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Lucy St. Louis

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English actress and singer
Lucy St. Louis
St Louis in 2016
Born26 October 1992
Westminster, London, England
Other names
  • Lucy St Louis
  • Lucy Clare
Years active2009–present
Spouse Ben Clare ​(m. 2018)

Lucy St. Louis (born 26 October 1992) is an English actress and singer. From 2021 to 2023, she played Christine Daaé in the West End production of The Phantom of the Opera, making her the first black performer to do so. She was then cast as Glinda in Wicked, also in the West End.

St. Louis has also played Diana Ross in Motown: The Musical, Antonia in Man of La Mancha, Guenevere in Camelot in Concert, and Little Eva in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.

Early life

St. Louis was born in London. She began her vocal training from the age of seven. She said to have been inspired to pursue musical theatre by her Grandma, with whom she would watch old-style MGM musicals, "learn all the words and sing and dance around the house".

She left school at sixteen to pursue the performing arts. She trained at Laine Theatre Arts, graduating in 2012 and was cast in Ragtime halfway through her final year.

Stage career

St. Louis had her career breakthrough during her last year of Musical Theatre school in 2012, being cast in the ensemble of Ragtime.

After this she was cast as first cover Nabalungi in The Book of Mormon at the Prince of Wales Theatre.

In 2021 she became the first black actress to ever portray the lead role of Christine Daaé, in Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera. For this portrayal she was nominated as Best Female Actor in a Musical at the Black British Theatre Awards.

St. Louis was announced as the new Glinda in Wicked in London starting from March 2023. She played the role alongside Alexia Khadime as Elphaba, making this the first instance where both leading roles were played by two actors of color.

In 2023, St. Louis joined a star-studded cast for My Favourite Things, the 80th Anniversary Concert of Rodgers and Hammerstein at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Other performers included: Aaron Tveit, Audra McDonald, Joanna Ampil, Maria Friedman, Michael Ball, Daniel Dae Kim, Julian Ovenden, Marisha Wallace and Patrick Wilson. Rita Moreno also made an appearance during the concert. The show was filmed and a two-discs version of all songs made available the following year.

Year Title Role Notes
2009 Peter Pan Tiger Lily Hawth Theatre, Crawley
2011 Alan Jay Lerner Memorial Soloist St Paul's, Covent Garden
Ultimate Broadway Vocalist Shanghai Culture Square, Shanghai
2012 Ragtime Ensemble Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London
Peter Pan Tiger Lily Venue Cymru, Llandudno
2013 The Book of Mormon Nabulungi (understudy) Prince of Wales Theatre, London
2015 Beautiful: The Carole King Musical Shirelle / Little Eva Aldwych Theatre, London
2016 Motown: The Musical Diana Ross Shaftesbury Theatre, London
2019 Man of La Mancha Antonia English National Opera, London Coliseum
2021–23 The Phantom of the Opera Christine Daaé Her Majesty's Theatre, London
2022 Camelot Guenevere London Palladium
2023 My Favourite Things, The Rodgers & Hammerstein

80 Anniversary Concert

Self Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
2023–present Wicked Glinda Apollo Victoria Theatre, London

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
2017 Beauty and the Beast Debutante
2021 Now or Never Self TV special
2022 The Silent Twins Performer
2024 Great Performances Self TV series
My Favourite Things: the Rodgers

and Hammerstein 80 Anniversary

Self Concert

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2021 Black British Theatre Awards Best Female Actor in a Musical The Phantom of the Opera Won
2024 WhatsOnStage Awards Best Takeover Performance Wicked Pending

References

  1. "Ben & Lucy's Wedding on Lake Como, Italy". Brides Abroad. 2018. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  2. Gans, Andrew (8 October 2021). "Checking In With… London The Phantom of the Opera Star Lucy St. Louis". Playbill. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  3. Sullivan, Lindsey (26 July 2021). "The Phantom of the Opera's Lucy St. Louis on Making History as Christine Daaé: 'This Is More Than a Dream Role'". Broadway. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  4. "In conversation with Alexia Khadime & Lucy St. Louis | Black History Month". Official London Theatre. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
  5. "Interview with star actress Lucy St Louis - How she trained to perform Christine Daaé in The Phantom Of The Opera- Jessica Beackon The Boswells School". Gazette Standard. 26 January 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  6. "Lucy St Louis, The World's 1st black Christine Daae in The Phantom of the Opera". Black History Month. 16 September 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  7. "Lucy St. Louis". London Theatre. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  8. "Interview with star actress Lucy St Louis- How she trained to perform Christine Daaé in The Phantom Of The Opera- Jessica Beackon The Boswells School". Gazette. 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
  9. Wiegand, Chris (2021-07-18). "Black women rarely seen in roles of 'beauty, power and grace', says new Phantom stage star". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
  10. Gans, Andrew (November 8, 2022). "Lucy St. Louis Will Be Glinda in London's Wicked; Alexia Khadime to Return as Elphaba". Playbill.com.
  11. "Concord Theatricals Recordings Releases Live Concert Recording of My Favorite Things: The Rodgers & Hammerstein 80th Anniversary Concert on Double CD and Digital Platforms Worldwide - Concord". concord.com. 2024-05-31. Retrieved 2024-10-14.
  12. "Lucy St Louis - Our Heritage". Open Air Theatre. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  13. Cole, Emily (5 October 2015). "Lucy St. Louis and Cedric Neal to star in Motown The Musical". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  14. "Interview – Lucy St Louis on the joy of playing Diana Ross in Motown the Musical". Musical Theatre Review. 4 September 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  15. Mayo, Douglas (4 May 2021). "Lucy St Louis and Rhys Whitfield join Phantom cast for re-opening in July". British Theatre. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  16. Wild, Stephi (26 July 2021). "Ramin Karimloo, Lucy St. Louis, and Bradley Jaden Will Lead CAMELOT IN CONCERT at the London Palladium". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  17. Wood, Alex (8 November 2022). "Alexia Khadime and Lucy St. Louis to lead West End Wicked". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  18. Wild, Stephi (22 November 2021). "AND BREATHE..., Ivano Turco, Lucy St Louis, and More Take Home Black British Theatre Awards". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  19. Millward, Tom (7 December 2023). "Nominations in full: the 24th Annual WhatsOnStage Awards". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 13 December 2023.

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