Jennifer Simard (born 1970) is an American actress known primarily for her work in theater.

Early life and education

Simard is from

Litchfield, New Hampshire Litchfield is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 8,478 at the 2020 census. History Prior to European settlement, the area was populated by the Abenaki people. They were skilled with fishing and we ...

. She studied at the

Boston Conservatory of Music Boston Conservatory at Berklee (formerly The Boston Conservatory) is a private performing arts conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in dance, music, and theater. Boston Conservatory was founded ...

and

Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools. It also admi ...

Career

Theatre

After studying at

and the

, Simard moved to New York, where she appeared in ''

Forbidden Broadway ''Forbidden Broadway'' is an Off-Broadway revue parodying musical theatre, particularly Broadway musicals. It was conceived, written and directed by Gerard Alessandrini. The original version of the revue opened on January 15, 1982, at Palsson's S ...

'93''. She made her Broadway debut in ''

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee ''The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee'' is a musical comedy with music and lyrics by William Finn, based on a book by Rachel Sheinkin, conceived by Rebecca Feldman with additional material by Jay Reiss. The show centers on a fictional spe ...

'' and later performed in the Broadway productions of ''

Shrek The Musical ''Shrek The Musical'' is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori and book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire. It is based on the 2001 DreamWorks Animation film ''Shrek'', along with elements of its sequels: ''Shrek 2'', ''Shrek Forever After'' a ...

'' and ''

Sister Act ''Sister Act'' is a 1992 American comedy film directed by Emile Ardolino and written by Paul Rudnick (as Joseph Howard). It stars Whoopi Goldberg as a lounge singer forced to join a convent after being placed in a witness protection program. It ...

''. She received Drama Desk Award nominations for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical for her roles in ''

I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change ''I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change'' is a musical comedy with book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro and music by Jimmy Roberts. It is the second-longest running Off-Broadway musical.Gans, Andrew"I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change Ends NYC Run A ...

'', ''

The Thing About Men ''The Thing About Men'' is a musical with music by Jimmy Roberts and lyrics and book by Joe DiPietro. It is based on the 1985 German film ''Men'' by Doris Dörrie. The plot revolves around a love triangle and shows what men will do to keep their p ...

'', and '' Forbidden Broadway: Special Victims Unit'' (2005). She originated the role of Sister Mary Downy in the 2016

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 ...

musical ''Disaster!'', for which her performance earned her a

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 ...

nomination and a

Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1922, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing. Each May, the awards ...

nomination in 2016. She was also nominated for a

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...

for the role, which she performed

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

in 2014. The ''Variety'' reviewer wrote: "...this is a good cast that knows the comic ropes—and then some, in the special case of Jennifer Simard, who shows great comic chops as a nun with a secret gambling fixation." She appeared on Broadway as Ernestina in the 2017 revival of '' Hello, Dolly!'', starring

Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...

and

David Hyde Pierce David Hyde Pierce (born April 3, 1959) is an American actor and director of stage, film and television. He starred as psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom ''Frasier'' from 1993 to 2004, and won four Primetime Emmy Awards and a Screen ...

. Simard played Miss Hannigan in the St. Louis Muny production 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 ...

'' from July 18–25, 2018. A St. Louis reviewer wrote that Simard "…is nothing less than incredible in the role. She is hilarious as the head of the orphanage, causing the crowd to burst into laughter for much of her time on-stage. Her rendition of “Little Girls” is not to be missed. With impeccable comedic timing, a wonderful voice, and all-around talent, hegives a performance that makes it impossible to look away." In August 2018, it was announced that Simard would join the Tony-nominated musical ''

Mean Girls ''Mean Girls'' is a 2004 American teen comedy film directed by Mark Waters and written by Tina Fey. The film stars Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams, Lacey Chabert, Amanda Seyfried (in her film debut), Tim Meadows, Ana Gasteyer, Amy Poehler and Fe ...

'' as Mrs. Heron, Ms. Norbury, and Mrs. George that September, replacing

Kerry Butler Kerry Butler is an American actress and singer known primarily for her work in theatre. She is best known for originating the roles of Barbara Maitland in ''Beetlejuice'', Penny Pingleton in ''Hairspray'', and Clio/Kira in '' Xanadu'', the latt ...

. Her last performance was on December 8, 2019. In October 2019, it was announced that Simard would join the gender-swapped revival of ''

Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

'' as Sarah. From February 26 to March 6, 2022, she took over the role of Joanne due to the indisposition of

Patti LuPone Patti Ann LuPone (born April 21, 1949) is an American actress and singer best known for her work in musical theater. She has won three Tony Awards, two Olivier Awards, two Grammy Awards, and was a 2006 inductee to the American Theater Hall of Fa ...

Television and film

Simard has been seen on television in ''Younger'', ''

The Good Wife ''The Good Wife'' is an American legal and political drama television series that aired on CBS from September 22, 2009, to May 8, 2016. It focuses on Alicia Florrick, the wife of the Cook County State's Attorney, who returns to her career in law ...

'', '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'', ''

Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...

'', and ''

The King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, a total of nine seasons and 207 episodes. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who also served as the show ...

,'' and also appeared in the 2000 comedy film ''

The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas ''The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas'' (also known as ''The Flintstones 2'' or ''The Flintstones 2: Viva Rock Vegas'' in a working title) is a 2000 American romantic comedy film directed by Brian Levant, written by Jim Cash, Harry Elfont, Debor ...

''.

Personal life

On October 3, 2004, Simard married Brad Robertson, whom she met when he was the light board operator for the off-Broadway production of ''

''.

Theatre credits

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Simard, Jennifer Living people American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses People from Litchfield, New Hampshire 1970 births 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses