Helena Blackman
Encyclopedia
Helena Blackman is a British
musical theatre
actress best known for being the runner-up in the BBC1 Reality TV programme How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?
. She trained at the Guildford School of Acting
.
in a production of Gypsy
which was performed at the Wales
Millennium Centre as part of the Cardiff International Festival of Musical Theatre. In December 2006, Blackman played Dorothy
in an acclaimed run of The Wizard of Oz
at the Haymarket Theatre
in Leicester
.
Blackman is a much in demand cabaret performer at corporate events, she has recently been featured as a soloist in The night of a thousand voices at the Royal Albert Hall
and in Tim McArthur's one-man show Sister Mary McArthur Comin' At-Cha! at the Jermyn Street Theatre
in London
.
In May 2007, Blackman was seen giving advice to contestant Ben Ellis
in an episode of Any Dream Will Do
and in July 2007 she appeared as a soloist in an episode of BBC Radio 2
's long-running Friday Night is Music Night
opposite Daniel Boys
. Blackman recently toured the UK extensively as "Nellie Forbush" in a run of Rodgers and Hammerstein
's South Pacific
from 2007 - 2008.
On Christmas Eve
2007 Blackman was seen performing with Lee Mead and Connie Fisher and some of the other 'Maria' and 'Joseph' finalists in a BBC special 'festive' reunion show called When Joseph met Maria
! - celebrating both the hit Andrew Lloyd Webber BBC shows - it was recorded earlier on December 2, 2007. The BBC show, HDYSAPLM, featuring Blackman, recently won a prestigious international Emmy Award
in New York (2007) for best non-scripted entertainment.
From 10 February - 14 March 2009, Helena Blackman played the lead role of Helen in Stephen Sondheim's Saturday Night
at the Jermyn Street Theatre
in London
On February 14, 2011, Helena released her debut album, The Sound of Rodgers & Hammerstein, consisting of classic Rodgers and Hammerstein
material, as well as some of their lesser known gems. The album is available for purchase from iTunes,Amazon and Dress Circle. She also appears on 'A Spoonful of Stiles and Drewe' alongside several other West End stars, which includes songs by George Stiles
and Anthony Drewe
.
Jeremy Kingston said of her performance in The Wizard of Oz
"Helena Blackman's voice soars to the yearning high notes, and yet she is not afraid to sing in the softest whisper. Every word is clear and cuts to the heart." Alfred Hickling of The Guardian
also gave Blackman praise in the role saying "She gives a sparklingly assured performance, marred only by the usual drawback of appearing at least 20 years too old for a pinafore dress."
The Stage
said of her performance as Nellie Forbrush in South Pacific
"...she exudes enthusiasm in the....numbers - especially the excellent Thanksgiving Follies scenes - and she looks perfectly 1940s." BBC
Nottinghams Heather Hinchley also reviewed Blackman's performance positively saying "Without a doubt the star of the show was Helena Blackman".
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
actress best known for being the runner-up in the BBC1 Reality TV programme How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?
How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?
How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? was a British television talent series, that was broadcast on Saturday evenings on BBC One between 29 July and 16 September 2006. It documented the search for a new, undiscovered musical theatre performer to play the role of Maria von Trapp in the 2006 Andrew...
. She trained at the Guildford School of Acting
Guildford School of Acting
Guildford School of Acting is a drama school located in Guildford, Surrey, England. It is an affiliate of the University of Surrey and is an accredited member of the National Council for Drama Training and The Conference of Drama Schools.-Overview:...
.
Biography
On October 29, 2006, Blackman was seen as Gypsy Rose LeeGypsy Rose Lee
Gypsy Rose Lee was an American burlesque entertainer famous for her striptease act. She was also an actress, author, and playwright whose 1957 memoir was made into the stage musical and film Gypsy.-Early life:...
in a production of Gypsy
Gypsy: A Musical Fable
Gypsy is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Gypsy is loosely based on the 1957 memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous striptease artist, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business...
which was performed at the Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
Millennium Centre as part of the Cardiff International Festival of Musical Theatre. In December 2006, Blackman played Dorothy
Dorothy Gale
Dorothy Gale is the protagonist of many of the Oz novels by American author L. Frank Baum, and the best friend of Oz's ruler Princess Ozma. Dorothy first appears in Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and reappears in most of its sequels...
in an acclaimed run of The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (adaptations)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum, which has been adapted into several different works, the most famous being the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland...
at the Haymarket Theatre
Haymarket Theatre
The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre in the Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use...
in Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
.
