Janice Elaine Maxwell (November 20, 1956 – February 11, 2018) was an American stage and television actress. She was a five-time

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 ce ...

nominee and two-time

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. Fo ...

winner. In a career spanning over thirty years, Maxwell was one of the most celebrated and critically acclaimed stage actresses of her time. Maxwell made her Broadway debut in 1989, as an understudy in the musical '' City of Angels''. She received her first Tony nomination in 2005 for the musical ''

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'' is a 1968 musical-fantasy film directed by Ken Hughes with a screenplay co-written by Roald Dahl and Hughes, loosely based on Ian Fleming's novel '' Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang: The Magical Car'' (1964). The film sta ...

''. Her other nominations were for '' Coram Boy'' in 2007, ''

Lend Me a Tenor ''Lend Me a Tenor'' is a comedy by Ken Ludwig. The play was produced on both the West End (1986) and Broadway (1989). It received nine Tony Award nominations and won for Best Actor ( Philip Bosco) and Best Director ( Jerry Zaks). A Broadway ...

'' and '' The Royal Family'' both in 2010, and ''

Follies ''Follies'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The plot takes place in a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on the ''Ziegfeld Fo ...

'' in 2012. Her nominations in two separate

categories in 2010, made her only the fourth actress to achieve two nominations in a single year. Her 2012 nomination for ''Follies'' made her only the second actress to receive a Tony nomination in all four acting categories. Her other Broadway credits include '' Dancing at Lughnasa'' (1992), ''

A Doll's House ''A Doll's House'' ( Danish and nb, Et dukkehjem; also translated as ''A Doll House'') is a three-act play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premiered at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 December 1879, having be ...

'' (1997), ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, ''The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...

'' (1998) and ''

The Dinner Party ''The Dinner Party'' is an installation artwork by feminist artist Judy Chicago. Widely regarded as the first epic feminist artwork, it functions as a symbolic history of women in civilization. There are 39 elaborate place settings on a triangul ...

'' (2001). Maxwell appeared in films and television shows such as ''

I Am Michael ''I Am Michael'' is a 2015 American biographical drama film written and directed by Justin Kelly. Based on the journalist Benoit Denizet-Lewis' ''New York Times Magazine'' article "My Ex-Gay Friend", the film stars James Franco, Zachary Quinto, E ...

'' with

James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. For his role in '' 127 Hours'' (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in films, such as Sam Raimi's ''Spider- ...

, Neil LaBute's ''Billy and Billie'' (2014–15), '' The Divide'' (2014), ''

The Good Wife ''The Good Wife'' is an American legal and political drama television series that aired on CBS from September 22, 2009, to May 8, 2016. It focuses on Alicia Florrick, the wife of the Cook County State's Attorney, who returns to her career in ...

'' (2014), and ''

Gossip Girl ''Gossip Girl'' is an American teen drama television series based on the novel series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series, developed for television by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, ran on The CW network for six ...

'' (2009–2011). From 1994-2003, she appeared in four episodes of the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters ...

drama ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering o ...

'', each time as a different character. She also appeared in season 3 of '' Madam Secretary'' in 2016.

Early life

Maxwell was born in Fargo, North Dakota, as the fifth of six children to former First District Judge, Ralph B. Maxwell, who served in North Dakota from 1967 to 1978, and his wife, Elizabeth "Liz" Maxwell (née Fargusson; 1926–2015), later a lawyer for the

EPA The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent executive agency of the United States federal government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it be ...

. She attended

West Fargo High School West Fargo High School is a public high school located in West Fargo, North Dakota. It serves about 2,000 students and is a part of the West Fargo Public Schools system. The school colors are green and white and the athletic teams are known as ...

West Fargo, North Dakota West Fargo is a city in Cass County, North Dakota, United States. It is, as of the 2020 census, the fifth largest city in the state of North Dakota with a population of 38,626, and it is one of the state's fastest growing cities. West Fargo wa ...

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of D ...

, and Moorhead State University. She played the lead role as

Calamity Jane Martha Jane Cannary (May 1, 1852 – August 1, 1903), better known as Calamity Jane, was an American frontierswoman, sharpshooter, and storyteller. In addition to many exploits she was known for being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok. Late ...

in her 1973 High School play Deadwood Dick.

Career

Maxwell made her Broadway debut as an understudy in the

Cy Coleman Cy Coleman (born Seymour Kaufman; June 14, 1929 – November 18, 2004) was an American composer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. Life and career Coleman was born Seymour Kaufman in New York City, United States, to Eastern European Jewish parents, ...

–

David Zippel David Joel Zippel (born May 17, 1954) is an American musical theatre lyricist, director, and producer. Early life and education Zippel was born and raised in Easton, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. Falling in ...

musical '' City of Angels'' in 1989. She eventually took over the dual roles of Carla Haywood and Alaura Kingsley. She appeared in

Brian Friel Brian Patrick Friel (c. 9 January 1929 – 2 October 2015) was an Irish dramatist, short story writer and founder of the Field Day Theatre Company. He had been considered one of the greatest living English-language dramatists. (subscription req ...

's '' Dancing at Lughnasa'' in 1992, which won the

for Best Play. She replaced original cast member

Brid Brennan Brigid ( , ; meaning 'exalted one' from Old Irish),Campbell, MikBehind the Name.See also Xavier Delamarre, ''brigantion / brigant-'', in ''Dictionnaire de la langue gauloise'' (Éditions Errance, 2003) pp. 87–88: "Le nom de la sainte irlandais ...

in the role of Agnes. In 1997, she appeared in ''

'' opposite

Janet McTeer Janet McTeer (born 5 August 1961"Ms Janet McTeer, OBE"
. ''Derbrett's P ...

. In 1998, she played Elsa Schraeder in the first Broadway revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's ''

''. She then starred opposite

John Ritter Johnathan Southworth Ritter (September 17, 1948 – September 11, 2003) was an American actor. Ritter was a son of the singing cowboy star Tex Ritter and the father of actors Jason and Tyler Ritter. He is known for playing Jack Tripper on t ...

and

Henry Winkler Henry Franklin Winkler, OBE (born October 30, 1945), is an American actor, comedian, author, executive producer, and director. After rising to fame as Arthur "Fonzie" Fonzarelli on the American television series '' Happy Days'', Winkler has ...

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

's ''

'' in 2000 and in ''Sixteen Wounded'' in 2004 with

Judd Hirsch Judd Seymore Hirsch (born March 15, 1935) is an American actor. He is known for playing Alex Rieger on the television comedy series '' Taxi'' (1978–1983), John Lacey on the NBC series '' Dear John'' (1988–1992), and Alan Eppes on the CBS se ...

and Martha Plimpton. On television during this time, between 1994 and 2003, she made four guest appearances in the long-running

crime drama ''

'', each time as a different character. In 2005, she received a

nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical, for the role of

Baroness Bomburst Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

in the stage production of ''

''. She also won the

for this role. In 2006, she starred in

Roundabout Theatre Company The Roundabout Theatre Company is a leading non-profit theatre company based in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. History The company was founded in 1965 by Gene Feist, Michael Fried and Elizabeth ...

's Off-Broadway revival of

Joe Orton John Kingsley Orton (1 January 1933 – 9 August 1967), known by the pen name of Joe Orton, was an English playwright, author, and diarist. His public career, from 1964 until his death in 1967, was short but highly influential. During this brie ...

's '' Entertaining Mr. Sloane'' for which she received a Drama Desk nomination for Best Actress. Also in 2006, she reunited with her ''Sound of Music'' co-star

Richard Chamberlain George Richard Chamberlain (born March 31, 1934) is an American actor and singer, who became a teen idol in the title role of the television show '' Dr. Kildare'' (1961–1966). He subsequently appeared in several TV mini-series, such as ''Shō ...

in Hawaii Opera Theatre's production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's ''

The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the child ...

'' in

Honolulu Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the islan ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only ...

. In 2007, she starred as Mrs. Lynch in the Broadway production of

Helen Edmundson Helen Edmundson (born 1964) is a British people, British playwright, screenwriter and Television producer, producer. She has won awards and critical acclaim both for her original writing and for her adaptations of various literary classics for t ...

