American singer and actress (born 1970)
Lauren Ward (born June 19, 1970) is an American singer and actress. She has appeared in Broadway , Off-Broadway and West End musicals and plays. Ward originated the role of Miss Honey in the original Stratford-Upon-Avon, West End , and Broadway productions of the musical Matilda , and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance.
Early life and education
Ward was born in Lincoln, Nebraska , and grew up in Kansas City, Missouri , the daughter of Denis Ward (1941–1986), a professor of geo-sciences at the University of Missouri–Kansas City , and Holly Ward (née Harvick, 1941–2005). She graduated from Hickman Mills High School in 1988 and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts .[ 1] [ 2]
Career
Broadway
Ward made her Broadway debut in the 1994 revival of Carousel as Jenny Sanborn and Heavenly Friend, understudying the role of Julie Jordan. [ 3] She appeared in the musical 1776 in 1997 as Martha Jefferson .[ 4] She appeared in the 2001 revival of Follies as Young Sally,[ 5] where she met her future husband, director Matthew Warchus .[ 6]
In 2010, Ward originated the role of Miss Honey in the new musical Matilda , based on the book Matilda by Roald Dahl in the Royal Shakespeare Company 's production at Stratford-upon-Avon.[ 7] Ward then played this role in the West End starting in October 2011[ 7] and on Broadway in 2013. For this role, Ward was nominated for the 2013 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical .[ 8]
Off-Broadway theatre
In 1995 she played the dual roles of Jennie/Daisy in the musical Jack's Holiday . In 1997 Ward originated the role of Violet Karl in the musical Violet , for which she was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical .[ 9] In 1999 she played Arlene Murphy in the musical Exactly Like You .[ 10] In 2000, Ward played the role of Helen in Stephen Sondheim 's Saturday Night at the Second Stage Theatre.[ 11] In 2001 she appeared in the Manhattan Theatre Club production of the musical Time and Again as Emily.[ 12] [ 13] . In 2003 Ward played Julie in the City Center Encores production of The New Moon .
London
Ward has performed in several London venues: in the West End, with the Royal Shakespeare Company and elsewhere. Some of these productions include: The Vagina Monologues (The Arts Theatre); Pericles , A Winters Tale (with the RSC); Batboy , Heathers (Royal Haymarket)’’; Caroline or Change (Chichester, Hampstead Theatre, West End) ;The Sound of Music as the Baroness (London Palladium, 2006);[ 14] The Philadelphia Story at The Old Vic as Elizabeth Imbrie (2005);[ 15] A Midsummer Night's Dream , Camelot the Musical at Regents Park; and, with the Lost Musicals series, Du Barry Was a Lady (2001)[ 16] and Johnny Johnson .[ 17] and most recently created the told of Virginia Creel in Stranger Things, the First Shadow . In 2019 she created Cynthia in the West End production of Dear Evan Hansen at the Noël Coward Theatre , for which she received an Olivier Nomination.
Film and television
Ward appeared in several episodes of the 2005 series Broken News . She has appeared in an episode of Torchwood and Law and Order SVU , The Last Days of Lehman Brothers (BBC), Touch of Frost (ITV), Kiss Me First (Channel 4), She also appeared in Story of a Bad Boy (the debut film by Tom Donaghy and produced by Jean Doumanian), Series 7: The Contenders , the 1997 film In & Out as a student.
Personal life
Ward is married to British stage director Matthew Warchus , with whom she has three children.[ 18]
Filmography
Film
Television
References
^ "Questions and Answers" thewriteteachers.com, March 1, 2013
^ "Cara Joy David/Lauren Ward 'Matilda' Interview" HuffPost , April 23, 2013
^ " 'Carousel' at Vivian Beaumont Theater" Archived May 2, 2013, at the Wayback Machine playbillvault.com. Retrieved May 12, 2013
^ Haun, Harry and Lefkowitz, David. "Brent Spiner B'way '1776' Extends to Nov. 9" Playbill , August 21, 1997
^ " 'Follies' 2001 Broadway Revival" sondheimguide.com. Retrieved May 12, 2013
^ "Matthew Warchus. Doctor of Letters" University of Bristol, February 16, 2010
^ a b Shenton, Mark. " 'Matilda — The Musical' Opens Officially at West End's Cambridge Theatre Nov. 24" Archived December 2, 2011, at the Wayback Machine Playbill, November 24, 2011
^ "Tony Awards 2013 nominees: Complete list" . Los Angeles Times . April 30, 2013. Retrieved April 30, 2013 .
^ "Drama Desk Picks Performers, Presenters & Venue, May 18" Archived July 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine Playbill, May 13, 1997
^ Simonson, Robert . "McGrath Ward Head Cast of Cy Colemans 'Exactly Like You' at York March 31" Playbill , March 10, 1999
^ "'Saturday Night. 2000 Second Stage Production" sondheimguide.com. Retrieved May 12, 2013
^ Sommer, Elyse. "A CurtainUp Review, 'Time and Again' " curtainup.com, February 11, 2001
^ "Lauren Ward" broadwayworld.com
^ Loveridge, Lizzie. "A CurtainUp London Review. 'The Sound of Music' " curtainup.com, November 16, 2006
^ Billington, Michael. "Theatre. 'The Philadelphia Story'" The Guardian , May 11, 2005
^ Paddock, Terri. "Lost Musicals Unearths Cole Porter's 'Dubarry' " whatsonstage.com, October 25, 2001
^ "Lauren Ward Biography" Official Site. Retrieved May 12, 2013
^ Healy, Patrick (July 22, 2009). "After the Tony, Two Musical Encores" . NY Times . Retrieved January 26, 2024 .
External links
International National Artists