Caissie Levy

Caissie Levy

Levy outside the stage door of Ghost the Musical in London.
Born Caissie Shira Levy
(1981-04-15) 15 April 1981
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Occupation Singer, actress
Years active 2002–present
Spouse(s) David Reiser (m. 2011)
Website www.caissielevy.com

Caissie Levy is a Canadian stage actress and singer.

Early life

Levy was born to Jewish parents Mark, a general practitioner, and Lisa Levy, an administrator at her husband's practice.[1] She has two elder brothers, Robi and Josh, who are film directors/writers/producers known as The Levy Brothers. Levy graduated from Westdale Secondary School in 1999.[2] Set to study Shakespeare in Canada, Levy was given the suggestion to audition for New York's American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA); on a whim she did and got in. She has also taught several audition workshops for students in the NYC area. She went to camp in Camp Ramah in Canada.

Career

A week after graduating from AMDA she made a name for herself by playing the role of Maureen Johnson in the U.S. national tour of Rent. Levy then played the role of Penny Pingleton in both the Broadway and U.S. national tour companies of Hairspray after understudying the role in the Toronto company.[3] During this time, she also covered the role of Amber Von Tussle.

In 2008, Levy starred as Elphaba in the Los Angeles sit-down production of Wicked. She had previously understudied the role on Broadway and briefly served as standby in Los Angeles.[4] Her first performance took place on January 1, 2008, replacing Eden Espinosa. She left the show on May 11 of the same year, and was replaced by her standby Teal Wicks.

Levy recently starred as Sheila in the Broadway revival of Hair, which began previews on March 6, 2009 and opened March 31, 2009 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.[5] She left the Broadway cast on March 7, 2010, when she was succeeded by Diana DeGarmo, to open the West End revival which began performances April 1, 2010 at the Gielgud Theatre.[6] The show later closed September 4, 2010.

In 2011 Levy originated the role of Molly Jensen in Ghost the Musical, which opened at Manchester Opera House in March for a seven-week run before transferring to London's West End at The Piccadilly Theatre from June 24, 2011. The official gala opening night took place on July 19.[7] Levy departed the West End production on January 12, 2012, where she was succeeded by Siobhan Dillon the next day. She later opened the Broadway production reprising her role as Molly Jensen along with Richard Fleeshman, her co-star in the West End production as Sam Wheat. The Broadway production began previews on March 15, 2012 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre and officially opened on April 23, 2012. Levy and Fleeshman remained in the production until its premature closure on August 18, 2012.[8]

She can be heard on the cast recording for Hair and Ghost the Musical as well as singing, "Please Don't Let Me Go" on the re-release of composer Scott Alan's album Keys. Levy can also be heard singing "Dear Daddy" on composer Bobby Cronin's album and "I Am Yours" on composer Jonathan Reid Gealt's album Thirteen Stories Down. All of them are available on iTunes.

On November 26, it was announced that Levy would be releasing an EP in January 2013 and will be promoting the release through a concert alongside her husband, David, at Galapagos Art Centre, New York on the January 14th,[9] followed by two dates at the London Hippodrome Casino on 26 and 27 January.[10] [11]

Levy starred as Sara in the acclaimed Manhattan Theatre production of Murder Ballad, a musical by Trip Cullman. The show began previews on May 9 2013 and officially opened at the off-Broadway Union Square Theatre on May 22nd.[12] The show concluded its run on July 21, 2013.[13]

On October 22, 2013 it was announced Levy had been cast as Fantine in the Broadway revival of Les Miserables, which opened at the Imperial Theatre on March 23, 2014.[14] She left the role on 1st March 2015.[15]

