Broadway star Julia Murney is currently preparing to make her UK solo concert debut.
She will play two shows at the London Hippodrome on Monday 2nd November 2015 at 8pm and 11pm, with the late night performance featuring duets with to-be-announced West End stars.
Julia made her New York theatre debut in 2000 when she created the role of Queenie in Andrew Lippa's musical The Wild Party at the Manhattan Theatre Club. The cast also included Brian d'Arcy James, Idina Menzel and Taye Diggs.
She famously starred as Elphaba in Wicked, first playing the role when she took over from Stephanie J Block in the first U.S. tour. Following a six month run, Julia transferred to the Broadway production where she played Elphaba for nine months to huge acclaim. Her final performance took place in October 2007.
On Broadway Julia has starred as Florence in Chess In Concert (New Amsterdam) and as Julia in Lennon (Broadhurst), whilst her New York stage credits also include: The Vagina Monologues, Saved, Falling, The Landing, Crimes Of The Heart, A Class Act, Time And Again and Queen Of The Mist.
Julia's regional theatre credits include playing Princess Fiona in Shrek The Musical, the title character in Evita, Cathy in The Last Five Years, The Baker's Wife in Into The Woods, Mother in Ragtime and Mrs Walker in Tommy. She released her debut album I’m Not Waiting in 2006 and has subsequently performed in concerts around the globe.
On screen Julia has appeared in: Brothers and Sisters (ABC), 30 Rock (NBC), Sex and the City (HBO), Law & Order (NBC), Ed (NBC), Law & Order: Criminal Intent (NBC), NYPD Blue (ABC), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC), Ghost Town (Dreamworks) and One Life To Live (ABC).
I recently spoke to Julia, through the wonders of Skype, about why she’s so excited to sing in London for the very first time, what she learnt from starring in The Wild Party and why she turned down Elphaba when she was originally offered the role. We also discussed what people can expect from her London shows, how incredible Imelda Staunton is in Gypsy and her love for Shoshana Bean plus much, much more…
What was your initial reaction when you were asked about the possibility of flying over to London to do a couple of concerts?
Well my initial reaction to solo concerts is always, “Oh no I can’t” because I find them very overwhelming and anxiety inducing. So that was my first reaction [laughs], but my second reaction was, “Oh my gosh, I’ve never sung in London”! I spent a semester in London when I was at college, I have a special place for London in my heart so I was so honoured that they asked! My third reaction was, “Oh no, now I have to figure out what I’m going to do” [laughs}… but I think I’ve figured it out now.
