Carla Stickler is an American semi-retired

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

actress, who is best known for her work on the musical ''

Wicked Wicked may refer to: Books * Wicked, a minor character in the ''X-Men'' universe * ''Wicked'', a 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire that inspired the musical of the same name * ''Wicked'', the fifth novel in Sara Shepard's ''Pretty Little Liars'' ser ...

'' (as an ensemble member, and an understudy for

Elphaba Elphaba Thropp is a fictional character in '' Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West'' by Gregory Maguire, as well as in the Broadway and West End adaptations, ''Wicked''. In the original 1900 L. Frank Baum book ''The Wonde ...

). She is mainly a software engineer (at G2 in Chicago) who came back in 2022 to Broadway to fill in for Elphaba due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York.

Early life and education

Carla Stickler was born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. As a kid, she was frequently exposed to music, as her mother was in a chamber ensemble, her grandmother was an opera performer, her cousin was a drummer, and her father was a former member of the band "Stuck in the Fifties." She took oboe lessons for a few years, and took vocal lessons at the Fine Arts Building in Chicago. In grade school, Stickler began performing with ''CAST'' (''Communication, Arts, Speech and Theatre''). She there appeared as John Darling in ''

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and Puer aeternus, never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending ...

'', and

Oliver Twist ''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', Charles Dickens's second novel, was published as a serial from 1837 to 1839, and as a three-volume book in 1838. Born in a workhouse, the orphan Oliver Twist is bound into apprenticeship with ...

in '' Oliver''. Finally, in middle school, she began receiving girl roles;

Little Red Ridinghood "Little Red Riding Hood" is a European fairy tale about a young girl and a sly wolf. Its origins can be traced back to several pre-17th century European folk tales. The two best known versions were written by Charles Perrault and the Broth ...

in ''

Into the Woods ''Into the Woods'' is a 1987 musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. The musical intertwines the plots of several Brothers Grimm fairy tale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story ...

'', and Maria in ''

West Side Story ''West Side Story'' is a musical conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Inspired by William Shakespeare's play ''Romeo and Juliet'', the story is set in the mid-1 ...

.'' She soon began performing in the Oak Park River Forest Children's Choir. In high school, she spent four summers at

Interlochen Arts Camp Interlochen Center for the Arts is a non-profit corporation which operates arts education institutions and performance venues in northwest Michigan. It is situated on a campus in Interlochen, Michigan, roughly southwest of Traverse City. ...

, where she majored in Musical Theatre, Choir, and Fine Arts. She then transferred schools for her senior year to attend

Interlochen Arts Academy Interlochen Center for the Arts is a non-profit corporation which operates arts education institutions and performance venues in northwest Michigan. It is situated on a campus in Interlochen, Michigan, roughly southwest of Traverse City. In ...

, where she majored in vocal music and ceramics. For college, Stickler went to the University of Cincinnati's College Conservatory of Music to major as a vocal performer. However, she missed theatre, so after a year Stickler transferred to NYU's Tisch School of the Arts to become a theatre major. She also attended CAP21

Collaborative Arts Project 21 (CAP21) Collaborative Arts Project 21, known more commonly as CAP21, is a New York City professional musical theatre training conservatory and Off-Broadway theatre company. It has a core faculty with many associate faculty who are also working professional ...

's Musical Theatre Summer Intensive Program to meet the school's rigorous graduation requirements. Stickler attended grad school at

Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development The New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development (commonly referred to as Steinhardt) is the secondary liberal arts and education school of New York University. It is one of the only schools in the world of i ...

, where she was a

Kappa Delta Pi Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society in Education, () is an honor society for education. It was founded in 1911 and was one of the first discipline-specific honor societies. Its membership is limited to the top 20 percent of those entering ...

member. She attended the department of music and performing arts professions. She graduated in 2016. In 2019, she studied computer software engineering at Flatiron School.

Career

Right after graduation, Stickler landed the role of Liesl in the Asian tour of ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. Se ...

'', a musical made by the duo of

Rodgers & Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popular ...

. Afterwards, the next tour she participated in was the 2nd national tour of

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...

's '' Mamma Mia!'' (which launched in 2002), in which she was the understudy for the role of Sophie.

''Wicked''

Stickler eventually auditioned for a role in the first national tour of the

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

-winning musical ''Wicked'', becoming the standby for

in 2010. She then transitioned to the Broadway production of the show, where she was an understudy for Elphaba. She has been praised for her performance as the not-so-Wicked Witch. When not portraying Elphaba, she also appeared as a part of the ensemble. She held her first solo concert, entitled ''Option Up'', in The Metropolitan Room on June 1, 2015, with guest stars

Bree Lowdermilk Bree Lowdermilk (formerly Brian Lowdermilk) is an American musical theater composer and lyricist. Biography In addition to writing music and lyrics, Lowdermilk is also a music director, arranger, vocal coach, and pianist. They are an alumnus of ...

, Drew Overcash, and Zoe Sarnak. She left the ''Wicked'' company on June 19, 2015, after five years on Broadway and on tour. Stickler teaches private voice lessons in her spare time. She also returns to the Broadway production of ''Wicked'' frequently, filling in during vacations as the understudy for the roles of Elphaba and Nessarose, while also performing in the ensemble of the show.

