGonnigal
Jamie McGonnigal
Jamie McGonnigal is a voice actor, actor, producer, activist and director, who has worked for various companies such as 4Kids Entertainment, NYAV Post, DuArt Film and Video and FUNimation Entertainment....
and former Miss America Kate Shindle.
Benanti recently appeared in the new musical Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (musical)
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown is a musical with a book by Jeffrey Lane and music and lyrics by David Yazbek. The musical tells the tale of a group of women in late 20th-century Madrid whose relationships with men lead to a tumultuous 48 hours of love, confusion and passion...
which played Broadway from October 8, 2010, until December 28, 2010. Benanti received 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...
nomination, and won the 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 Outer Critics Circle Award
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 Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance.
Television and film
In addition to stage roles, Benanti was a regular on the short-lived FX NetworksFX Networks
FX is the name of a number of related pay television channels owned by News Corporation's Fox Entertainment Group...
sitcom Starved (2005), which received mixed reviews but which Benanti described as "a good experience. I got a lot of camera experience, which was something I just hadn't had." A year later, she appeared in two films: Take the Lead
Take the Lead
Take the Lead is a movie starring Antonio Banderas, Rob Brown, Alfre Woodard, Dante Basco, Marcus T. Paulk, Jenna Dewan, Lauren Collins and also features former America's Next Top Model contestant, Yaya DaCosta. The film was released in mainstream cinema on April 7, 2006...
, in which she reunited with her Nine co-star Antonio Banderas as his love-sick assistant, and Falling for Grace, in which she played a princess. In 2008, Benanti had a recurring role on 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 series Eli Stone
Eli Stone
Eli Stone is an American TV series, and also the name of the title character.San Francisco lawyer Eli Stone begins to see things, which leads him to discover a brain aneurysm...
. In 2011 she was cast in the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
series The Playboy Club
The Playboy Club
The Playboy Club is an American television series that ran on NBC from September 19, 2011 to October 3, 2011. Set in 1961, the series centers around the employees of the original Playboy Club operating in Chicago....
(which was canceled after 3 episodes). Benanti played the wife of Dr. Atticus Sherman on episode 11 of season two of The Big C
The Big C (TV series)
The Big C is a Showtime original television series created by Darlene Hunt which premiered on August 16, 2010. It drew the largest audience for a Showtime original series premiere in eight years. On September 20, 2010, The Big C was renewed for a second season which premiered on June 27, 2011...
, entitled "Fight Or Flight." Despite her forays into screen work, Benanti remains devoted to the stage, and has stated that "musicals are a great American art form. We've got apple pie, jazz and musical theater. I want to do this my whole life." Benanti will guest star on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
as Detective Nick Amaro's wife, who returns from overseas and she and Amaro must figure out where their relationship stands. Benanti, will film one episode with the potential of a multi-episode arc.
Recordings
Laura appears on the original cast albums of each of her Broadway roles, as well as compilation albums of Stephen SchwartzStephen 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 Maury Yeston
Maury Yeston
Maury Yeston is an American composer, lyricist, educator and musicologist.He is known for writing the music and lyrics to Broadway musicals, including Nine in 1982, and Titanic in 1997, both of which won Tony Awards for best musical and best score. He also won a Drama Desk Award for Nine...
. She also appears as a guest artist on the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C.
Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C.
The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C. , is one of the oldest LGBT choral organizations in the United States. With more than 225 singing members, it is also one of the largest...
's live album, You've Got to Be Carefully Taught: The Songs of Hammerstein & Sondheim, taken from a performance at the Kennedy Center
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is a performing arts center located on the Potomac River, adjacent to the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C...
in June 2002. She can now be heard on the cast album of Gypsy, which was released in August 2008 from Time/Life Records, and on the new studio cast album
Studio recording
The term studio recording means any recording made in a studio, as opposed to a live recording, which is usually made in a concert venue or a theatre, with an audience attending the performance.-Studio cast recordings:...
of Rodgers and Hammerstein
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were a well-known American songwriting duo, usually referred to as Rodgers and Hammerstein. They created a string of popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s during what is considered the golden age of the medium...
's Allegro
Allegro (musical)
Allegro is a musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II , their third collaboration for the stage. Opening on Broadway on October 10, 1947, the musical centers on the life of Joseph Taylor, Jr.—Joe follows in the footsteps of his father as a doctor, but is tempted by fortune and fame at...
, which was released by Sony Classics in February 2009. A songwriter and guitarist, Benanti has written songs privately since at least the early 2000s; in 2005, she said that she was working on a folk-rock solo CD, though "Musical theatre is my first love[...]I want to take my music and orchestrate it in a kind of old fashioned style, and take some standards and 'popularize' them—do a true crossover. I'm working on it."
Personal life
Benanti met Chris Barron, lead singer of the Spin DoctorsSpin Doctors
Spin Doctors is an American alternative rock band formed in New York City, best known for their early 1990s hits, "Two Princes," and "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong," which peaked the Billboard Hot 100 charts at #7 & #17 respectively....
, in the early 2000s; they married on July 25, 2005, and divorced in 2006. In September 2007, Benanti married the actor Steven Pasquale
Steven Pasquale
Steven Pasquale is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Sean Garrity in the critically acclaimed series Rescue Me. He made his debut on the HBO series Six Feet Under, playing a love interest for David. He also starred in the film Aliens vs...
, with whom she had appeared in the 2005 World AIDS Day "dream cast" concert of The Secret Garden
The Secret Garden (musical)
The Secret Garden is a musical based on the 1911 novel of the same name by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The musical's book and lyrics are by Marsha Norman, with music by Lucy Simon...
.
Awards and nominations
Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical- 2000 Swing!Swing!Swing! is a musical conceived by Paul Kelly with music by various artists. It celebrates the music of the Swing era of jazz , including many well-known tunes by artists like Duke Ellington, William "Count" Basie, Benny Goodman and others...
as various characters (nominee) - 2002 Into the WoodsInto the WoodsInto the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986, and premiered on Broadway in 1987. Bernadette Peters' performance as the Witch and Joanna Gleason's portrayal of the Baker's Wife brought acclaim...
as Cinderella (nominee) - 2008 GypsyGypsy: A Musical FableGypsy is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Gypsy is loosely based on the 1957 memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous striptease artist, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business...
as Louise/Gypsy Rose Lee (winner) - 2011 Women on the Verge of a Nervous BreakdownWomen on the Verge of a Nervous BreakdownWomen on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown is a 1988 Spanish black comedy film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar, starring Carmen Maura and Antonio Banderas...
as Candela (nominee)
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
- 2011 Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (winner)
- 2008 Gypsy (winner)
- 2002 Into the Woods (nominee)