Claire Machin is a British actress, best known for her work in musical theatre.

Career

At the age of 16, Machin trained at

Sylvia Young Theatre School Sylvia Young Theatre School is an independent school in Marble Arch, London, England. It is a specialist performing arts school named after its founder and principal, Sylvia Young OBE. Outline The Sylvia Young Theatre School was founded in 19 ...

, taking part in an adult drama course. Through the 1990s and early 2000s she appeared in the ensemble of several major West End shows including roles in ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...

'', ''

Oliver! ''Oliver!'' is a stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre, southwest London in 1960 before opening in the W ...

'' and ''

My Fair Lady ''My Fair Lady'' is a musical theatre, musical with a book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. The story, based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play ''Pygmalion (play), Pygmalion'' and on the Pygmalion (1938 film), 1938 film ...

''. She took part in workshops for the stage adaptation of ''

Mary Poppins Mary Poppins may refer to: * Mary Poppins (character), a nanny with magical powers * Mary Poppins (franchise), based on the fictional nanny ** Mary Poppins (book series), ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fanta ...

'' and in 2004 was part of the original cast playing the role of Miss Lark, for which she appears on the Original London Cast Recording. In 2009, Machin played Mamie Eisenhower in the UK professional premiere of ''First Lady Suite'' by

Michael John LaChiusa Michael John LaChiusa (born July 24, 1962) is an American musical theatre and opera composer, lyricist, and librettist. He is best known for musically esoteric shows such as '' Hello Again'', '' Marie Christine'', '' The Wild Party'', and '' See W ...

, with the

Whatsonstage.com WhatsOnStage is a UK-based theatre website providing news, reviews, interviews, and a comprehensive listings database of performances across the country. The platform claims to list over 5,000 performances at any given time and also operates a tick ...

review describing her performance as "particularly memorable". In 2013, she played the role of Mabel in the

Chichester Festival Theatre Chichester Festival Theatre is a theatre and Grade II* listed building situated in Oaklands Park in the city of Chichester, West Sussex, England. Designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, it was opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Mart ...

production of ''

The Pajama Game ''The Pajama Game'' is a musical based on the 1953 novel '' 7½ Cents'' by Richard Bissell. The book is by George Abbott and Richard Bissell; the music and lyrics are by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. Dances were staged by Bob Fosse in his chor ...

''. The production then transferred to the West End at the

Shaftesbury Theatre The Shaftesbury Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Shaftesbury Avenue, in the London Borough of Camden. It opened in 1911 as the New Prince's Theatre, with a capacity of 2,500. The current capacity is 1,416. The title "Shaftesbury Theat ...

from May to September 2014. In 2014, she originated the role of Gladys in the West End production of ''

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 ...

'', for which she was nominated for the Whatsonstage.com Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical. In 2016, Machin played the role of Alice Beane in ''

Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British ocean liner that sank in the early hours of 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers a ...

'' at the

Charing Cross Theatre The Charing Cross Theatre is an Off West End theatre under The Arches off Villiers Street below Charing Cross station. Founded in 1936, the venue occupied several premises in the West End of London before locating to its present site. The cur ...

. She received great acclaim for this role, with reviews describing her as a "standout" and "firm audience favourite". In 2017, Machin played the role of Cora in the West End production of '' The Girls'', a role which she had previously played when the production premiered at the Grand Theatre, Leeds and The Lowry, Salford. For this role she was nominated for a

Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical The Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical is an annual award presented by the Society of London Theatre in recognition of achievements in commercial London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre A ...

alongside fellow cast members

Joanna Riding Joanna Riding (born Joanne Riding; 9 November 1967) is an English actress. For her work in West End musicals, she has won two Laurence Olivier Awards, and has been nominated for three others. Early life Riding was born in Preston, Lancashire ...

, Claire Moore,

Sophie-Louise Dann Sophie-Louise Dann (born 1969) is a British actress, best known for her work in musical theatre. Career Dann trained at Arts Educational Schools, London. She appeared in minor roles in the films '' My Summer with Des'' (1998) and ''The Phantom ...

Debbie Chazen Deborah Chazen (born 1 September 1971) is an English actress. She is best known for portraying Annie in the BBC comedy ''The Smoking Room'', Big Claire in '' Mine All Mine'', and various roles in the BBC sketch show '' Tittybangbang''. Alongsid ...

and

Michelle Dotrice Michele Dotrice (born 27 September 1948) is an English actress. She played Betty Spencer, the long-suffering wife of Frank Spencer, portrayed by Michael Crawford, in the BBC sitcom ''Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'', which ran from 1973 to 1978, and ...

. In 2019, she played a number of roles in the UK premiere of the

Michel Legrand Michel Jean Legrand (; 24 February 1932 – 26 January 2019) was a French musical composer, arranger, conductor, jazz pianist, and singer. Legrand was a prolific composer, having written over 200 film and television scores, in addition to ma ...

Broadway musical ''Amour'' at the off-West End Charing Cross Theatre, followed by the role of Mrs Brill in the major West End revival of ''Mary Poppins'' which she previously understudied in the original West End production and re-united Machin with her ‘The Girls’ co-star ''Claire Moore''. The production was halted mid-run on 16 March 2020 due to COVID-19.

Musical stage credits

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Machin, Claire Living people English stage actresses English musical theatre actresses Year of birth missing (living people)