Peter McGuire Posted September 17, 2010 Share Posted September 17, 2010 (edited) There are some heavys in this production that I was not aware of. I will see them on tour. Source: Wikipedia LaChanze LaChanze in 2006 Born Rhonda LaChanze Sapp December 16, 1961 (1961-12-16) (age 48) St. Augustine, Florida, U.S. Other names Rhonda Sapp, LaChanze Sapp, La Chanze Sapp-Gooding, R. Lachanze Sapp Occupation Actress, singer, dancer Years active 1988–present Spouse Calvin J. Gooding (1998-2001) Derek Fordjour (2005-present) Website http://www.lachanze.com LaChanze (born December 16, 1961) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Contents 1 Biography 2 Work 2.1 Stage 2.2 Filmography 3 Awards and nominations 4 External links Biography Born Rhonda LaChanze Sapp in St. Augustine, Florida, her stage name "LaChanze" (Creole:the charmed one), is taken from her grandmother. Her father was in the Coast Guard and her mother is Rose Hines. LaChanze's childhood love of singing and dancing caused Rose to enroll in the Bowen Peters Cultural Arts Center, in New Haven, Connecticut. It is there that she first discovered her love for performing. At Warren Harding High School in Bridgeport, LaChanze made her debut as Lola in Damn Yankees musical. Living in Connecticut in such close proximity to New York City gave LaChanze access to the world of theatre. LaChanze's first theatre production she ever saw was the musical Chicago. Graciela Daniele was cast in this production and many years later Ms. Daniele continues to have a lasting impact on LaChanze's professional development as a performer. While she greatly enjoyed the dance world, LaChanze often felt limited and remembers the frequent urge to stop dancing and belt out a dramatic tune or to erupt into an intense monologue. After high school, LaChanze attended The University of the Arts in Philadelphia where she majored in theatre dance,voice, and acting. Her first summer job was as a tap dancer in the ensemble of Uptown it's Hot at the Tropicana Hotel in Atlantic City. The show soon moved on to Broadway where LaChanze began her professional theatre career. On September 11, 2001, while she was 8 months pregnant with her second child, her husband, Calvin Gooding, a bond trader at Cantor Fitzgerald, was killed in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. With Gooding she has daughters Celia Rose and Zaya LaChanze. LaChanze remarried to artist Derek Fordjour on 30 July 2005 and has a stepson Langston through him. In the spring of 2009, LaChanze will star in world premiere of "Inked Baby", a new play by Christina Anderson. The production will be run from March 5 through April 5 at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater at Playwrights Horizons in New York City. "The Wiz" (2009) The Color Purple (2005) Dessa Rose (2005) Once on This Island (2002) Funny Girl (2002) Ragtime (1998) Company (1995) Once on This Island (1990) Dreamgirls (1987) Uptown...It's Hot! (1986) [edit] Filmography The Cosby Show (1988) (TV) Leap of Faith (1992) For Love or Money (1993) The Cosby Mysteries (1994) (TV) David Searching (1997) Hercules (1997) Sex and the City (1999) (TV) Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2000, 2008) (TV) Awards and nominations Awards 1991 Theatre World Award - Once on This Island 2005 Obie Award for Performance - Dessa Rose 2006 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical - The Color Purple Nominations 1991 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical - Once on This Island 1991 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical - Once on This Island 2001 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical - Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin 2005 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical - Dessa Rose LaChanze official websiteLaChanze at the Internet Broadway Database LaChanze at the Internet Movie Database The Color Purple at the Internet Broadway Database LaChanze - Downstage Center interview at American Theatre Wing.org v • d • e Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical Christine Ebersole (2001) · Sutton Foster (2002) · Marissa Jaret Winokur (2003) · Idina Menzel (2004) · Victoria Clark (2005) · LaChanze (2006) · Christine Ebersole (2007) · Patti LuPone (2008) · Alice Ripley (2009) · Catherine Zeta-Jones (2010) ] Complete list · (1948-1975) · (1976-2000) · (2001-present) Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LaChanze"Categories: American female singers | African American actors | American musical theatre actors | Theatre World Award winners | Tony Award winners | University of the Arts (Philadelphia) alumni | 1961 births | Living people Hidden categories: BLP articles lacking sources from July 2008 | Articles lacking reliable references from July 2008 | All articles lacking sources | Articles sourced by IMDB from July 2008 | Articles lacking in-text citations from May 2010 | All articles lacking in-text citations | Articles with hCards Source Description above from the Wikipedia article LaChanze, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors here. Community Pages are not affiliated with, or endorsed by, anyone associated with the topic.Facebook © 2010 · English (US)About · Advertising · Developers · Careers · Privacy · Terms · Help Edited September 17, 2010 by Peter McGuire Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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