's '' Coram Boy'' at the

Imperial Theatre The Imperial Theatre is a Broadway theater at 249 West 45th Street (George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1923, the Imperial Theatre was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was constructed f ...

, for which she received her second

nomination, for Best Featured Actress in a Play, as well as another Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play. Her Off-Broadway and regional credits include performances in ''

The Seagull ''The Seagull'' ( rus, Ча́йка, r=Cháyka, links=no) is a play by Russian dramatist Anton Chekhov, written in 1895 and first produced in 1896. ''The Seagull'' is generally considered to be the first of his four major plays. It dramatises ...

'' at the

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

in 1985, in '' House & Garden'' at the

Manhattan Theatre Club Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has g ...

in 2002, in ''A Bad Friend'' at the Newhouse Theater,

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

in 2003 and at Carnegie Hall in the Stephen Sondheim concert, ''Opening Doors'', in 2004. In 2008 she appeared Off-Broadway with the Potomac Theatre Project/NYC in Howard Barker's '' Scenes from an Execution'' and was nominated for a Drama Desk and NYITT award. In 2008, Maxwell appeared on Broadway in the

Manhattan Theater Club Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has g ...

production of '' To Be or Not to Be'' in the role of Maria Tura at the Friedman Theatre. She appeared as Julie Cavendish in the Broadway revival of '' The Royal Family'' at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre in late 2009. For this role she won the 2010

Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play is an annual award presented by Drama Desk in recognition of achievements in the theatre among Broadway, Off Broadway and Off-Off Broadway productions. The awards were established in 1955, with ...

. Maxwell starred as Maria in the Broadway revival of ''

'', which began performances at the

Music Box Theatre The Music Box Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 239 West 45th Street (George Abbott Way) in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1921, the Music Box Theatre was desi ...

on March 11, 2010. She won the

Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town newsp ...

as Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play for this role. Maxwell received two 2010

nominations: one for her leading role in ''The Royal Family'' in 2009 and another for her featured role in ''Lend Me a Tenor'' in 2010. She is only the fourth actress to receive double nominations in a single year. Maxwell played the role of Phyllis Rogers Stone in the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

production of the Stephen Sondheim–

James Goldman James Goldman (June 30, 1927 – October 28, 1998) was an American playwright and screenwriter. He won an Academy Award for his screenplay ''The Lion in Winter'' (1968). His younger brother was novelist and screenwriter William Goldman. Biogra ...

musical ''

'', running from May 7 to June 19, 2011 at the Eisenhower Theater in Washington, DC. Her co-stars were

Bernadette Peters Bernadette Peters ( ''née'' Lazzara; born February 28, 1948) is an American actress, singer, and children's book author. Over a career spanning more than six decades, she has starred in musical theatre, television and film, performed in solo co ...

Elaine Paige Elaine Jill Paige (née Bickerstaff; born 5 March 1948) is an English singer and actress, best known for her work in musical theatre. Raised in Barnet, Hertfordshire, Paige attended the Aida Foster Theatre School, making her first professio ...

Ron Raines Ron Raines (born December 2, 1949) is an American actor. He is known for the role of Alan Spaulding on the television soap opera ''Guiding Light''. Raines also performs in musical theatre and in concert with symphony orchestras. Career Early ye ...

and

Danny Burstein Danny Burstein (born June 16, 1964) is an American actor and singer, most known for his work on the Broadway stage. A seven-time Tony Award nominee, Burstein won the 2020 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his performance as H ...

. She reprised her role in the Broadway limited engagement at the

Marquis Theatre The Marquis Theatre is a Broadway theater on the third floor of the New York Marriott Marquis hotel in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1986, it is operated by the Nederlander Organization. There are abou ...

, which ran from August 7, 2011 (previews) through January 22, 2012. On October 29, 2011, after the Saturday matinee, Maxwell was hit by a minivan, suffering injuries to her arm and leg, fracturing her

fibula The fibula or calf bone is a human leg, leg bone on the Lateral (anatomy), lateral side of the tibia, to which it is connected above and below. It is the smaller of the two bones and, in proportion to its length, the most slender of all the long ...

. She missed the following two shows, but was back a few days later. Maxwell received Helen Hayes, Fred Astaire, Drama League,

Outer Critics Circle The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town newspa ...

