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Caroline Ann O'Connor (born 2 September 1962) is an English-Australian singer, dancer and actress.
O'Connor was born in Oldham, Lancashire, England, to Irish parents and subsequently raised and trained in Sydney, Australia. She trained at the Royal Ballet School in London and worked full-time at the Australian Opera Ballet.[1] She became an Australian Citizen in 2007 giving her dual citizenship.
O'Connor's film work includes the featured role of Nini Legs in the Air in Baz Luhrmann's film Moulin Rouge!, and as Ethel Merman in the Cole Porter biopic De-Lovely. She also featured on the De-Lovely soundtrack, singing Anything Goes.
In 2003 O'Connor made her Broadway debut as Velma Kelly in Chicago. Her West End theatre performances include Mabel in Mack & Mabel for which she received an Olivier nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. O'Connor was a member of the original 1986 revival cast of Me and My Girl at the Adelphi Theatre.
O'Connor's other UK theatre credits include A Chorus Line, Hold on Tight it's 60's Night, Chicago, Damn Yankees, West Side Story and as Ellie May in Showboat for the Royal Shakespeare Company and Opera North.
In 1998, O'Connor returned to Australia as Velma Kelly in Chicago for which she won a Green Room Award and the Mo Award for Female Musical Theatre Performer of the Year. Other Australian productions include the one woman play Bombshells written especially for Caroline O'Connor by playwright Joanna Murray-Smith, West Side Story, Man of La Mancha, Oklahoma! and concert productions of Funny Girl and Mack & Mabel. She has since filmed Bombshells for ABC Television. Her portrayal of Edith Piaf in Pam Gems's play Piaf gained her three Australian theatre awards.
Bombshells toured to sell-out performances at the Edinburgh Festival (where she won the coveted Fringe First Award), London's West End at the Arts Theatre (for which she received her second Laurence Olivier Award nomination), and at the World Stage Festival in Toronto, Canada. O'Connor starred as Judy Garland in the 2005 world premiere of Peter Quilter's play End of the Rainbow at the Sydney Opera House. Following its Sydney and Melbourne seasons, Caroline recorded the CD A Tribute to Judy Garland, and reprised her Helpmann Award winning role in Sydney at the Theatre Royal in 2006.
She starred in the premiere production of the musical The Hatpin, which opened in Sydney on 27 February 2008 to critical acclaim. In June 2008, she played the title role —a role specifically written for O'Connor— in the premiere of David Williamson's 2008 play Scarlett O'Hara at the Crimson Parrot at the Melbourne Theatre Company.[2]
O'Connor has recorded four solo CDs (What I Did For Love, A Tribute To Piaf, From Stage to Screen, A Tribute to Garland), and has featured on numerous cast recordings and compilations.
In March 2009, O'Connor reprised her role as Velma Kelly in the 2009 Australian production of Chicago where she starred alongside Sharon Millerchip and Craig McLachlan.
In May 2010, she appeared as Mrs Cooper in the TV series, Lowdown.
References
- Webb, Carolyn (7 February 2004). "Caroline O'Connor comes back for more". The Age.
- Caroline O'Connor Returns as Star of ENO's On the Town (BroadwayWworld)
- Cinema.com
- Allegro Music
- ^ Turner, Tonya (13 February 2009). "Caroline O'Connor returns home with Chicago". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 16 February 2009. [dead link]
- ^ Higson, Rosalie (4 June 2008). "Into the rhythm of love". The Australian. Retrieved 3 June 2008.