Theatre Credits

Theatre
Start year Production Role Notes and awards
2002 Rent Maureen
  • US National Tour
  • Performances: (August 2002 – February 2003)
2004 Hairspray Understudy Penny/Amber
  • Performances: Toronto
2005 Hairspray Penny
  • US National Tour
  • Performances: (October 2005 – May 2006)
2006 Hairspray Penny
  • Broadway
  • Performances: Neil Simon Theatre (May 2006 – August 2006)
2006-2007 Wicked Ensemble, understudy Elphaba
  • Broadway
  • Performances: Gershwin Theatre (December 2006 – October 2007)
2007 Wicked Elphaba standby, Elphaba
  • LA Production
  • Performances: Pantages Theatre (November 2007 – January 2008, January 2008 – May 2008)
2009 Hair Sheila
  • Broadway
  • Performances: Al Hirschfeld Theatre (March 2009 – March 2010)
2010 Hair Sheila
  • West End
  • Performances: Gielgud Theatre (April 2010 – September 2010)
2011 Ghost The Musical Molly
  • Manchester
  • Performances: Manchester Opera House (March 2011 – May 2011)
2011 Ghost The Musical Molly
  • West End
  • Performances: Piccadilly Theatre (June 2011 – January 2012)
2012 Ghost The Musical Molly
  • Broadway
  • Performances: Lunt-Fontanne Theatre (March 2012 – August 2012)
2013 Murder Ballad Sara
  • Off-Broadway
  • Performances: Union Square Theatre (May 2013 - July 2013)
2014 Les Misérables Fantine
  • Broadway
  • Performances: Imperial Theatre (March 2014 - March 2015)
2015 First Daughter Suite Patti Davis/Julie Nixon
  • Off-Broadway
  • Performances: Public Theatre (October 2015 - November 2015)

Personal life

On October 30, 2011, Levy married actor David Reiser in an evening ceremony at the Soho Beach House in Miami, after five years of dating. In March 2016, Levy gave birth to the couple's first child, a son.[16]

References

  1. ↑ "Caissie Levy & David Reiser to Marry Tonight". Broadwayworld.com. October 30, 2011.
  2. ↑ "Caissie Levy, Kevin Spencer - Maureen and Roger in Rent at Hamilton Place". VIEW Magazine. September 2002. Caissie Levy, 21, graduated from Westdale in 1999
  3. ↑ New Penny To Shine In Hairspray: Caissie Levy Broadway World, July 21, 2013
  4. ↑ "Worley to Join L.A. Wicked Cast; Levy to Succeed Espinosa". playbill.com. December 18, 2007.
  5. ↑ "Swenson, Lawrence, Ryness, Levy and Allen Complete Cast of Broadway's Hair". Playbill.com. January 29, 2009.
  6. ↑ "Kyle Riabko, Ace Young and Diana DeGarmo Are Hair's New Headliners; Complete Cast Announced". Broadway.com. February 16, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Ghost Musical Premieres in Manchester, Mar 2011". WhatsOnStage.com. August 27, 2010.
  8. ↑ "I'm Outta Here! Ghost Sets Broadway Closing Date". Broadway.com. July 24, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Caissie Levy and David Are Will Celebrate New Recordings With Starry Concert". Playbill.com. November 26, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Caissie Levy - The Hippodrome Casino". Hippodromecasino.com. November 26, 2012.
  11. ↑ "Details of Caissie Levy and David Are at The Hippodrome Casino". londontheatre1.com. January 21, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Murder Ballad, Starring Caissie Levy, Will Swenson & More, to Play Off-Broadway's Union Square Theatre". broadway.com. April 9, 2013.
  13. ↑ Off-Broadway Rock Musical Murder Ballad Closes July 21 Playbill, Retrieved July 21, 2013
  14. ↑ "Les Miserables Announces First Wave of 2014 Cast". broadwayworld.com. October 22, 2013.
  15. ↑ "Farewell Fantine! Les Miserables star Caissie Levy looks back on the dream role that became a reality". broadwayworld.com. February 26, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Caissie Levy, David Reiser". nytimes.com. October 30, 2011. The couple welcomed their first child in March 2016.

External links

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