Ken Page (actor)
Encyclopedia
Ken Page is an American
cabaret
singer and actor
from St. Louis, Missouri
, best known as the voice of the evil bag of bugs Oogie Boogie in Tim Burton
's The Nightmare Before Christmas
and the Kingdom Hearts series, and for playing Old Deuteronomy
in the original Broadway
and video cast of Cats
.
Ken Page began his career in the chorus of The Muny
outdoor theater in St. Louis. After making his Broadway debut in The Wiz
, Page played Nicely-Nicely Johnson in the all-black revival of Guys and Dolls (Theatre World Award
). He was then featured in the original cast of the Fats Waller
musical revue, Ain't Misbehavin' (Drama Desk Award), a role he reprised in the 1982 television broadcast. (Page returned to the show in its 1988 Broadway revival.) In 1982, he played Old Deuteronomy in Cats, returning to the part in the 1998 video release. He also has the distinction of playing God twice: in Randy Newman's Faust
at La Jolla Playhouse
and Goodman Theatre
and in Stephen Schwartz
's Children of Eden
(West End
). Page frequently acts in shows at The Muny
, with recent appearances including Jesus Christ Superstar
, Aida
, The Wizard of Oz
, Les Misérables
, My One and Only, and Little Shop of Horrors.
Besides The Nightmare Before Christmas
, Page's major film credits include All Dogs Go to Heaven
and Torch Song Trilogy
, as well as Dreamgirls
. His TV credits include guest roles on shows such as Charmed
and Touched by an Angel
, as well as various movies and specials.
In recent years, Page has developed and performed a one-man show, Page by Page, and directed various regional and touring productions. Page's most recent role was the voice of the notorious talking plant Audrey II in the Muny's production of Little Shop of Horrors.
He regularly reprises his role as Oogie Boogie in several other Disney productions such as the fireworks display HalloWishes
at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom
, its sister show, Halloween Screams
at Disneyland, the Haunted Mansion Holiday (also at Disneyland) and subsequent video games including, The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King
, The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge
and the Kingdom Hearts
series.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
singer and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
from St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
, best known as the voice of the evil bag of bugs Oogie Boogie in Tim Burton
Tim Burton
Timothy William "Tim" Burton is an American film director, film producer, writer and artist. He is famous for dark, quirky-themed movies such as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Ed Wood, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet...
's The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas, often promoted as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, is a 1993 stop motion musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick and produced/co-written by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, a being from "Halloween Town" who opens a portal to...
and the Kingdom Hearts series, and for playing Old Deuteronomy
Old Deuteronomy
Old Deuteronomy is a character in T. S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats and its musical adaptation, Cats.In Eliot's original poem, Old Deuteronomy is described as an ancient, wise cat who has "lived many lives in succession" and is respected by the other cats and humans in his...
in the original Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
and video cast of Cats
Cats (musical)
Cats is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot...
.
Ken Page began his career in the chorus of The Muny
The Muny
The Muny, short for The Municipal Theatre Association of St. Louis, is an outdoor musical theatre, located in Forest Park, St. Louis, Missouri...
outdoor theater in St. Louis. After making his Broadway debut in The Wiz
The Wiz
The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in the context of African American culture. It opened on October 21, 1974 at the Morris A...
, Page played Nicely-Nicely Johnson in the all-black revival of Guys and Dolls (Theatre World Award
Theatre World Award
The Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...
). He was then featured in the original cast of the Fats Waller
Fats Waller
Fats Waller , born Thomas Wright Waller, was a jazz pianist, organist, composer, singer, and comedic entertainer...
musical revue, Ain't Misbehavin' (Drama Desk Award), a role he reprised in the 1982 television broadcast. (Page returned to the show in its 1988 Broadway revival.) In 1982, he played Old Deuteronomy in Cats, returning to the part in the 1998 video release. He also has the distinction of playing God twice: in Randy Newman's Faust
Randy Newman's Faust
Randy Newman's Faust is a 1993 musical by American musician and songwriter Randy Newman, who based the work on the classic story of Faust, borrowing elements from the version by Goethe, as well as Milton's Paradise Lost, but updating the story to the modern day, and infusing it with humorous cynicism...
at La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre-in-residence on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. -Background:...
and Goodman Theatre
Goodman Theatre
The Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of Chicago theatre, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization...
and in Stephen Schwartz
Stephen Schwartz (composer)
Stephen Lawrence Schwartz is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over four decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as Godspell , Pippin and Wicked...
