Desi Oakley, (born June 12, 1989), is an American singer and actress, known for her work in

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 ...

. She has performed in shows such as ''

Waitress Waiting staff (British English), waitstaff (North American English), waiters (male) / waitresses (female), or servers (North American English), are those who work at a restaurant, a diner, or a bar and sometimes in private homes, attending ...

'', ''

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

'', and ''

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'' s ...

''.

Early life and education

Desiree or "Desi" Oakley was born in

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397,532. The Wichita metro area had ...

. She was first exposed to professional theatre at

Music Theatre Wichita Music Theatre Wichita is a summer musical theatre, which has produced over 200 Broadway-scale productions since its founding in 1972. Founded as Music Theatre of Wichita in 1972 to provide summertime entertainment inside the 2100-seat Concert Hall o ...

and began performing at the age of 8 years. Some of her early roles included Dorothy Gale in '' The Wizard of Oz'', Eponine in ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original ...

'', Gabriella in ''

High School Musical ''High School Musical'' is a 2006 American musical television film directed by Kenny Ortega and written by Peter Barsocchini. The 63rd Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM) and first installment of the ''High School Musical'' film series, ...

'', and Ariel in ''

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a ...

''. She graduated, BFA in Musical Theater, from the University of Michigan in 2011.

Broadway career

Oakley made her

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

debut in ''Wicked'' at the

Gershwin Theatre The Gershwin Theatre (originally the Uris Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 222 West 51st Street, on the second floor of the Paramount Plaza office building, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Opened in 1972, it is operat ...

on January 3, 2012, as one of the show's swings. She was later cast as a member of the ensemble and understudied the roles of Elphaba and Nessarose Thropp. After her work on ''

'', Oakley went on to appear in the 2012 Broadway revival of ''

Annie Annie may refer to: People and fictional characters * Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress * Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer The ...

'' at the Palace Theatre. In addition to her role in the ensemble, she understudied both Grace Farrell and Lily St. Regis. Soon after this, Oakley joined the National Tour of the 2012 revival of ''

Evita Evita may refer to: Arts * Evita (1996 film), ''Evita'' (1996 film), a 1996 American musical drama film based on the 1976 concept album of the same name * Evita (2008 film), ''Evita'' (2008 film), a documentary about Eva Péron * Evita (album), ''E ...

,'' serving as the alternate for the titular role and performing twice per week. In 2016, Oakley joined the cast of the 2014 Broadway revival of ''

'' at the

Imperial Theatre The Imperial Theatre is a Broadway theater at 249 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1923, the Imperial Theatre was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was constructed ...

. She served as a member of the ensemble and covered the role of

Fantine Fantine (French pronunciation: ) is a fictional character in Victor Hugo's 1862 novel ''Les Misérables''. She is a young '' grisette'' in Paris who becomes pregnant by a rich student. After he abandons her, she is forced to look after their chil ...

. Oakley stayed with the production until its final performance on September 4, 2016. Oakley is best known for her performance in the lead role of Jenna in ''

'', where she originated on the show's first National Tour. Along with this, she temporarily starred as Jenna in the West End production of ''Waitress'', at the

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiv ...

, in January 2020. On May 13, 2019, Oakley began starring as

Roxie Hart Roxanne "Roxie" Hart is a fictional character. She is the main character of the 1926 play ''Chicago'' and its various remakes and derivatives. Development The playwright, reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, was inspired by the trials, both of whic ...

in ''

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

'' on Broadway. She played three two-week engagements in the role, with her final performance on July 28, 2019. Her latest album "''THE LIGHT EFFECT''" released in June 2022 as a Broadway show, starring Caitlin Kinnunen, Erika Henningsen & Christiani Pitts.

Other works

Along with performing on Broadway, Oakley is also a singer-songwriter. She has released several independent studio albums. Her releases include 2014's ''Don't Look Back'' and 2019's ''Repeat''. In 2020, Oakley released ''A Pocket of Time,'' donating the proceeds from digital downloads to the Dramatist Guild Foundation in support of struggling artists during the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

pandemic. She has also recorded several one-off singles including ''White Butterfly'' and 2020 ''Winter Song'' (featuring Becca White). Oakley also has taught at various Musical Theater intensives, teaching classes both in New York City and across the country. In November 2019 along with her ''Evita'' tour castmate and friend

Krystina Alabado Krystina Helena Alabado is an American actress and singer known for her work in Broadway musicals. She originated the role of Vanden in the 2016 Broadway production of '' American Psycho'' and starred as Gretchen Wieners in ''Mean Girls'' on Broa ...

, she launched Pop Rock Broadway: a Broadway training program for young actors in NYC expanding into the world of Pop, Rock, and Contemporary Musical Theatre.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oakley, Desi 1989 births Living people American musical theatre actresses 21st-century American actresses University of Michigan alumni