| Carole Shelley | |
|---|---|
| Born | 16 August 1939 London, England, UK |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1965–present |
| Spouse | Albert G. Woods (1967-1971) (his death) |
Carole Shelley (born 16 August 1939) is an English actress. Among her many stage roles are the character of Madame Morrible in the original Broadway cast of the musical Wicked.
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Shelley was born in London, England, the daughter of Deborah (née Bloomstein), a singer, and Curtis Shelley, a composer.[1] On stage, Shelley made her Broadway debut in the original 1965 production of The Odd Couple, playing Gwendolyn Pigeon. (She would reprise the role for the film version and for the first season of the subsequent television series.)
She appeared in several plays throughout the 1970s and 1980s, was acclaimed as Rosalind in As You Like It at the 1972 Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Ontario, and earned her first Tony Award nomination in 1975 for her performance as "Jane" in Absurd Person Singular. Shelley won the 1979 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her role as Mrs. Kendal in The Elephant Man, and was nominated again in 1987 for her performance in Stepping Out as "Maxine." In 1982 she won an Obie Award in 1982 for her performance Twelve Dreams.[2] Shelley also began appearing in musicals in the late 1990s, with the revivals of Show Boat and Cabaret.
In 2003, Shelley created the role of Madame Morrible in the original Broadway cast of the musical Wicked, a role which she later reprised in the show's national touring and Chicago productions.
Shelley is currently playing the role of Grandma in the Broadway production of Billy Elliot at the Imperial Theatre. She began performances on October 1, 2008. In 2009, she was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance.
In 1968, Shelley starred as Gwendolyn Pidgeon in The Odd Couple. Since then she has had numerous roles on film and television. Most recently, she was featured as "Aunt Clara" alongside Nicole Kidman and former Wicked co-star Kristin Chenoweth in the film Bewitched.
She lent her voice to several roles in Disney films; notably, Amelia Gabble the Goose in The Aristocats, Lady Kluck, Maid Marian's sidekick and lady-in-waiting, in Robin Hood, and Lachesis the Fate in Hercules.[3]
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