Blackman is a much in demand cabaret performer at corporate events, she has recently been featured as a soloist in The night of a thousand voices at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
and in Tim McArthur's one-man show Sister Mary McArthur Comin' At-Cha! at the Jermyn Street Theatre
Jermyn Street Theatre
Jermyn Street Theatre is a performance venue situated in Jermyn Street, London.Formerly a restaurant, under the leadership of Howard Jameson, it was transformed into a 70-seat studio theatre right in the heart of London's West End...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
In May 2007, Blackman was seen giving advice to contestant Ben Ellis
Ben James-Ellis
Benjamin James Ellis is an English stage actor who starred in the role of Link Larkin in the West End production of the musical Hairspray from its opening in October 2007 until July 2009...
in an episode of Any Dream Will Do
Any Dream Will Do (TV series)
Any Dream Will Do, often known as 'Joseph', was a 2007 talent show-themed television series produced by the BBC in the United Kingdom. It searched for a new, unknown lead to play Joseph in a West End revival of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.The show...
and in July 2007 she appeared as a soloist in an episode of BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
's long-running Friday Night is Music Night
Friday Night is Music Night
Friday Night is Music Night is a long running live BBC radio concert programme featuring the BBC Concert Orchestra, broadcast most Fridays on BBC Radio 2 at 8.00pm. It is the world's longest-running live music radio programme....
opposite Daniel Boys
Daniel Boys
Daniel Boys is a British musical theatre actor, best known as a contestant on the BBC talent series Any Dream Will Do in 2007.-Acting Career:...
. Blackman recently toured the UK extensively as "Nellie Forbush" in a run of Rodgers and Hammerstein
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were a well-known American songwriting duo, usually referred to as Rodgers and Hammerstein. They created a string of popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s during what is considered the golden age of the medium...
's South Pacific
South Pacific (musical)
South Pacific is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. The story draws from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1947 book Tales of the South Pacific, weaving together characters and elements from several of its...
from 2007 - 2008.
On Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...
2007 Blackman was seen performing with Lee Mead and Connie Fisher and some of the other 'Maria' and 'Joseph' finalists in a BBC special 'festive' reunion show called When Joseph met Maria
When Joseph Met Maria
When Joseph Met Maria was a Christmas special featuring several 'Maria' and 'Joseph' finalists from Andrew Lloyd Webber's BBC talent searches How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? and Any Dream Will Do, including winners Connie Fisher and Lee Mead. It was aired on BBC One on 24 December 2007 and...
! - celebrating both the hit Andrew Lloyd Webber BBC shows - it was recorded earlier on December 2, 2007. The BBC show, HDYSAPLM, featuring Blackman, recently won a prestigious international Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
in New York (2007) for best non-scripted entertainment.
From 10 February - 14 March 2009, Helena Blackman played the lead role of Helen in Stephen Sondheim's Saturday Night
Saturday Night (musical)
Saturday Night is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and the book by brothers Julius J. Epstein and Philip G. Epstein, based on their play, Front Porch in Flatbush....
at the Jermyn Street Theatre
Jermyn Street Theatre
Jermyn Street Theatre is a performance venue situated in Jermyn Street, London.Formerly a restaurant, under the leadership of Howard Jameson, it was transformed into a 70-seat studio theatre right in the heart of London's West End...
in London
On February 14, 2011, Helena released her debut album, The Sound of Rodgers & Hammerstein, consisting of classic Rodgers and Hammerstein
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II were a well-known American songwriting duo, usually referred to as Rodgers and Hammerstein. They created a string of popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s during what is considered the golden age of the medium...
material, as well as some of their lesser known gems. The album is available for purchase from iTunes,Amazon and Dress Circle. She also appears on 'A Spoonful of Stiles and Drewe' alongside several other West End stars, which includes songs by George Stiles
George Stiles
George William Stiles is an English composer of musicals for stage and screen.-Education:From 1974 to 1979, he was educated at Gresham's School, in Norfolk.George Stiles also went to Exeter University.-Collaboration with Anthony Drewe:...
and Anthony Drewe
Anthony Drewe
Anthony Drewe is a British lyricist and book writer for Broadway and West End musicals. He is best known for his collaborations with George Stiles.-Work with George Stiles:*additional songs for the musical Mary Poppins*Tutankhamun*Honk!...
.
Reviews
Blackman has been reviewed by several print and web publications. The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
Jeremy Kingston said of her performance in The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (adaptations)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a 1900 novel by L. Frank Baum, which has been adapted into several different works, the most famous being the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland...
"Helena Blackman's voice soars to the yearning high notes, and yet she is not afraid to sing in the softest whisper. Every word is clear and cuts to the heart." Alfred Hickling of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
also gave Blackman praise in the role saying "She gives a sparklingly assured performance, marred only by the usual drawback of appearing at least 20 years too old for a pinafore dress."
The Stage
The Stage
The Stage is a weekly British newspaper founded in 1880, available nationally and published on Thursdays. Covering all areas of the entertainment industry but focused primarily on theatre, it contains news, reviews, opinion, features and other items of interest, mainly to those who work within the...
said of her performance as Nellie Forbrush in South Pacific
South Pacific (musical)
South Pacific is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. The story draws from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1947 book Tales of the South Pacific, weaving together characters and elements from several of its...
"...she exudes enthusiasm in the....numbers - especially the excellent Thanksgiving Follies scenes - and she looks perfectly 1940s." BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Nottinghams Heather Hinchley also reviewed Blackman's performance positively saying "Without a doubt the star of the show was Helena Blackman".