Drama Desk 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. Fol ...

and

nominations for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for this role. The Tony nomination (her fifth) made her only the second actress to receive nominations in all four acting categories; the first was

Angela Lansbury Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (October 16, 1925 – October 11, 2022) was an Irish-British and American film, stage, and television actress. Her career spanned eight decades, much of it in the United States, and her work received a great deal ...

. Maxwell reprised her role in this production's transfer to 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 an ...

in Los Angeles, California from May 3 to June 9, 2012. She appeared in the PTP/NYC (The Potomac Theatre Project) Off-Broadway production of the Howard Barker play ''Victory: Choices in Reaction'', in a limited engagement in July 2011. In 2013, Maxwell played the role of Skinner in Howard Barker's '' The Castle: A Triumph'' with PTP/NYC at the Atlantic Theatre, Stage 2. She appeared in the Off-Broadway production of the

Anthony Giardina Anthony Giardina is an American novelist, short story writer, essayist and playwright. Giardina started his professional career as an actor. He switched to play writing, and eventually began writing novels. His work is particularly influenced ...

play, ''The City of Conversation'' at the

Mitzi Newhouse Theater, from May 5, 2014 to July 26, 2014. She was nominated for the 2015

Lucille Lortel Award The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres ...

, Outstanding Actress in a Play, the 2015

, Best Actress in a Play and 2015

Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1922, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing. Each May, the awards ...

, Distinguished Performance Award. In an interview with ''Time Out New York'' in July 2016, Maxwell announced that she was retiring from theatre after the run of her second production of ''Scenes from an Execution'' then in rehearsal. She was also a

voice actress Voice acting is the art of performing voice-overs to present a character or provide information to an audience. Performers are called voice actors/actresses, voice artists, dubbing artists, voice talent, voice-over artists, or voice-over talen ...

and read several audio books, including

Mary Higgins Clark Mary Higgins Clark (born Mary Theresa Eleanor Higgins (December 24, 1927 – January 31, 2020) was an American author of suspense novels. Each of her 51 books was a bestseller in the United States and various European countries, and all of h ...

's '' Two Little Girls in Blue'' and '' No Place Like Home''. Maxwell starred as a "scheming Senator" in the CBS TV series ''BrainDead'' alongside

Mary Elizabeth Winstead Mary Elizabeth Winstead (born November 28, 1984) is an American actress and singer. Her first significant role was that of Jessica Bennett on the NBC soap opera ''Passions'' (1999–2000). She went on to appear in series such as ''Tru Calling' ...

Aaron Tveit Aaron Kyle Tveit (; born October 21, 1983) is an American actor. Tveit originated the lead role of Christian the composer in the stage adaptation of '' Moulin Rouge!'' on Broadway, a performance for which he won the 2020 Tony Award for Best A ...

and

Tony Shalhoub Anthony Marc Shalhoub ( ; born October 9, 1953), is an American actor. His accolades include five Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, six Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award nomination. He played Adrian Monk in the USA ...

, which aired from June to September 2016.

Personal life and death

Maxwell was married to actor and playwright Robert Emmet Lunney, and they had a son William "Will" Maxwell-Lunney. Maxwell died on February 11, 2018 from

leptomeningeal carcinomatosis Leptomeningeal cancer (also called leptomeningeal carcinomatosis, leptomeningeal disease (LMD), leptomeningeal metastasis, neoplastic meningitis, meningeal metastasis and meningeal carcinomatosis) is a rare complication of cancer in which the dise ...

complicated from

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or ...

at her Manhattan apartment at the age of 61."Jan Maxwell Dies at 61"
broadwayworld.com, February 11, 2018McPhee, Ryan
"Jan Maxwell, a Five-Time Tony Award Nominee, Dies at 61"
Playbill, February 11, 2018

Awards and nominations

Stage

References

External links

* * *
Career listing at American Theatre Wing
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maxwell, Jan 1956 births 2018 deaths Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Deaths from breast cancer American stage actresses American television actresses American musical theatre actresses American women singers Drama Desk Award winners Actresses from North Dakota People from West Fargo, North Dakota Minnesota State University Moorhead alumni 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses University of Utah alumni