Beth Leavel (born November 1, 1955) is a

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

-winning American stage and screen actress and singer.

Life and career

Leavel attended

Needham B. Broughton High School Needham B. Broughton High School, commonly known as Broughton High School, is one of thirty-two high schools in the Wake County Public School System. It is located at 723 St. Mary's Street, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Broughton w ...

and

Meredith College Meredith College is a private women's liberal arts college and coeducational graduate school in Raleigh, North Carolina. As of 2021 Meredith enrolls approximately 1,500 women in its undergraduate programs and 300 men and women in its graduate ...

, earning a degree in social work. She completed a graduate theatre degree at the

University of North Carolina at Greensboro The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand- ...

in 1980. She acted during college, appearing in productions such as ''

Cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dinin ...

'' and '' Hello, Dolly!'' Her

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

debut was in the 1980 production of '' 42nd Street'' as a replacement for Annie. Leavel was in the original Broadway cast of '' Crazy for You'' (1992) as Tess and an

understudy In theater, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to a ...

for Polly Baker. In 1999, she played the roles of Mabel and Mrs. Bixby in '' The Civil War''. Leavel returned to the Broadway revival of ''42nd Street'' in 2001 as a standby for Maggie Jones and Dorothy Brock, eventually playing the latter. She played the starring role of Beatrice Stockwell in ''

The Drowsy Chaperone ''The Drowsy Chaperone'' is a Canadian musical with music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison, and a book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar. The story concerns a middle-aged, asocial musical theater fan who, feeling "blue", decides to p ...

'', for which she helped to create the character's backstory and which she referred to as "a compilation of a lot of different women in theatre." For this role, she received a

and a

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. F ...

for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Leavel succeeded

Andrea Martin Andrea Louise Martin (born January 15, 1947) is an American-Canadian actress, singer, and comedian, best known for her work in the television series '' SCTV'' and ''Great News''. She has appeared in films such as '' Black Christmas'' (1974), ''W ...

as Frau Blucher in the Broadway production of ''

Young Frankenstein ''Young Frankenstein'' is a 1974 American comedy horror film directed by Mel Brooks. The screenplay was co-written by Brooks and Gene Wilder. Wilder also starred in the lead role as the title character, a descendant of the infamous Dr. Victor ...

'' on July 15, 2008, and remained with the show until it closed on January 4, 2009. She starred in the world premiere of the burlesque-rich musical ''

Minsky's ''Minsky's'' is a musical by Bob Martin (book), Charles Strouse (music), and Susan Birkenhead (lyrics), and is loosely based on the 1968 movie ''The Night They Raided Minsky's''. Set during the Great Depression era in Manhattan, the story center ...

'' in Los Angeles, which ran at the Center Theatre in the

Ahmanson Theatre The Ahmanson Theatre is one of the four main venues that compose the Los Angeles Music Center. History The theatre was built as a result of a donation from Howard F. Ahmanson Sr, the founder of H.F. Ahmanson & Co., an insurance and savings and ...

from January 21-March 1, 2009; the musical also starred her former ''

'' co-stars Christopher Fitzgerald and Sarrah Strimel. In 2009, Leavel starred in a stage reading of Dylan Glatthorn's ''Republic'' with

Lauren Worsham Lauren Tolbert Worsham (born April 4, 1982) is an American actress and singer known for her work in the opera and musical theatre. She received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role in '' A Gentleman's Guid ...

and Kelli Barrett. She also starred in the staged reading of Vincent Crapelli's ''Otherwise'', with

Karen Ziemba Karen Ziemba (born November 12, 1957) is an American actress, singer and dancer, best known for her work in musical theatre. In 2000, she won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance in ''Contact''. Biography Ziem ...

and Laura Bonarrigo-Koffman. She starred as Donna Sheridan in the Broadway production of ''

Mamma Mia! Mama(s) or Mamma or Momma may refer to: Roles *Mother, a female parent *Mama-san, in Japan and East Asia, a woman in a position of authority *Mamas, a name for female associates of the Hells Angels Places * Mama, Russia, an urban-type settlemen ...

'', succeeding

Carolee Carmello Carolee Ann Carmello (born September 1, 1962) is an American actress best known for her performances in Broadway musicals and for playing the role of Maple LaMarsh on the television series ''Remember WENN'' (1996–1998). She is a three-time ...

in the role on September 22, 2009, and leaving the show on October 10, 2010. Leavel starred as Emily Hobbs in '' Elf the Musical'' on Broadway. The production opened November 14, 2010, at the

Al Hirschfeld Theatre The Al Hirschfeld Theatre, originally the Martin Beck Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 302 West 45th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1924, it was designed by G. Albert Lansburgh in a Moorish and ...

and ran through January 2, 2011. Following ''Elf'', she appeared in the Broadway production of ''

Baby It's You! ''Baby It's You!'' is a jukebox musical written by Floyd Mutrux and Colin Escott, featuring pop and rock hits of the 1960s, with a special emphasis on songs by the Shirelles and other acts signed to Scepter Records. The show "tells the story of ...

'', which began previews on March 26, 2011, and closed on September 4, 2011. Leavel earned a

nomination for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her performance of

Florence Greenberg Florence Greenberg (September 16, 1913 – November 2, 1995) was an American record label owner, music executive, and record producer. Greenberg was the founder and owner of Tiara Records, Scepter Records, Hob Records, and Wand Records. She is ...

in ''Baby It's You!'' In November 2013, she appeared Off-Broadway at the Minetta Lane Theatre in ''Standing on Ceremony: The Gay Marriage Plays''. In January and February 2012, she starred in a limited run of '' Boeing-Boeing'' at the

Paper Mill Playhouse Paper Mill Playhouse is a regional theater with approximately 1200 seats, located in Millburn, New Jersey on the Rahway River. Due to its relatively close location to Manhattan, it draws from the pool of actors (and audience members) who live i ...

in Millburn, New Jersey. Leavel was cast as Bea in the musical ''

Something Rotten! ''Something Rotten!'' is a musical comedy with a book by John O'Farrell and Karey Kirkpatrick and music and lyrics by Karey and Wayne Kirkpatrick. Set in 1595, the story follows the Bottom brothers, Nick and Nigel, who struggle to find succes ...

'' and began the workshop/reading for it, held in 2014. Before the musical opened on Broadway (in March 2015) she was replaced by

Heidi Blickenstaff Heidi Blickenstaff (born December 28, 1971) is an American actress based in New York City best known for playing a version of herself in the musical '' itle of show' during its Off-Broadway and Broadway runs, as well as for originating the role ...

because "the writers decided that the character needed to be younger so she could become pregnant, a key plot point." In 2014, Leavel starred in the world premiere of the musical ''Dog and Pony'' at the Old Globe Theatre, San Diego. She starred in the musical '' The Prom'' which opened on Broadway in November 2018. For this, she was nominated for the 2019 Tony Award for Best Performance by Leading Actress in a Musical. In 2022, she starred as Miranda Priestly in the Chicago world premiere production of '' The Devil Wears Prada''.

Personal life

She is engaged to fellow actor Adam Heller.

Performances

Broadway

Television

Podcasts

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leavel, Beth 1955 births Living people Actresses from New Jersey Actresses from North Carolina American musical theatre actresses Drama Desk Award winners People from Harrington Park, New Jersey Actors from Raleigh, North Carolina Tony Award winners Meredith College alumni Musicians from Raleigh, North Carolina University of North Carolina at Greensboro alumni Singers from North Carolina 20th-century American actresses 20th-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American actresses 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers Singers from New Jersey