Jennifer Ellis, ’03, seems to be here, there, and everywhere on stage, performing numerous and diverse roles in theaters from Boston to New York and places in between.
Recently, the busy actress was recognized by the Boston Theater Critics Association, which selected her to receive one of its 2015 Elliot Norton Awards.
Ms. Ellis received the Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actress Award for a midsize, small, or fringe theater for her performances last year as Eliza Doolittle in the Lyric Stage Company of Boston’s production of My Fair Lady, and as Eileen Sherwood – a young actress getting her first taste of the big city – in the Reagle Music Theatre’s production of Wonderful Town.
It was perhaps fitting that My Fair Lady figured in her her being recognized, because Ms. Ellis loved the movie as a child and said it inspired her interest in acting.
“When I finally had the chance to do the musical with one of my favorite directors in the city – Scott Edmiston – that was a treat enough,” she said. “And then to have it be so well received and recognized by my peers, it’s kind of amazing. It feels great.”
Playing Eliza was challenging because “it’s just such an iconic piece and the movie with Audrey Hepburn is so burned into everyone’s mind,” Ms. Ellis said, citing also the requirement that she “squawk in Cockney and then sing like a lady.” But, she adds, “It was one of those shows that by the time it ended, none of us wanted it to end.”
Ms. Ellis said she also enjoyed her part in Wonderful Town because while on the surface “wide eyed and innocent,” Eileen has an independent streak. “She doesn’t end up with the man, she ends up with the job she wanted.”
In recent years, Ms. Ellis has also performed in Out of Sterno at the Gloucester Stage Far From Heaven at Boston’s Speakeasy, and in Boston and off-Broadway productions of Shear Madness. This year she also garnered her second Independent Reviewers of New England Award for her work in My Fair Lady. This month, she performs in Carousel at the Reagle Music Theatre, followed by Love’s Labours Lost on Boston Common in July, and The Boys From Syracuse at the Hatch Shell in August.
Ms. Ellis said her experiences as a student performing in numerous BSU productions has been extremely helpful to her career. She also appreciates the general education background she got at BSU, calling it “really invaluable to me as an actor and a person.” (University News)
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