Christine Andreas

Christine Andreas
Andreas circa 1976
Born (1951-10-01) October 1, 1951 (age 73)
Camden, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupation(s)Singer, actress
Years active1975–present
Spouses
  • Kevin Hunter,
  • Martin Silvestri
Children1
AwardsTheatre World Award (1976)
Websitewww.christineandreas.com

Christine Andreas (born October 1, 1951)[1] is an American Broadway actress and singer.

Early life and education

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Andreas was born on October 1, 1951, in Camden, New Jersey,[1] to James Francis Andreas, a systems analyst, and Teresa Cecilia Genovese Andreas.[2]

She grew up in Suffern, New York,[3][4] and is an alumnus of Suffern High School.[5]

Career

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Broadway

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She made her Broadway debut in a 1975 revival of Angel Street.[6][7] In 1976 she was cast as Eliza Doolittle in the 20th Anniversary production of My Fair Lady,[6] for which she received the Theatre World Award.[8] Additional theatre credits include Oklahoma! as Laurey in 1979 (Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical),[9] On Your Toes in 1983 (Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical),[10] The Scarlet Pimpernel (1997),[11] Words & Music with Sammy Cahn (standby, 1974),[12] and Rags (1986).[13]

Her role in Legs Diamond (1988) as "Alice" was removed during previews.[14]

She was featured in the musical revue Stardust, which was conceived and written by Albert Harris with costumes and sets designed by Erté. The musical ran at the Stamford Center for the Arts at the Palace Theater and the Kennedy Center in 1990 but did not open on Broadway as had been planned.[15][16]

She starred in the U.S, tour as Margaret Johnson in The Light in the Piazza, which began in San Francisco in August 2006.[17]

In 2010, she portrayed the role of Jacqueline in the Broadway revival of La Cage Aux Folles, which opened April 18, 2010. The show was a transfer from London's West End.[18]

Regional

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She appeared in Tartuffe at the Kennedy Center in 1982, as Mariane[19] and Twelfth Night (Alaska Rep).

She appeared in the Marsha Norman play Sarah and Abraham at the George Street Playhouse, New Brunswick, New Jersey in February 1992,[20] and Promises, Promises.

Andreas starred as Judy Garland in Heartbreaker: Two Months with Judy Garland, the stage premiere of John Meyer's 1983 book about his time with Garland, which ran at the Adirondack Theatre Festival in June 2013.[21]

She collaborated with composer Martin Silvestri in the musical The Fields of Ambrosia. She appeared in the musical in 1993 at the George Street Playhouse, New Brunswick, New Jersey.[22] She also appeared in the musical in London at the Aldwych Theatre in 1996.[23]

She appeared in Pal Joey at the Prince Music Theater as "Vera" in 2002.[24] She received the Barrymore Award for Outstanding Leading Actress in a Musical).

Television

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Andreas' television appearances include The Cosby Show, Another World, Sylvia Fine Kaye's Musical Comedy Tonight III (1995)[25] and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She portrayed Ava Gardner in the made-for-TV movie Mia, Child of Hollywood (1995).[26]

Cabaret

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She has performed her cabaret act in the Café Carlyle,[27] the Algonquin Hotel's Oak Room, Carnegie Hall in New York City, in the Catalina Grill in Los Angeles, and the Ballroom in New York City in 1989.[3]

She has appeared in concert in London, Paris, Rome and at The White House.

Andreas performed her new show "Bemused" at 54 Below in 2013. Stephen Holden, reviewing for The New York Times, wrote: "The days are long gone when she starred on Broadway in revivals of “My Fair Lady” and “Oklahoma!,” but her beauty and radiance remain undimmed. Her bright, shiny soprano, with its wheeling vibrato and metallic edge, conveys a high-strung emotionality that is sharpened by her acting skills."[28]

She gave a concert at the Kupferberg Center for the Arts at Queens College, New York City based on her recording Love is Good in February 2014.[29]

Awards and nominations

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Recordings

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Solo recordings include

  • Love is Good
  • Here's to the Ladies
  • The Carlyle Set
  • Piaf - no Regrets

Cast recordings include

  • My Fair Lady - 20th Anniversary - 1976 Revival
  • Oklahoma! 1979 Revival
  • On Your Toes 1983 Revival
  • Fields of Ambrosia 1996 Cast
  • The Scarlet Pimpernel 1997 Cast
  • The Scarlet Pimpernel-Encore 1998 Cast
  • La Cage Aux Folles 2010 Revival.

Other related recordings

  • Beauty and the Beast - 1974 Studio
  • Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - 1974 Studio
  • Lovesong: A Musical Entertainment - 1980 Cast
  • Alec Wilder's Clues to a Life - 1982 Cast
  • Lola - 1985 Cast;
  • Maury Yeston Songbook - Various
  • Broadway Unplugged - Various
  • Broadway Musicals of 1929 - Various
  • Broadway Musicals of 1956 - Various
  • Musicality of Rodgers and Hart - Various
  • The Singles - Various
  • A Cabaret Cocktail - Various
  • New York: Destination Music - Various
  • Falling in Love Is Wonderful: Broadway's Greatest Love Duets - Various
  • Carols for a Cure 2010 Vol.12 - Various.

