Betsy Struxness is an American actress, singer, and dancer known for her work on the Broadway stage. Struxness received her BFA in dance from

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

, before moving to New York. After touring with the musical ''

Oklahoma! ''Oklahoma!'' is the first musical theater, musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs's 1931 play, ''Green Grow the Lilacs (play), Green Grow the Lilacs''. Set in farm country outside the town of ...

'' and appearing in the ensemble of the tour of ''

All Shook Up "All Shook Up" is a song recorded by Elvis Presley, published by Elvis Presley Music, and composed by Otis Blackwell. The single topped the U.S. ''Billboard'' Top 100 on April 13, 1957, staying there for nine weeks. It also topped the ''Billboa ...

'', Struxness appeared in the Ensemble of the

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

production of the musical ''

Wicked Wicked may refer to: Books * ''Wicked'' (Maguire novel), a 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire that inspired the musical of the same name * ''Wicked'', a 1997 novel series collaboration between Australian children's authors Paul Jennings and Morris ...

''. She was soon transferred to the

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

production and then to Broadway. Following her gig in ''Wicked'' she played the Double Dutch Girl in the Broadway musical ''

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Mem ...

'', understudying the role of Mama. She also appeared on ''

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'' in 2011 as an

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customer. Following this work, Struxness originated the roles of Angel of Mercy and Townsperson in the Broadway musical ''

Leap of Faith In philosophy, a leap of faith is the act of belief, believing in or accepting something not on the basis of reason. The phrase is commonly associated with Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. Idiomatic usage As an idiom, ''leap of faith'' ca ...

'' in 2012, understudying the role of Sam. The production closed quickly, and later that same year she returned to Broadway in the ensemble of the new musical '' Scandalous: The Life and Trials of Aimee Semple McPherson''. In 2013, she appeared in the ensemble in the original Broadway cast of ''

Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Mathilda (gastropod), ''Mathilda'' (gastropod), a genus of gastropods in the family Mathildidae * Matilda (horse) (1824–1 ...

'', understudying the role of Mrs. Wormwood. In 2014, after making a

guest appearance The term guest appearance generally denotes the appearance of a guest in an artistic or pop-culture setting. The guests themselves (referred to as guest artists, featured artists, guest stars, or guest fighters, depending on context), are disting ...

on ''

Louie Louie may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Louie'' (American TV series), comedy drama television series created by and starring comedian Louis C.K. * ''Louie'' (French TV series), animated series about a young rabbit who draws pictures which ...

'' as the character Sunshine, Struxness left ''Matilda'' and began working in the ensemble of the musical ''

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

''. The show ran

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

for five months in 2015, before transferring to Broadway. After several months in the production, she also became an

understudy In theatre, 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 ap ...

for the role of Angelica Schuyler. However, she was not featured among the cast in the 2020 feature film recording of the musical, as she departed the cast in March 2016, before the production was filmed. In 2017, she appeared on a stage adaptation of ''

Shakespeare in Love ''Shakespeare in Love'' is a 1998 period romantic comedy film directed by John Madden, written by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, and produced by Harvey Weinstein. It stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Geoffrey Rush, Colin Firth, B ...

'' as Viola. Struxness is also a professional photographer.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Struxness, Betsy Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American stage actresses Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American women