Carly Mercedes Dyer

Last updated
Carly Mercedes Dyer
Born (1987-01-10) 10 January 1987 (age 38)
Park Royal, London, England
Alma mater ArtsEd
Years active2008–present

Carly Mercedes Dyer (born 10 January 1987) is an English actress. Known for her work in musical theatre, she won a WhatsOnStage Award and received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination.

Contents

Early life

Dyer was born at the Central Middlesex Hospital in North West London. [1] She graduated from the Arts Educational School (ArtsEd) in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Musical Theatre. [2] [3]

Career

After graduating from ArtsEd, Dyer had ensemble and cover roles in High School Musical at the Hammersmith Apollo, [4] Hair at the English Theatre Frankfurt, [5] Chicago at the Cambridge Theatre, Dirty Dancing at the Aldwych Theatre on the West End, Rock of Ages at the Shaftesbury and Garrick Theatres, on the UK tour Dance 'Til Dawn, and in The Lorax at the Old Vic. She returned to the Shaftesbury Theatre to play Blondie in the 2015 production of Memphis . [6] [7]

The next year, Dyer played Francisca in West Side Story at Salzburg Festival. [8] She appeared in the ensemble of Dreamgirls at the Savoy Theatre. [9] Dyer played Atropos the Fate in the 2018 London premiere of Hadestown at the National Theatre [10] and Helene in Sweet Charity at Nottingham Playhouse alongside Rebecca Trehearn. [11] This was followed by roles as Charlaine in Ain't Misbehavin' at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester and Southwark Playhouse [12] and as Henri in The View UpStairs at Soho Theatre. [13] In late 2019, Dyer returned to West Side Story, this time starring as Anita at the Curve Theatre in Leicester. [1]

Dyer was set to portray Jane Seymour in the 2020 tour of Six , [14] but was unable to in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. She was subsequently cast as Erma in Anything Goes at the Barbican Centre in 2021 as well as the 2022 tour of the production. [15] For her performance, Dyer won a WhatsOnStage Award and was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical. Also in 2021, she returned to the Curve to play Cassie Ferguson in A Chorus Line in 2021. [16] She would later reprise her role as Cassie in the 2024 West End production of A Chorus Line. [17] She also appeared in the 2022 Gypsy concert at the Alexandra Palace Theatre. [18]

In 2023, Dyer starred as Lynette Fromme in Assassins at Chichester Festival Theatre [19] and Faye Treadwell in the UK and Ireland tour of The Drifters Girl . [20] She featured in the 2024 concert of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels . [21] In 2025, Dyer has a role in The Frogs at Southwark Playhouse with Kevin McHale. [22]

Personal life

In summer 2022, Dyer was diagnosed with fibroids. She subsequently underwent a myomectomy. [23]

Stage

YearTitleRoleNotes
2008High School MusicalEnsemble, cover Taylor McKessie / Martha CoxHammersmith Apollo
2008 Hair Ensemble / cover JeanieEnglish Theatre Frankfurt
2009–2010 Chicago EnsembleCambridge Theatre
2010–2011Dirty DancingFeatured Singer / Ensemble Aldwych Theatre, London
2011 Rock of Ages Waitress #1 / Dance Captain Shaftesbury Theatre / Garrick Theatre, London
2014Dance 'Til DawnEnsembleUK Tour
2015 Memphis BlondieShaftesbury Theatre, London
2015The LoraxEnsemble Old Vic, London
2016 West Side Story FranciscaSalzburg Festival
2016–2017 Dreamgirls Ensemble / 1st cover Lorelle / Michelle Savoy Theatre, London
2018Sweet CharityHelene Nottingham Playhouse
2018 Hadestown Fate (Atropos) National Theatre, London
2019Ain't Misbehavin'Charlaine Mercury Theatre, Colchester / Southwark Playhouse
2019 The View UpStairs Henri Soho Theatre, London
2019–2020West Side StoryAnita Curve Theatre, Leicester
2021, 2022 Anything Goes Erma Barbican Centre, London / UK Tour
2021, 2024 A Chorus Line Cassie FergusonCurve Theatre, Leicester
2022 Gypsy June Alexandra Palace Theatre, London
2023AssassinsLynette "Squeaky" Fromme Chichester Festival Theatre
2023–2024 The Drifters Girl Faye TreadwellUK and Ireland tour
2024 Dirty Rotten Scoundrels Christine ColgateConcert
2025 The Frogs