Reviews

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Source: Official Site[33]

  • "Right Tune, Right Singer: Pure Alchemy" From: Stephen Holden, "Christine Andreas, Bemused: Live at 54 Below", The New York Times, January 29, 2013.[28]
  • "Christine Andreas is everything anyone who loves romantic pop music could want - simply sine qua non." From: Liz Smith, "The Oak Room At The Algonquin Hotel", New York Post, Spring, 1999.
  • "She finds a blend of lyricism and sweet sensuality that only the finest Broadway voices can conjure." From: Stephen Holden, "Christine Andreas, Oak Room at the Algonquin", The New York Times, March 14, 2000.
  • "A lyric soprano with a distinctive, gorgeous voice, Andreas illuminates the mood and meaning of each song through her considerable acting skills." From: Christine Dolan, "Treasure of Broadway shines in cabaret show", The Miami Herald, February 1, 2008.
  • "Andreas' performance made it clear that she has every reason to feel at home in any jazz club she chooses to grace with her mesmerizing musical presence." From: Don Heckman, "She's a Broadway baby at home with jazz: Christine Andreas transforms all types of songs in her West Coast nightclub debut", Los Angeles Times, May 29, 2004.
  • "Not all sopranos can summon the warmth and intimacy cabaret singing requires." From: Elysa Gardner, "The Carlyle Set", USA Today, undated.
  • "Christine Andreas has one of the four or five most compelling voices to be heard in the Broadway theater." From: Holden, Stephen, "Love is Good", The New York Times, undated.
  • "Many singers have lovely voices. Very few interpret lyrics the way they were meant to be sung. Christine Andreas does just that. As a lyricist, I can only applaud." From: Hal David, "Love is Good", undated.

Personal life

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She is married to composer and musician Martin Silvestri.[34] Andreas has one son and Silvestri has one daughter.[35]

She was previously married to creative director Kevin Hunter.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b Benjamin, Ruth (2006). Who Sang what on Broadway, 1866-1996. McFarland & Company, Publishers. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-7864-2189-3.
  2. ^ "Teresa Andreas Obituary (2014) - Warwick, New York". Legacy.com. The Journal News. March 27, 2014. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  3. ^ a b c Holden, Stephen (1989-09-01). "Leaping Slowly From Theater to Cabaret". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  4. ^ "Singer who bewitched Philadelphia back for more". The Morning Call. 2003-12-18. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
  5. ^ "Living in Rockland - Suffern". allaboutrockland.com. Retrieved 2007-11-27.
  6. ^ a b "Christine Andreas" masterworksbroadway.com, retrieved March 16, 2017
  7. ^ Angel Street playbill.com, retrieved March 16, 2017
  8. ^ My Fair Lady playbill.com, retrieved March 16, 2017
  9. ^ Oklahoma playbill.com, retrieved March 16, 2017
  10. ^ On Your Toes playbill.com, retrieved March 16, 2017
  11. ^ The Scarlet Pimpernel Playbill, retrieved March 17, 2017
  12. ^ Words and Music Playbill, retrieved March 17, 2017
  13. ^ Holden, Stephen. "How the Curtain Came Down on the Dream of 'Rags' " The New York Times, September 21, 1986
  14. ^ Rothstein, Mervyn. "Why 'Legs' Delayed Its Opening" The New York Times, November 22, 1988
  15. ^ Klein, Alvin. "Theater: In 'Stardust,' the Music Of the Years Gone By" The New York Times, February 11, 1990
  16. ^ Richards, David. "Theater" The Washington Post, February 23, 1990
  17. ^ Simonson, Robert. " 'Light in the Piazza' Tour, with Christine Andreas, Begins in San Francisco Aug. 1" Playbill, July 31, 2006
  18. ^ Jones, Kenneth.Shively, Cox, Andreas, Hoch, De Jesús, Shaddow and Cunningham Join La Cage aux Folles" playbill.com, February 3, 2010
  19. ^ Gussow, Mel. "Theater. Brian Bedford in 'Tartuffe' " The New York Times, May 2, 1982
  20. ^ Klein, Alvin, "Theater: 'Sarah and Abraham,' 2 Plays at Once" The New York Times, February 16, 1992
  21. ^ Hetrick, Adam. " 'Heartbreaker: Two Months with Judy Garland', Starring Christine Andreas, Premieres at Adirondack Fest June 26" Playbill, June 26, 2013
  22. ^ Klein, Alvin. "Theater; Premiere of a Musical, 'The Fields of Ambrosia' " The New York Times, March 21, 1993
  23. ^ Taylor. Review The Independent, February 2, 1996
  24. ^ Jones, Kenneth. "Wild Again, Beguiled Again: Andreas Is Vera in Prince's 'Pal Joey', Nov. 2-17" Playbill, November 2, 2002
  25. ^ Musical Comedy Tonight III tcm.com, retrieved December 4, 2017
  26. ^ Mia, Child of Hollywood tcm.com, retrieved December 4, 2017
  27. ^ Frank, Jonathan. "Interview with Christine Andreas" talkinbroadway.com, retrieved March 16, 2017
  28. ^ a b Holden, Stephen. "Right Tune, Right Singer: Pure Alchemy" The New York Times, January 29, 2013
  29. ^ "Christine Andreas Brings Love Is Good to Kupferberg Center Tonight" broadwayworld.com, February 14, 2014
  30. ^ a b c "Andreas Awards" Internet Broadway Database ibdb.com, retrieved December 4, 2017
  31. ^ Jones, Kenneth. "Bewitched, Weisslers Explore Rodgers and Hart's 'Pal Joey' With Director Robert Altman" Playbill, October 30, 2003
  32. ^ "Helen Hayes Award Nominees & Recipients, 2007" Archived 2018-10-24 at the Wayback Machine theatrewashington.org, retrieved December 4, 2017
  33. ^ "Christine Andreas - Reviews". christineandreas.com. 2010-03-23. Archived from the original on 2010-03-23. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
  34. ^ "Christine Andreas talks Two for The Road" centerscene.blogspot.com, September 2, 2009
  35. ^ Klein, Alvin. "'Pimpernel' Returns Actress to Broadway" The New York Times, November 9, 1997
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