Ashford has previously appeared on Broadway in Hair (Jeannie), Wicked (Glinda) and the original cast of Legally Blonde (Margot).
Other stage work includes the Off-Broadway productions of Dogfight (Marcy) and Rent (Maureen).
She has performed on screen in "Sex and the City," "Rachel Getting Married," "Franny," "Masters of Sex," "Smash," "Made in Jersey," "The Big C," "Nurse Jackie," "Law & Order" and "Legally Blonde."
Name: | Annaleigh Ashford |
Where you were born/where you were raised: | Denver, Colorado |
Zodiac Sign: | Cancer |
What your parents did/do for a living: | My mom is an elementary school gym teacher and my dad is a small business owner. |
Siblings: | My brother is in college and my sister is in high school. |
Current audition song/monologue: | Whatever fits the bill, but I love singing "I Remember" from Evening Primrose because it has magical Sondheim lyrics. |
Special skills: | I can burp really loud. |
Something you're REALLY bad at: | Keeping my loud burps in. |
Did you have any particular mentors or inspirations when first starting out? | I was inspired by all things Liza, Judy and Babs. |
First Broadway show you ever saw: | Les Mis |
If you could go back in time and catch any Broadway show, what would it be? | The original Glass Menagerie because Loretta’s performance is legendary. |
Current show other than your own you have been recommending to friends: | Everything!!! Go support the theatre!!! |
Some favorite classic musicals: | Gypsy and Sweet Charity |
Broadway or screen stars of the past you would most have loved to perform with: | Uta Hagen. It would be like acting class every night. |
Your personal vocal idols, living or dead: | Babs!!! And a hundred more! |
Music that makes you cry, any genre: | Anything with strings in a minor key "Golden Slumbers" by the Beatles |
MAC or PC? | MAC |
Most-visited websites: | |
Last book you read: | Steve Martin's |
Some films you consider classics: | "Annie Hall" |
Performer you would drop everything to go see: | Mark Rylance |
Pop culture guilty pleasure: | "The Real Housewives." I don’t miss an episode. |
First CD/Tape/LP you owned: | Whitney Houston singing the national anthem on a tape |
What are some of your most memorable roles as a kid or teenager and how old were you? | I played Tina Denmark in Ruthless the Musical when I was 9 at the Theatre on Broadway in Denver. |
How you got your Equity card: | I played Sandy in Grease at the Country Dinner Playhouse when I was 16. |
Favorite pre-/post- show meal: | Raspberry Sorbet |
Favorite liquid refreshment: | Diet Coke |
Who were the first people you called/texted after learning of your nomination? | My mom! |
Any ideas/hints about your Tony night wardrobe? | Vintage inspiration |
Worst flubbed line/missed cue/onstage mishap: | When I was playing Glinda in Wicked, I fell backwards and my skirt went up over my head. |
If you could trade roles with anyone in the cast for a week, who would it be? | Little Lola/Marquise Neal. I like skipping in red pumps. |
Craziest audition story: | After my audition for Legally Blonde, I thought I was horrible and I cried. And, I ended getting Margot from that one audition. |
Leading lady role you've been dying to play: | Charity in Sweet Charity |
Leading man role you'd like a shot at: | Any role Charlie Chaplin played |
Career you would want if not a performer: | Elementary school art teacher |