Kim Ismay is a British actress and singer and a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. [1] She is perhaps best known for playing the role of Tanya in the London production of the stage musical Mamma Mia! , [2] Madame Morrible in the international and UK & Ireland tours of Wicked [3] and as the Baroness in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang . [4]
The daughter of Ellen Ismay (1923–2002), Kim Ismay took a Bachelor of Arts degree in Performing Arts at the University of Kent. [5]
Since 1997 Ismay has been a Director and Fellow of the New Era Academy of Drama & Music. [5] [6] She is a patron of Momentum, the children's cancer charity, [7] helping them to raise funds by producing and directing galas featuring West End stars. She is also an Ambassador for the Theatre charity Acting for Others, [8] and an active supporter of Madtrust, the theatrical AIDS charity. [9]
Ismay's theatre appearances include Cabaret (1986) at the Strand Theatre; Stop the World – I Want to Get Off at the Lyric Theatre (1989); the Royal Shakespeare Company productions of Kiss Me, Kate (1986–87), The Wizard of Oz (1988–89) and The Comedy of Errors (1992–93); [1] Joanna in the original London production of Sunset Boulevard (1993); Next Door's Baby (2008); Noises Off (2009); How the Other Half Loves (2009); Baroness Bomburst in the 2008 and 2009–10 UK tours of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ; Tanya in Mamma Mia! at the Prince Edward Theatre, Prince of Wales Theatre and the Novello Theatre; [10] and Madame Morrible in the national and international tours and West End production of Wicked . [11]
Her television appearances include Never the Twain (1991), London's Burning (1998), Bob Martin (2000), The Bill (1994–2006), was interviewed for the documentary Super Troupers: Thirty Years of ABBA (2004), The Sound of Musicals (2006), EastEnders (2007), and Not Going Out (2012). [12]
A regular and popular radio guest, she also records audiobooks for Calibre. [13]