Beechman Profile

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HTHSAA Gift to HTHS

$2000 Donation

 

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Thanks to everyone for their support of the HTHS Alumni Association for the past year. We recently presented HTHS Principal Gary O'Brien with a check for $2,000 to benefit the athletics and activities fund.

 

Laurie Beechman '71

Gone but never forgotten

 

 

 

   


Laurie Hope Beechman (April 14, 1953 – March 8, 1998) was an American singer. As a performer, she was known for her Broadway performances in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Cats, and Les Misérables. In addition to her Broadway work, she also led a solo career as a cabaret performer and a recording artist.

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, she possessed an incredible singing voice, powerful, yet subtle and nuanced. After moving to New Jersey, she graduated from Haddon Township High School, Haddon Township, New Jersey in 1971.

She subsequently enrolled at New York University. Dropping out of NYU after a few years, Beechman made her Broadway debut in 1977 as part of the original cast of Annie, playing five different roles. This led to small roles in the Public Theatre's production of The Pirates of Penzance and the film version of Hair. A detour into rock and roll resulted in the 1980 Atlantic Records release Laurie and the Sighs. With little support from a new management team at the label, the album failed badly and Beechman was looking for stage work.

Beechman made her Broadway debut in the original Broadway cast of Annie. She played various roles, most notably "Star to Be," and she is credited in the original Broadway cast recording. She played the lead role of the Narrator in the original Broadway cast of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat during its first Broadway production in 1982, earning a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress (Featured Role -Musical) and a Theatre World Award. In December 1983, Beechman headed the First National Company of Cats as "Grizabella, The Glamour Cat" when the tour opened in Boston. Within four months, she assumed the role on Broadway, replacing Tony winner Betty Buckley. Belting out the show's hit song "Memory", Beechman stayed with the show for more than four years and made occasional return engagements over the next decade.

Set to take over the role of Fantine in the touring production of Les Misérables in late 1988, Beechman was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. After months of treatment, with her long time friend Ken Gilmurray by her side, Laurie bounced back with a celebrated cabaret act at New York's legendary Ballroom. This was quickly followed by a new production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia.

In early 1990, Beechman made her long awaited debut as Fantine in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. She stayed for several months, eventually heading out on tour where she finally played the role in Philadelphia during the Christmas season of 1990. During this time, her self-produced solo recording, Listen To My Heart, was released to great acclaim. The following fall she celebrated regaining her health after fighting off a recurrence of her cancer by, as she put it, "throwing myself a nightclub act," returning once again to the Ballroom.

During the later years of her life, Beechman married Neil Mazzella in 1992, recorded three more solo albums, performed countless concerts and club dates, sang at President Bill Clinton's second Inaugural Gala, was awarded the Gilda's Club's "It's Always Something" Award, and returned to singing and acting. In early 1995, Beechman's cancer returned. She spent an hour on singing and discussing her condition and her will to keep going.

Although her treatments were ongoing, Beechman continued performing until just a few months before her death on March 8, 1998 at the age of 44. One month later, a memorial service was held for Beechman at the Winter Garden Theatre, the theatre where Cats played for so many years. She was survived by her mother, stepfather, two sisters, and husband, Neil Mazzella. She was buried at Montefiore Cemetery in Rockledge, Pennsylvania.

The Laurie Beechman Theatre on 42nd Street in New York City is named for her.  Below is her CV:


