Amanda Jane Cooper (born June 15, 1988) is an American actress and singer who played the role of Glinda in Wicked [1] [2] and the guest role of Susan Channing on Jessie .
Cooper grew up in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. She graduated from Great Valley High School in Malvern, Pennsylvania, and received her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. [3] She played the character of Brooke in Smart People while attending college. She first debuted in New York theatres in BUNKED! A New Musical, and while playing as Glinda at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, she performed for First Lady Michelle Obama. [4] She has previously discussed her struggles with an eating disorder. [5]
She met her husband, Andrew Bell, at church. They had originally planned to get married on April 29, 2020. Due to COVID-19 lockdowns, they had a courthouse wedding on March 18, 2020, and a Zoom ceremony for friends and family on April 4, 2020. [6] Cooper and Bell renewed their vows on September 19, 2021. [7] On November 2, 2023, Cooper publicly announced she was expecting a baby with Bell. [8]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2008 | Smart People | Brooke | |
2009 | Homecoming | Aleisha | |
2013 | Cavemen | Beth | |
2020 | First One In | Emily |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2012 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Lisa Kravitz | Episode: "Malice in Wonderland" [9] |
2012 | Glee | Beatrice McClain | Episode: "The New Rachel" |
2013 | Bones | Courtney Johnson | Episode: "The Fact in the Fiction" |
2013 | Hello Ladies | Red-Headed Girl | Episode: "Pilot" |
2013 | Jessie | Susan Channing | Episode: "Understudied & Overdone" [10] |
2013 | Masters of Sex | Sissy | Episode: "Phallic Victories" |
2014 | The Michaels | Lori | Television film |
2014 | Selfie | Eyelet | 3 episodes |
2018 | A Very Wicked Halloween | — | Television film |
2020 | Law & Order: SVU | Sherry Wagner | Episode: "Ballad of Dwight and Irena" |
Kristin Dawn Chenoweth is an American actress and singer, with credits in musical theatre, film, and television. In 1999, she won a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown on Broadway. In 2003, Chenoweth was nominated for a second Tony Award for originating the role of Glinda in the musical Wicked. Her television roles include Annabeth Schott in NBC's The West Wing and Olive Snook on the comedy drama Pushing Daisies, for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2009.
Jennifer Laura Thompson is an American actress and singer, best known for her theatrical performances. She originated the role of Cynthia Murphy in the Tony Award-winning musical, Dear Evan Hansen, and received a Tony Award nomination for her performance as Hope Cladwell in Urinetown. She is also known for being the first replacement for Kristen Chenoweth as Glinda in Wicked on Broadway.
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is a loose adaptation of the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which in turn is based on L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and its 1939 film adaptation. The musical is told from the perspective of two witches, Elphaba and Galinda, before and after Dorothy's arrival in Oz. The story explores the complex friendship between Elphaba and Galinda. Their relationship is tested by their contrasting personalities, conflicting viewpoints, shared love interest, reactions to the corrupt rule of the Wonderful Wizard, and ultimately, Elphaba's tragic fall.
Megan Kathleen Hilty is an American actress and singer. She rose to prominence for her roles in Broadway musicals, including her performance as Glinda in Wicked, Doralee Rhodes in 9 to 5: The Musical, and her Tony Award–nominated role as Brooke Ashton in Noises Off. She also starred as Ivy Lynn on the musical-drama series Smash, on which she sang the Grammy Award-nominated "Let Me Be Your Star", and portrayed Liz on the sitcom Sean Saves the World.
Kendra Kassebaum is an American theatre actress, who has performed in many different musicals, and is perhaps best remembered for playing the role of Glinda in the first national tour, Broadway, and San Francisco casts of the blockbuster musical Wicked.
Dee Roscioli is an American singer and actress, who is known for her performances as Elphaba in the Broadway, Chicago, San Francisco, and national touring productions of the musical Wicked.
Legally Blonde: The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods is an MTV program created in order to cast an actress to replace Laura Bell Bundy in the role of Elle Woods in the Broadway production of Legally Blonde: The Musical. The show debuted on June 2, 2008.
Katherine "Katie" Rose Clarke is an American musical theater actress.
Alexia Khadime is a British actress and mezzo-soprano, known for her roles in musical theatre and television.
Erin Ashley Mackey is an American stage actress and singer, known for playing the role of Glinda in the Chicago, Los Angeles, Broadway, and Second National Tour productions of the musical Wicked. She was also a double in 1998's The Parent Trap.
Kara Lynn Massey, known professionally as Kara Lindsay, is an American stage actress and singer, best known for her roles as Katherine Plumber in Newsies (2012) and Glinda in Wicked.
Louise Dearman is a British actress and singer, perhaps best known for playing Glinda and Elphaba in the West End production of the musical Wicked. Notably, she is the only actress to have played both witches in any production of Wicked full-time. She has a number of other professional stage and television credits, such as Eva Perón in Evita, Sarah Brown and Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, and Daisy Hilton in Side Show. She released her solo albums, You and I, Here Comes the Sun and It's Time, in 2005, 2012 and 2013 respectively.
Chandra Lee Schwartz is an American theatre performer, who played Glinda on the First National Tour of Wicked from Friday, 21 August 2009, through Sunday, 17 April 2011. She originally starred alongside Donna Vivino as Elphaba, who was later replaced by Jackie Burns. Schwartz recently reprised the role of Glinda in the Broadway production of Wicked beginning September 27, 2011. Her final performance was held on October 14, 2012 alongside former national tour co-star, Jackie Burns. She returned to the role of Glinda on the First National Tour, on July 29, 2014, with Emma Hunton as Elphaba. She closed the production, alongside Jennifer DiNoia as Elphaba, on March 15, 2015. She was recently cast as Annie in the upcoming world premiere of a musical adaptation of Sleepless in Seattle.
Jackie Burns is an American actress and singer best known for her work in musical theatre.
Jennifer "Jenny" DiNoia is an American singer and stage actress. She is best known for her work in musical theatre, especially Wicked, playing the lead role of Elphaba in various productions around the world.
Heléne Yorke is a Canadian actress. She is known for her work on television. Since 2019, she has starred as Brooke Dubek on the Comedy Central/HBO Max television series The Other Two. She has also played the roles of Jane Martin on the Showtime American period drama television series Masters of Sex, Olivia Graves on Graves and Amy Breslin on The Good Fight. Additionally, she is known for her work on Broadway, in particular for originating the roles of Olive Neal in Bullets Over Broadway and Evelyn Williams in American Psycho, as well as for originating G(a)linda in the Munchkinland Tour of Wicked.
Jessica Vosk is an American singer and actress, known for her work in musical theater.
Wicked is a 2024 American epic musical fantasy film directed by Jon M. Chu from a screenplay by Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox. It is the first of a two-part film adaptation of the stage musical of the same name by Stephen Schwartz and Holzman, which in turn was loosely based on the 1995 novel of the same name by Gregory Maguire and the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. The film stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, with Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, and Jeff Goldblum in supporting roles.
Alison Nicole Luff is an American singer and stage actress. She is best known for her extensive work in musical theatre, notably for her roles as Elphaba in the First National Tour of Wicked and Jenna in the Broadway production of Waitress. From 2021 to 2023, she has appeared in a lead role in the Starz drama series Heels.
Mary Kate Blake, known by her maiden name Mary Kate Morrissey, is an American stage actress. Born in Pennsylvania, Morrissey began her career when she starred as Sheila in the musical Hair and Janis in the Mean Girls musical. She played Elphaba on the national tour of Wicked before serving as the Elphaba standby on Broadway and eventually taking on the role full-time.