Laura Benanti to Perform at The Lesher Center for the Arts

The Lesher Center Presents Headliners series will continue with Broadway star Laura Benanti. This evening of song will include Benanti's brilliant renditions of Broadway tunes, standards, and more. Benanti made her debut on Broadway as Maria in The Sound of Music at age 18, then secured her position as one to watch with her Tony-winning revelatory portrayal of Louise/Gypsy Rose Lee in Gypsy opposite Patti LuPone in 2008. With a rollicking no-holds-barred style, witty banter, and unbridled enthusiasm for musical theatre gems, Benanti's cabaret appearance offers audiences a look behind the scenes, as she shares hilarious tales of working on the Great White Way. Laura Benanti will perform 7:30pm, Saturday, June 25 at the Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr, Walnut Creek. For tickets ($45-$77) and more information, the public may visit lesherartscenter.org or call the box office at (925) 943-7469 (open Wed-Sun, 12-6pm).

Film and television audiences also know Benanti for her roles in Amy Schumer's "Life & Beth" on Hulu, Lin-Manuel Miranda's "Tick, Tick... Boom!" for Netflix, and Sara Colangelo's "Worth" opposite Michael Keaton, Stanley Tucci, and Amy Ryan, as well as recurring roles on "Younger," "Nashville," "The Good Wife," "Gossip Girl," "Elementary," "Nurse Jackie," and "Law and Order: SVU," among others. She has performed in 11 shows on Broadway including the landmark revival of Gypsy, which landed her the 2008 Tony Award for "Best Featured Actress in a Musical," a Drama Desk Award, and an Outer Critics Circle Award. Since her debut in The Sound of Music, the celebrated performer has also wowed Broadway audiences as Cinderella in Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods, which earned her nominations for Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards. She was also nominated for a Tony Award and won both the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for her starring role in Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown at Lincoln Center Theatre. Other Broadway roles include Amalia Balash in She Loves Me, for which she was nominated for Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, and Drama League Awards. Benanti also costarred alongside Amy Schumer and Keegan Michael Key in Steve Martin's hit Broadway play, Meteor Shower, and most recently starred as Eliza Doolittle in Lincoln Center's acclaimed production of My Fair Lady.

Benanti also captured national fame via her regular hilarious appearances as First Lady Melania Trump on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," and her starring role in Sara Colangelo's "Worth" opposite Michael Keaton, Stanley Tucci, and Amy Ryan, currently streaming on Netflix. Benanti also starred in the 2021 film "Here Today" opposite Billy Crystal and Tiffany Haddish, a comedy-drama that follows a veteran comedy writer who is slowly losing his grip on reality before he meets a talented street singer.

In 2020, Benanti created and executive produced the HBO Max special, "Homeschool Musical: Class of 2020." Inspired by her online movement #SunshineSongs, in which she offered to be an audience for students around the country whose spring musicals were cancelled due to COVID-19, the unscripted musical shines a light on the incredible talent of high school seniors faced with a world turned upside down. In 2018, Benanti produced the children's album, "Singing You Home - Children's Songs for Family Reunification" in which all proceeds were donated to reuniting families separated at the border. The seven-song album featured stand-out artists including Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ingrid Michaelson, Kristin Chenoweth, Cynthia Erivo, and Idina Menzel, among others. In 2020, Benanti released a self-titled studio album for Sony Music Masterworks comprised of contemporary covers, jazz influenced torch songs, and comedic takes on beloved favorites.

About the Diablo Regional Arts Association

The Diablo Regional Arts Association (DRAA) is the non-profit partner of the Lesher Center for the Arts, and acts as the designated curator for its programming and audience outreach. The organization aims to achieve artistic excellence by providing exceptional arts programming through quality live theatre, visual arts, and youth education at the Lesher Center for the Arts, while providing avenues of accessibility for everyone to enjoy the arts.

Photo credit: Jenny Anderson

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