Broadway
  • Annie
    • role: several roles, most notably the "Star to Be."
    • when: 1977
    • other: Broadway debut in original cast
  • The Pirates of Penzance
    • role: started out as a swing and then eventually moved up to the role of Kate
    • when: 1981
  • Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
    • role: The Narrator
    • when: opened 1981 Off Broadway and then transfered to Broadway in 1982
    • other: 1982 Tony nomination, Drama Desk nomination, Theatre World award
      "The key to the show's high spirits is the youthful, unpretentious buoyancy of both the score and the cast. The performers -down to Joseph's last brother - all suggest that they are having so much fun that the audience has no choice but to join in. This is particularly true of Laurie Beechman, a strong Broadway belter whose warm presence as the narrator sets the show's entire tone. She addresses the audience as if it were in a living room, not the Royale Theater, and thus creates an intimacy that is almost entirely lacking in other musicals these days."
    (-Frank Rich The New York Times, Feb. 28, 1982)
  • Cats
    • role: Grizabella
    • when: 1984-1988; 1991; 1992; 1997
    • other: After originating the role of Grizabella in the First National Tour, Laurie replaced Betty Buckley in the Broadway production and stayed in the show from 1984-1988. She returned to the Broadway cast several times- including such special occasions as both the ninth (1991) and tenth (1992) anniversary performances as well as the historical performance when Cats became the longest running show in Broadway history (June 19, 1997).
  • Les Misérables
    • role: Fantine
    • when: Jan 1990 - July 1990


regional
  • Dangerous Music
    • role: The Narrator
    • when: 1988
    • where: Jupiter, Florida
    • other: Laurie starred opposite Shaun Cassidy in the world premiere of this new musical, written by Tom Eyen and Henry Krieger
       "Performances, all bigger than life, start with Beechman as Diane, the central character tossed into the gutter, who later achieves rock stardom only to fall back at the final curtain. The role is unbelievable in its flawed heroism and a vocal nightmare, but Beechman comes out on top"
    (Variety, 12 Nov. 1988)
  • Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
    • role: The Narrator
    • when: 1989
    • where: The Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, PA
    • other: Laurie reprised her role of The Narrator in this modern reinterpretation of the show.
  • The Show Off
    • role: Clara
    • when: 1991
    • where: The Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, PA
    • other: straight play written by George Kelly
  • Funny Girl
    • role: Fanny Brice
    • when: 1991
    • where: Sacramento Music Circus, California
  • C'mon and Hear
    • role: Molly McGuire
    • when: 1994
    • where: McCarter Theatre, Princeton, New Jersey
    • other: Laurie was featured in this ensemble piece, which was a celebration of the music of Irving Berlin. It was more a revue than a character driven show, though it had a loose plot line.

u.s. tours
  • Cats- First National Tour
    • role: Grizabella
    • when: 1983
    • where: Boston, MA
    • other: Laurie opened the First National Tour as Grizabella- she played the role only in Boston before moving to Broadway. Laurie received the Boston Critic's Circle Award for this performance.
  • Les Misérables- First and Third National Tours
    • role: Fantine
    • when: 1990 (First National Tour); 1996 (Third National Tour)
    • where: Philadelphia, PA
    • other: Laurie twice reprised her Broadway role of Fantine for limited run during the Philadelphia engagements of the Les Misérables touring companies.
  • The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber
    • role: soloist
    • when: 1992; 1995-1996
    • other: Laurie was featured as a guest soloist during the Radio City Music Hall engagement only of the 1992 tour. She also starred in a new touring version in 1995/96.

      On singing Lloyd Webber's music, Laurie commented:
      "It soars. There's really an incredibly powerful payoff emotionally and musically. I think it's very intense and responsive. He really knows how to pull the heart strings. . . It's a thrill. The audience is so receptive. They love his music, and there you are. You're the messenger and you're bringing good news. For me, vocally, it's so natural."
    (-Laurie Beechman, quoted in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 1/5/96)    		  

misc.

concert ad

Early in her career, Laurie appeared in the film version of the musical, Hair. In later years, she was an accomplished cabaret performer, headlining at venues which included Rainbow and Stars, The Ballroom, The Russian Tea Room, and Maxim's. Laurie's July 1996 Rainbow and Stars act with Sam Harris went on to win a MAC (Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs) award.

Laurie frequently donated her time to perform at various benefits. She was the sole entertainer selected by Andrew Lloyd Webber to perform for Margaret Thatcher's 70th birthday celebration in D.C. in October 1995. In January 1997, Laurie returned to D.C. to sing at the Presidential Inaugural Gala, which was broadcast on National TV. After singing "You'll Never Walk Alone," she also had the honor of introducing President Bill Clinton.

Laurie and Neil with the Clintons




 

 
 
 

 

 

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