Laura Bell Bundy
Laura Bell Bundy | |
|---|---|
 Bundy in April 2010 | |
| Born | Laura Ashley Bell Bundy April 10, 1981 Euclid, Ohio |
| Other names | Laura Bell, Laura Bundy |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, singer, dancer, songwriter |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Parent(s) | Don Bundy and Lorna Bell Bundy-Jones |
| Website | http://laurabellbundy.com |
Laura Ashley Bell Bundy (born April 10, 1981) is an American actress and singer who has performed in a number of Broadway roles, both starring and supporting, as well as in television and film. Her best known Broadway roles are the original Amber Von Tussle in Hairspray and the original Elle Woods in the musical version of Legally Blonde. She signed to Mercury Records Nashville and released her first country music single, "Giddy On Up," in early 2010. The album's second single, "Drop on By", was released to country radio on August 9, 2010. "That's What Angels Do," the first single from her upcoming third album, released to country radio in 2012.
Early life
Bundy was born and raised in Lexington, Kentucky.[1] Her mother, Lorna Bundy-Jones, manages a Victoria's Secret. Her father, Don Bundy, is an electrical engineer. She grew up dancing at Town and Village school of Dance, in Paris, Kentucky. Her parents divorced when she was 16 years old; both have since remarried.[2] She made her stage debut in regional theatre when she was nine years old. She graduated from Lexington Catholic High School in 1999. She got her start at Images Model Agency. Bundy was diagnosed with Coeliac Disease when she was about 18/19 years old.[3]
In 1995, Bundy appeared in the film Jumanji at age 14, playing the role of young Sarah.
Career
Ruthless Bundy originated the role of Tina Denmark in the Off-Broadway musical Ruthless! The Musical. For this part, she was nominated for a 1993 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical.
Hairspray In 2002 she made her Broadway debut in the musical Hairspray, originating the role of Amber Von Tussle.
Wicked Bundy was next a standby for both Kristin Chenoweth and Jennifer Laura Thompson in the role of Glinda in Wicked. She ended her run as the standby in August 2004.
Legally Blonde: The Musical From 2007 to 2008 she starred on Broadway in Legally Blonde: The Musical where she originated the lead role of Elle Woods, receiving her first Tony Award nomination for Best Leading Actress in a Musical. After leaving the show in July 2008 she was succeeded by Bailey Hanks, the winner of Legally Blonde - The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods.
Credits outside of New York City include the national tour of The Sound of Music, Gypsy with Betty Buckley and Deborah Gibson at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn, New Jersey and the Los Angeles production of Rock of Ages, in which she starred as Sherrie.
Offstage, Bundy has appeared in films including The Adventures of Huck Finn (1993), Life with Mikey (1993), and Jumanji (1995) as Young Sarah Whittle. She appeared in the 2006 film adaptation of Dreamgirls as a member of the fictitious pop group "Dave & the Sweethearts". Bundy was also seen on the CBS soap opera Guiding Light as Marah Lewis for two years, (October 14, 1999 – October 29, 2001) as well as in television shows such as Veronica Mars, Happy Hour, Modern Men, Cold Case, and Strangers with Candy. She also appears in several short web videos as various comedic characters, such as Justice Goode and Shocantelle Brown.
Bundy released her debut country music album titled Longing For a Place Already Gone. After leaving Legally Blonde: The Musical on July 20, 2008, she moved back to Nashville to work on her second album.
On September 27, 2008, she headlined Anaheim, California's the Chance Theater with fellow Wicked alum Eden Espinosa, and with "Spring Awakening" alum Lea Michele for the Broadway Chance Style Up Close and Personal concert.
She guest-starred in the TV series, Cold Case with Adam Pascal and Tracie Thoms in the episode "Willkommen".
Bundy was a judge at the Miss America 2009 pageant.[4]
Bundy reprised the role of Elle Woods in the U.S. national tour of Legally Blonde as a temporary replacement for the injured Becky Gulsvig. She began her brief run on January 13, 2009, and ended it on February 22, 2009.[5] She was to play Elle again during the Nashville engagement of the national tour from June 23–28.[6] However, she fractured her arm during the performance on June 27, and finished the show, and was rushed to the hospital immediately after.[7]
Bundy has landed a recurring role on the sixth season of How I Met Your Mother as Becky, Robin's co-anchor.[8]
Bundy has a recurring role on Hart of Dixie on the CW.
Bundy is a spokesperson for Supercuts, and appears in their Winter 2012 advertisement campaign.
Country music career
Her first single, "Giddy On Up", debuted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart at number 60 for the chart week of February 20, 2010, and peaked at number 31 in May. The single was made into a music video, which was directed by Shane Drake. She also performed the song on the 2010 Academy of Country Music Awards, where it was done in the style of the music video. The next single, "Drop On By," was less successful than her debut, only peaking at number 48. Her single "Giddy On Up" is also featured on popular dancing video game, Just Dance 3.
Her second album, Achin' and Shakin' was released on April 13, 2010. It debuted at number 5 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart as well as number 28 on the all-genre Billboard 200. As of June 26, 2010, the album has sold over 70,000 copies in the United States.[9] It also charted internationally, where it reached number 34 on the Norwegian Albums Chart.
Bundy also appeared in fellow country artist Miranda Lambert's music video for "Only Prettier", as one of Lambert's friends alongside Kellie Pickler and Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum.
