- Lillias White
Lillias White (born
July 21 ,1951 ) is an award-winning Americansinger and actress.The
Brooklyn native made her Broadway debut in "Barnum" in 1981. She understudied the role of Effie in the original 1981 production of "Dreamgirls " and later played the part in the 1987 revival. Additional Broadway credits include the ill-fated "Carrie", "Once on This Island ", "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying ", "Chicago", and benefit concert versions of "Funny Girl" (in which she sang the role ofFanny Brice ), "Hair", and "Dreamgirls " (reprising her role as Effie). Her biggest triumph was in theCy Coleman 's "The Life", for which she won the Tony, Drama Desk, andOuter Critics Circle Awards for her portrayal of a world-weary, no-nonsense, streetwise hooker.White's
off-Broadway credits include thePublic Theater production of theWilliam Finn musical "Romance in Hard Times", for which she won theObie Award , "Dinah Was", in which she portrayed the legendaryblues andjazz singerDinah Washington , "The Vagina Monologues ", and "Crowns". Her national tours include "Ain't Misbehavin' " and "The Wiz ".White performed with the
Brooklyn Philharmonic in a concert of works byLeonard Bernstein ,Aaron Copland , and George andIra Gershwin celebrating the orchestra's 50th anniversary. She also has appeared in concert at the Kennedy Center,Carnegie Hall , andLincoln Center and has toured internationally with her one-woman show "From Brooklyn to Broadway". She is heard on the 1991 Madonna recording "Rescue Me".White's television appearances include a regular role on "
Sesame Street " (for which she won anEmmy Award ), "Law & Order ", "", and "NYPD Blue ". She sang the role of Bloody Mary in thePBS "Great Performances " presentation of "South Pacific". Her screen credits include voiceover work in Disney's "Hercules" and "Anastasia" and small roles in "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Pieces of April ". Her latest film, "Highway 101", is scheduled for release in 2008.External links
* [http://www.lilliaswhite.com/ Lillias White official website]
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*###@@@KEY@@@###succession box
title=Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
years=1996-1997
for "The Life"
before=Audra Ann McDonald
for "Carousel"
after=Tsidii Le Loka
for "The Lion King"
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