Lesli Margherita

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Lesli Margherita
Born (1973-05-10) May 10, 1973 (age 48)
Santa Clara County, California
Alma materUCLA
OccupationActress
Websiteleslimargherita.com

Lesli Margherita is an American stage and screen actress. She received a Laurence Olivier Award for originating the role of Inez in the musical Zorro, and starred as Mrs. Wormwood in the Original Broadway Cast of Matilda the Musical.

Biography[]

Margherita was born and raised in California and graduated from UCLA.[1]

Screen[]

Margherita's film credits include Boogeyman 2, Lucky Stiff, Cinderella III: A Twist in Time, and Opening Night.[2]

Upon graduation she appeared in the TV show Fame L.A.. Her television credits include NYPD Blue, Charmed, The District, On the Lot, The Suite Life on Deck, Major Crimes and Donny!.[2][1]

Theatre[]

Margherita became involved with the musical Zorro through a Los Angeles workshop in 2006, which she initially turned down, and remained with the production through to the West End premiere in June 2008.[3] She garnered critical acclaim for her performance as Inez, with The Guardian's Michael Billington writing "the most flamboyant display of personality comes from Lesli Margherita who as Inez flashes her eyes and other parts of her anatomy with the gayest abandon".[4] At the 2008 Royal Variety Performance, she performed a number from the show before Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall at the London Palladium, and can be heard on the Zorro Original London Cast Recording.[5] In 2009, Margherita was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for playing Inez.[6]

She appeared as Mrs. Wormwood in the Broadway production of Matilda the Musical, from March 2013 to September 2015 and again starting in September 2016.[7]

She played the role of Mona Kent in the Broadway premiere of Dames at Sea which opened in October 2015.[8] The USA Today review noted, "the actress plays the tyrannical vamp with infectious relish."[9]

She appeared as Cindy Lou Who in the Off-Broadway one person Who's Holiday! in November and December 2017.[1][10] She was nominated for the 2018 Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Solo Performance; 2018 Lucille Lortel Award, Outstanding Solo Show; and 2018 Off Broadway Alliance Award, Best Solo Performance.[11]

In regional theatre, Margherita appeared in Spamalot at the Sacramento Music Circus as The Lady of the Lake in 2010.[12][13] She appeared as Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors at La Mirada Theatre in La Mirada, California, from April to May 2011.[14] From July to September 2011, she appeared at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Connecticut, in Show Boat as Julie.[15] She appeared in the new musical The Flamingo Kid at the Hartford Stage in Connecticut from May to June 2019. The Variety reviewer wrote, "Also standing out is Lesli Margherita as Phyllis, Phil’s long-suffering snob of a wife, who gets every laugh effortlessly with her deadpan delivery. She also nails her second act number, a good song with a terrible title".[16]

From January 19, 2020, to March 11, 2020, Lesli starred as Princess in the musical Emojiland at the Duke on 42nd Street theater in New York City.[17][18]

Concerts[]

Margherita performed her concert/cabaret act at The Green Room 42 in New York City in December 2018.[1]

Awards and nominations[]

Year Award Category Work Result
2009 Laurence Olivier Award Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical Zorro Won
2013 Astaire Award Outstanding Female Dancer in a Broadway Show Matilda the Musical Nominated
2016 Astaire Award Outstanding Ensemble in a Broadway Show Dames at Sea Nominated
2018 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Solo Performance Who's Holiday! Nominated
Lucille Lortel Award Outstanding Solo Show Nominated
Off Broadway Alliance Award Best Solo Performance Nominated

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Lesli Margherita Brings YULE YOUR KINGDOM to The Green Room 42 This Holiday Season". BroadwayWorld. December 11, 2018.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "AUDIO: DAMES AT SEA's Lesli Margherita Guests on CAN I PET YOUR DOG? Podcast". BroadwayWorld. October 13, 2015.
  3. ^ lesli-olivier-speech.mov, retrieved 2021-03-28
  4. ^ Billington, Michael (July 16, 2008). "Zorro". The Guardian.
  5. ^ Zorro the Musical Royal Variety Performance 2008, retrieved 2021-03-28
  6. ^ "Olivier Awards Winners 2009 -Official London Theatre". Olivier Awards. Retrieved 2021-03-28.
  7. ^ Viagas, Robert (August 8, 2016). "Lesli Margherita Returning to Broadway's Matilda". Playbill.
  8. ^ "The Verdict: Read Reviews of Dames at Sea Starring Lesli Margherita, Eloise Kropp and Mara Davi". Playbill. October 22, 2015.
  9. ^ Gardner, Elysa (October 22, 2015). "Broadway's new 'Dames At Sea' is a dance-driven delight". USA Today.
  10. ^ Hetrick, Adam (December 5, 2017). "What Did Critics Think of Lesli Margherita in Who’s Holiday! Off-Broadway?". Playbill.
  11. ^ "Who's Holiday!". Internet Off-Broadway Database. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  12. ^ "Monty Python's Spamalot". Ovrtur. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  13. ^ "JOSEPH Plays Sacramento Music Circus 2010 Season, 7/20-25". BroadwayWorld. July 20, 2010.
  14. ^ Jones, Kenneth (April 15, 2011). "Little Shop, With Lesli Margherita, Bob Amaral, Brett Ryback, Sprouts in CA April 15". Playbill.
  15. ^ Probst, Andy (June 7, 2011). "Sarah Uriarte Berry, Ben Davis, Lesli Margherita, et al. Set for Goodspeed's Show Boat". TheaterMania.
  16. ^ Rizzo, Frank (May 29, 2019). "Connecticut Theater Review: 'The Flamingo Kid'". Variety.
  17. ^ "About the Show". Emojiland the Musical.
  18. ^ Fujishima, Kenji (October 31, 2019). "Lesli Margherita, Josh Lamon to Star in Off-Broadway Debut of Emojiland". TheaterMania. Retrieved February 3, 2021.

External links[]

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