Frances Ruffelle
BIO
Frances Ruffelle is a Tony Award winner, best known for originating the role of Eponine in the very first London and Broadway productions of Les Misérables. Frances won the Tony Award, Outer Circle Critics Award, Theater World Award and the Helen Hayes Award for this role.
“There are great and strong voices, big or beautiful voices, but very rarely, there is what can only be described as a magic voice. Frances is one of those rare ones, and the magic seems to lie in the contradiction, she is youthful and wise, vibrant and sad, spontaneous and skilled. Hearing is believing.” Trevor Nunn.
Frances also created the roles of Dinah in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express, Delilah in Ian Drury’s Apples, Bella in The A to Z of Mrs. P and was delighted that Stephen Schwartz wrote the role of Yonah for her in Children of Eden which she performed in the world premiere in London’s West End. Frances appears on all of the original cast albums associated with these roles. Other theater credits include Queenie in Michael John LaChiusa’s The Wild Party (First London cast) and Piaf in Pam Gem’s play ‘Piaf ‘(Frances received a UK Theatre Award nomination for best Actress). Fastrada in Pippin. Louisa in Terrence Rattigan’s play ‘The Sleeping Prince. Roxie Hart in Chicago. The Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Angelique Picard in Songs from a Hotel Bedroom. Mathilde in Mathilde. Annabel in Lucky Stiff. Frances has performed many one person shows. ‘Beneath the Dress’, co-devised by Matt Ryan, received rave reviews and was performed at the West End’s Garrick Theatre. More recently, Frances performed her unique, award winning solo show ‘Frances Ruffelle Live(S) in New York in a monthly residency for two years at New York’s Green Room 42 and Frances’ newly penned ‘Ruby’s Poison’ will have an off Broadway run as soon as theaters resume again.
Recordings include: Frances has recorded five solo albums, Fragile, Frances Ruffelle, Showgirl, Imperfectly Me recorded at Ronnie Scott’s jazz club and most recently I Say Yeh- Yeh. Frances has also written and performed as PaTala with Sam Bonner and they have released the meditative album Purify. Frances duets with Christopher Cross, Ian Dury and Michael Crawford on their solo albums.
Film and TV credits include: Features: Sue Foster in Long Forgotten Fields. Kim in Devil’s Tower. Eunice in P’Tang Yang Kipperbang. Eleni in The Road to Ithaca, Angela in Mike Leigh’s Secrets and Lies, Angela Hall/ Roxanne in The Wild Cats of St. Trinians. Naomi in ITV’s Birds of a Feather. Dawn Daniel-Spears in Dream Team, Kitty in Tony McHale’s Headless (Frances also co-wrote the soundtrack for the series), Olivia in The Further Adventures of Robin Hood. Sylvie in The Equalizer. Mandy in The Hard Word. Denise in Alan Bennet’s Objects of Affection Marks (BBC). Duet with Ricky Martin in ITV’s An Audience with Ricky Martin.
Frances represented the UK in the Eurovision with her chart hit, Lonely Symphony.