Credits

Theatre

*''

'', Liesl, Asian Tour *'' Mamma Mia!'', Sophie, 2nd national Tour *''Save the Goondocks'', The Prop/One Eyed Willy,

New York Fringe Festival The New York International Fringe Festival, or FringeNYC, was a fringe theater festival and one of the largest multi-arts events in North America. It took place over the course of a few weeks in October, spread on more than 20 stages across seve ...

*''

Songs for a New World ''Songs for a New World'' is a work of musical theatre written and composed by Jason Robert Brown. This was Jason Robert Brown's first produced show, originally produced Off-Broadway at the WPA Theatre in 1995. Brown and director Daisy Prince put t ...

'', Woman 1,

HERE Arts Center HERE Arts Center is a New York City off-off-Broadway presenting house, founded in 1993. Their location includes two stages specializing in hybrid performance, dance, theater, multi-media and puppetry in addition to art exhibition space and a cafe ...

*''

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (often colloquially known as ''Joseph'') is a sung-through musical with lyrics by Tim Rice and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the character of Joseph from the Bible's Book of Genesis. Thi ...

'', Narrator, New London Barn Playhouse *''

Man of La Mancha ''Man of La Mancha'' is a 1965 musical with a book by Dale Wasserman, music by Mitch Leigh, and lyrics by Joe Darion. It is adapted from Wasserman's non-musical 1959 teleplay ''I, Don Quixote'', which was in turn inspired by Miguel de Cervantes ...

'', Antonia, Staten Island Philharmonic *''

'',

, 1st national tour (2010-2012) *''

'',

understudy In theater, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to ap ...

& Ensemble, Broadway (2012-2015) *''Boys Vs Girls'' (concert), Katie, Last Call Theatricals (2015) *''The Music of Menken:

Audrey Audrey () is an English feminine given name. It is the Anglo-Norman form of the Anglo-Saxon name ''Æðelþryð'', composed of the elements '' æðel'' "noble" and ''þryð'' "strength". The Anglo-Norman form of the name was applied to Saint Aud ...

Ariel Ariel may refer to: Film and television *Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award * ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki * ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...

Aladdin Aladdin ( ; ar, علاء الدين, ', , ATU 561, ‘Aladdin') is a Middle-Eastern folk tale. It is one of the best-known tales associated with ''The Book of One Thousand and One Nights'' (''The Arabian Nights''), despite not being part of ...

...and Alan! An Evening with

Alan Menken Alan Irwin Menken (born July 22, 1949) is an American composer, best known for his scores and songs for films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. His scores and songs for ''The Little Mermaid'' (1989), ''Beauty and the Beast'' (1991), ''A ...

'', Nebraska Thespian Festival (2015) *''Sparks of Creation'', Nebraska Thespian Festival (2016) *''

'',

emergency standby, Broadway (2022)

Workshops

*'' Saved by the Bell the Musical'',

Kelly Kapowski The American television sitcom ''Saved by the Bell'', that aired on NBC from 1989 to 1993, follows a group of six high school students and their principal, Mr. Belding. Overview : = Main cast (credited) : = Recurring cast (4+) : = Guest cas ...

, RASH! Theatre Co. *'' Inspector Gadget the Opera'', Penny,

Steinhardt School of Education The New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development (commonly referred to as Steinhardt) is the secondary liberal arts and education school of New York University. It is one of the only schools in the world of i ...

*'' Kid Dracula'', Lil'Lil, Ted Zurkowski and Scott Flaherty *''

Mary of Magdala Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to his crucifixion and resurre ...

'', Little Girl, James Olm and Shad Olsen *''Stranger to the Muse'', Ashley, Patrick Gallagher and Adam David Cohen

Film

*''Brand New Day'', Kate, dir. Mark Roso, Colombia Student Films (short) *''Pressure'', Lead, 40th Floor Productions

Concerts

*''Oh Glacuoma! Benefit Concert'' (2012) -sang ''Giving Up Later'' *''Making Magic: Defying Gravity'' (2012)- featured, concert series *''Nebraska Thespian Festival'' (2014) -sang Defying Gravity and

The Wizard and I "The Wizard and I" is a musical number from the hit musical ''Wicked''. It is primarily a solo number for the character of Elphaba, though the character Madame Morrible also sings in the introduction to the song. Context The song is performed ...

*''Option Up'', The Metropolitan Room (2015) - solo debut *''Broadway Back to School'',

54 Below 54 Below is a cabaret and restaurant in the basement of Studio 54 in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Owned by Broadway producers Steve Baruch, Richard Frankel, Marc Routh and Tom Viertel, 54 Below has hosted shows by such performers as Patt ...

(2015) *Numerous benefit concerts with the cast of Wicked

Discography

*''Oh, Glacuoma! Benefit Concert: Live'' (2012) **sings ''Giving Up Later'' *'' Broadway's Carols For a Cure: Vol. 16'' (2014) **sings ''

In the Bleak Midwinter "In the Bleak Midwinter" is a poem by the English poet Christina Rossetti, commonly performed as a Christmas carol. The poem was published, under the title "A Christmas Carol", in the January 1872 issue of ''Scribner's Monthly,'' and was first c ...

References

*http://carlastickler.com/ *http://carlastickler.com/bio.html *http://carlastickler.com/resume.html *http://www.broadwayworld.com/people/Carla-Stickler/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Stickler, Carla Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American stage actresses 21st-century American women