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryWorkResultRef.
2022 WhatsOnStage Awards Best Supporting Actress in a MusicalAnything GoesWon [24]
Laurence Olivier Awards Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical Nominated [25]

References

  1. 1 2 Wicker, Tom (28 November 2019). "Actor Carly Mercedes Dyer: 'Our West Side Story is shining a light on what's happening today'". The Stage. Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2023.(subscription required)
  2. ↑ "BA (Hons) Musical Theatre Degree - London". ArtsEd. Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  3. ↑ "MT alum, Carly Mercedes Dyer: The Stage 25!". ArtsEd. 6 January 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  4. ↑ Shenton, Mark (19 May 2008). "Casting Announced for London Premiere of Disney's High School Musical". Playbill. Archived from the original on 28 July 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  5. ↑ "Hair (2008 - 2009), The English Theatre, Frankfurt am Main". Musical Zentrale. 2008. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  6. ↑ "West End production of Memphis – full cast revealed". Musical Theatre Review. 10 June 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  7. ↑ "Janie Dee Presents: Beautiful World Cabaret with Carly Mercedes Dyer". Brasserie Zédel. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  8. ↑ "West aside Story". Salzburg Festival. 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  9. ↑ O'Hanlon, Dom (2016-06-10). "Lead cast announced for Dreamgirls at the Savoy". London Theatre. Archived from the original on 2024-09-02. Retrieved 2024-09-02.
  10. ↑ Lefkowitz, Andy (13 August 2018). "Eva Noblezada, Patrick Page, Amber Gray, Reeve Carney Set for London's Hadestown". Broadway. Archived from the original on 6 September 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  11. ↑ Billington, Michael (6 September 2018). "Sweet Charity review – cracking revival with Rebecca Trehearn a pitch-perfect lead". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  12. ↑ Swain, Marianka (15 April 2019). "Ain't Misbehavin', Southwark Playhouse review - a jazz-hot musical revue". The Art Desk. Archived from the original on 21 April 2024. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  13. ↑ Franklin, Marc J (10 June 2019). "A Look at London's The View UpStairs with Andy Mientus, Cedric Neal, and More". Playbill. Archived from the original on 24 July 2019. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  14. ↑ Wild, Stephi (8 October 2020). "Carly Mercedes Dyer Joins SIX Tour; Plus New Dates Announced". BroadwayWorld. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  15. ↑ Hamilton, Jessica (14 June 2022). "Buddie, Beware of Carly Mercedes Dyer: In conversation". The Mancunion. Archived from the original on 21 February 2024. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  16. ↑ Harms, Talaura (2 September 2021). "Adam Cooper and Carly Mercedes Dyer Will Headline A Chorus Line at U.K.'s Curve Theatre". Playbill. Archived from the original on 26 November 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  17. ↑ Hislop, Ben (5 August 2024). "Carly Mercedes Dyer on taking 'A Chorus Line' to the West End". London Theatre. Archived from the original on 21 September 2024. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  18. ↑ Wise, Rachel (21 February 2022). "Gypsy musical cast for concert at Alexandra Palace Theatre revealed". Stageberry. Archived from the original on 16 July 2024. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  19. ↑ Akbar, Arifa (12 June 2023). "Assassins review – Sondheim's dark study of aspiring presidential killers". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  20. ↑ Dillon, Luke (7 August 2023). "Carly Mercedes Dyer to star in The Drifters Girl UK Tour". West End Theatre. Archived from the original on 4 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  21. ↑ "Ramin Karimloo, Hadley Fraser, Janie Dee, Carly Mercedes Dyer to star in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels in Concert at the London Palladium". West End Theatre. 7 June 2024. Archived from the original on 22 September 2024. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  22. ↑ "Carly Mercedes Dyer Joins The Frogs at Southwark Playhouse Borough as Final Guest Star". Theatre Weekly. 11 June 2025. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  23. ↑ Wood, Alex (31 August 2022). ""Anything Goes" and "The Color Purple" star Carly Mercedes Dyer launches fundraiser for fibroid surgery". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  24. ↑ Millward, Tom (22 February 2022). "22nd Annual WhatsOnStage Awards: the winners in full". WhatsOnStage. Archived from the original on 5 August 2024. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  25. ↑ Underwood, Kitty (8 March 2022). "Nominations Announced for the Olivier Awards 2022 with Mastercard". Official London Theatre. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
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