's Children of Eden
Children of Eden
Children of Eden is a two-act musical play with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by John Caird. The musical is based on the Book of Genesis. Act I tells the story of Adam and Eve, Cain, and Abel, and Act II deals with Noah and the Flood...
(West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
). Page frequently acts in shows at The Muny
The Muny
The Muny, short for The Municipal Theatre Association of St. Louis, is an outdoor musical theatre, located in Forest Park, St. Louis, Missouri...
, with recent appearances including Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...
, Aida
Aida
Aida sometimes spelled Aïda, is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni, based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette...
, The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1902 stage play)
The Wizard of Oz was a 1902 musical extravaganza based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, which was originally published in 1900...
, Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
, My One and Only, and Little Shop of Horrors.
Besides The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas, often promoted as Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, is a 1993 stop motion musical fantasy film directed by Henry Selick and produced/co-written by Tim Burton. It tells the story of Jack Skellington, a being from "Halloween Town" who opens a portal to...
, Page's major film credits include All Dogs Go to Heaven
All Dogs Go to Heaven
All Dogs Go to Heaven is a 1989 Irish-English animated film directed and produced by Don Bluth and released by United Artists. The film tells the story of two dogs, Charlie B. Barkin and his loyal best friend Itchy Itchiford...
and Torch Song Trilogy
Torch Song Trilogy
Torch Song Trilogy is a collection of three plays by Harvey Fierstein rendered in three acts: International Stud, Fugue in a Nursery, and Widows and Children First! The story centers on Arnold Beckoff, a torch song-singing Jewish drag queen living in New York City in the late 1970 and 1980s...
, as well as Dreamgirls
Dreamgirls (film)
Dreamgirls is a 2006 musical drama film, directed by Bill Condon and jointly produced and released by DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures. The film debuted in three special road show engagements beginning December 15, 2006 before its nationwide release on December 25, 2006...
. His TV credits include guest roles on shows such as Charmed
Charmed
Charmed is an American television series that originally aired from October 7, 1998, until May 21, 2006, on the now defunct The WB Television Network. The series was created in 1998 by writer Constance M...
and Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della...
, as well as various movies and specials.
In recent years, Page has developed and performed a one-man show, Page by Page, and directed various regional and touring productions. Page's most recent role was the voice of the notorious talking plant Audrey II in the Muny's production of Little Shop of Horrors.
He regularly reprises his role as Oogie Boogie in several other Disney productions such as the fireworks display HalloWishes
HalloWishes
HalloWishes is a fireworks show that takes place during "Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party" at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom theme park...
at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park is one of four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort located near Orlando, Florida. The first park built at the resort, Magic Kingdom opened Oct. 1, 1971. Designed and built by WED Enterprises, the park's layout and attractions are similar to Disneyland in Anaheim, California...
, its sister show, Halloween Screams
Halloween Screams
Halloween Screams is a fireworks show that takes place during Halloween Time at the Disneyland Resort.-History:...
at Disneyland, the Haunted Mansion Holiday (also at Disneyland) and subsequent video games including, The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King
The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King
The Nightmare Before Christmas: The Pumpkin King is a game for the Game Boy Advance released in autumn 2005.The events of the game take place before those of the movie, The Nightmare Before Christmas...
, The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge
The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge
The Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge is a video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox platforms. It is set after the events of the 1993 Tim Burton film, The Nightmare Before Christmas....
and the Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts
is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square in 2002 for the PlayStation 2 video game console. The first game in the Kingdom Hearts series, it is the result of a collaboration between Square Enix and The Walt Disney Company. The game combines characters and settings from Disney...
series.