Bundy began as the spokesperson for the Selected Chevrolet Dealers of Middle Tennessee in September 2011.
"That's What Angels Do," the first single from her upcoming third album, released to country radio in 2012.
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [10] |
US [11] |
NOR [12] | ||
| Longing for a Place Already Gone |
|
— | — | — |
| Achin' and Shakin' |
|
5 | 28 | 34 |
| Another Piece of Me |
|
To be released | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [14] |
US Bubbling [15] |
US Dance [16] | |||
| 2010 | "Giddy On Up" | 31 | 7 | 43 | Achin' and Shakin' |
| "Drop On By" | 48 | — | — | ||
| 2012 | "That's What Angels Do" | — | — | — | Another Piece of Me |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||
Music videos
| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Giddy On Up" | Shane Drake |
| "Drop On By" | Kristin Barlowe | |
| 2012 | "That's What Angels Do" | Laura Bell Bundy/Becky Fluke |
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | The Adventures of Huck Finn | Susan Wilks | as Laura Bundy |
| 1993 | Life with Mikey | Courtney Aspinall | as Laura Bundy |
| 1995 | Jumanji | Young Sarah Whittle | |
| 1998 | Strangers with Candy: Retardation, A Celebration | Kimberly Timothy | as Laura Bundy |
| 2003 | All Grown Up | Brenda | TV movie |
| 2006 | Dirtbags | Meg | TV Movie |
| 2006 | Surf School | Doris | |
| 2006 | Dreamgirls | Sweetheart | |
| 2007 | Legally Blonde: The Musical | Elle Woods | TV movie |
| 2008 | The Drum Beats Twice | Peggy | as Laura Bundy |
| 2011 | Hound Dogs | Ginger Ledoux | TV movie |
| 2011 | To the Mat | Janice | TV movie |
| 2012 | Watercolor Postcards | Sonny |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Home Improvement | Sharon | 1 episode |
| 1999 | Guiding Light | Marah Lewis | 10 episodes; 1999–2001 |
| 2005 | Veronica Mars | Julie Bloch | 1 episode |
| 2006 | Cold Case | Nora McCarthy | 1 episode |
| 2006 | Modern Men | Tyffani | 1 episode |
| 2008 | Happy Hour | Alicia | 1 episode |
| 2010 | How I Met Your Mother | Becky | 3 episodes |
| 2010 | Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List | Herself | 1 episode |
| 2011 | Trailer Trash | Peggy Sue | 1 episode |
| 2012-present | Hart of Dixie | Shelby |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Association | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Tony Award | Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical - Elle Woods - Legally Blonde: The Musical | Nominated |
| Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Actress in a Musical - Elle Woods - Legally Blonde: The Musical | Nominated | |
| 2010 | CMT Music Awards | ||
| USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year - "Giddy On Up" | Nominated | ||
| American Country Awards | Video by New/Breakthrough Artist - "Giddy On Up" | Nominated |
References
- ^ Biography umgnashville.com, accessed November 17, 2010
- ^ "The Official Website of Laura Bell Bundy :: Bio". Official Website of Laura Bell Bundy. Retrieved December 18, 2010.
- ^ "Laura Bell Bundy Shares Her Struggle With Wheat! fitperez.com, November 1, 2010
- ^ 2009 Miss America Pageant Puts the Spotlight On National Judges Saturday missamerica.org, 12/1/2008
- ^ Laura Bell Bundy to Join LEGALLY BLONDE Tour as Temporary Replacement broadwayworld.com, January 10, 2009
- ^ Hetrick, Adam."Bundy to Headline Nashville Engagement of Legally Blonde Tour," playbill.com, June 22, 2009
- ^ Soltes, Fiona.'Legally Blonde' star Bundy injured,"The Tennessean, June 30, 2009
- ^ Aug 5 Exclusive: Laura Bell Bundy joins 'How I Met Your Mother' as [spoiler alert]! ausiellofiles.ew.com
- ^ NAME:. "Dierks Leads Four New Albums into Country Top 10 | New Country Music, Listen to Songs & Video". Roughstock.com. Retrieved 2012-03-26.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "Laura Bell Bundy Album & Song Chart History - Country Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
- ^ "Laura Bell Bundy Album & Song Chart History - Billboard 200". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
- ^ "norwegiancharts.com - Norwegian charts portal". Hung Medien. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
- ^ Thompson, Gayle (March 2, 2012). "Laura Bell Bundy, 'That's What Angels Do' Is Emotional New Tune From Upcoming Album". The Boot. Retrieved March 6, 2012.
- ^ "Laura Bell Bundy Album & Song Chart History - Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2011). Top Pop Singles 1955–2010. Record Research, Inc. p. 127. ISBN 0-89820-188-8.
- ^ "Laura Bell Bundy Album & Song Chart History - Hot Dance Club Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
- Copley, Rich. Laura Bell Bundy has lead in 'Legally Blonde' on Broadway. Lexington Herald-Leader, October 3, 2006. Retrieved November 4, 2006.
External links
- Official website
- Laura Bell Bundy at the Internet Broadway Database
- Laura Bell Bundy at IMDb
- Laura Bell Bundy at AllMovie
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Warning | Local parameters are deprecated. |
- 1981 births
- Actors from Kentucky
- American child actors
- American country singers
- American female singers
- American film actors
- American musical theatre actors
- American stage actors
- American television actors
- Lexington Catholic High School alumni
- Living people
- People from Lexington, Kentucky
- Mercury Records artists