Rolan Bell

Last updated

Rolan Bell
Born
Rolan Bell

(1983-10-17) 17 October 1983 (age 40)
Chiswick, London, England
Occupation Actor
Years active2006–present
SpouseSophia Bell m. 2022
Children2
AwardsBest Villain - UK pantomime association - 2022 Laurence Olivier Nominee- Best Actor in supporting role - 2015

Rolan Alfonso Bell (born 17 October 1983) is a British actor who was born in West London, [1] of Jamaican origin. He became known for appearing in the BBC One television soap opera EastEnders as Theo Kelly in 2009, and the role of Sgt King (Kingy) in the BBC drama Our Girl . [2] He is currently playing the part of Ike Turner in Tina (musical) at the Aldwych Theatre in the West End prior to this he played the part of Robert in The Play That Goes Wrong at the Duchess Theatre. [3]

Contents

Background and career

Bell was born in London, England, to Jamaican parents [2] (the second oldest of their seven children). He began his training as an actor in 2000 at Hammersmith and West London College on a two-year performing arts course, before going on to the Drama Centre London. [1] [4] Bell was first seen professionally in Doctors in 2006 and also appeared in a number of theatre productions, including a stage adaptation of The Harder They Come in which he played the lead role, [5] [6] in Margaret Busby's An African Cargo (2007) [7] and The Lion King . Bell also played the role of Fela Kuti in the Broadway show Fela! in December 2010. [8]

In 2012, Bell appeared as Coalhouse Walker Jr in Ragtime, the Musical . [9]

He played Silly Billy in the pantomime Jack and The Beanstalk at the Cambridge Arts Theatre from 6 December 2012 to 13 January 2013 [10] (Hugh Homan commented in The Stage : "Rolan Bell as Silly Billy is superb at involving the audience"). [11] He played the role of Britney in the We Will Rock You world arena tour 2013. [4] Also in 2013 Bell appeared in the BBC drama series WPCV 56. [12]

For his performance in the West End production of Memphis The Musical , [13] he was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical in 2015. [14]

He was announced in October 2015 as leading the cast for Rapunzel, the Park Theatre's Christmas show. [15] [16]

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References

  1. 1 2 Gillian Fisher, "Rolan Bell, Ragtime the Musical", Afridiziak Theatre News, 20 May 2012.
  2. 1 2 Rolan Bell at IMDb.
  3. ↑ https://www.mischiefcomedy.com/theplaythatgoeswrong-london/london/cast-creatives.
  4. 1 2 "We Will Rock You UK Tour - Principals - Rolan Bell" . Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  5. ↑ "Rolan Bell On ... His Reggae Education", What's On Stage, 7 July 2008.
  6. ↑ "The Harder They Come", Playhouse Theatre.
  7. ↑ Colette Lebrasse, "An African Cargo @ Greenwich Theatre", Say It Loud, 2007. Archived 2014-07-14 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ↑ Neil Spencer, "Fela Kuti remembered: 'He was a tornado of a man, but he loved humanity'", The Observer, 31 October 2010.
  9. ↑ "Rolan Bell is in Ragtime the Musical at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre from 18 May to 8 September 2012" . Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  10. ↑ "Cambridge Arts Theatre - Jack and the Beanstalk". Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  11. ↑ Hugh Homan, "Jack and the Beanstalk", The Stage, 17 December 2012.
  12. ↑ "Memories are Made of This", WPC 56, Series 1, Episode 2 of 5, BBC One.
  13. ↑ Matthew Amer, "Memphis The Musical", Official London Theatre, 24 October 2014.
  14. ↑ "Interview: FRolan Bell", Olivier Awards, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Rolan Bell leads the cast of Park Theatre’s Rapunzel", London Theatre 1, 9 October 2015.
  16. ↑ "Rapunzel Christmas musical at the Park Theatre – Rolan Bell and Aretha Ayeh lead cast", Musical Theratre Review, 12 October 2015.
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