Leslie Arden is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

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 ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's income ...

and

librettist A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...

. She is best known for her work ''

The House of Martin Guerre ''The House of Martin Guerre'' is a musical written by Leslie Arden (music, lyrics & co-book) and Anna Theresa Cascio (co-book). It is inspired by the 16th century French peasant Martin Guerre. Production history It was first produced by Theat ...

'' (co-book by Anna Theresa Cascio) produced by Theatre Plus (1993), the

Goodman Theatre Goodman Theatre is a professional theater company located in Chicago's Loop. A major part of the Chicago theatre scene, it is the city's oldest currently active nonprofit theater organization. Part of its present theater complex occupies the lan ...

(1996) in Chicago and the Canadian Stage Company (1997).

Early life and education

She was born Leslie Arden Jenkins in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. B ...

to Canadian singer Cleone Duncan and her American performer husband, Paul Howard Jenkins. Her parents moved to Toronto and divorced when she was 6 years old. Her mother, Cleone Duncan, was a theatre actress who performed many years in the Canadian musical hit

Anne of Green Gables – The Musical ''Anne Of Green Gables: The Musical'' is a musical based on the 1908 novel '' Anne of Green Gables'' by Lucy Maud Montgomery. The book was written by Don Harron exclusively, the music by Norman Campbell and the lyrics in a joint venture by Don H ...

. Early in her career she took classes with

Lehman Engel A. Lehman Engel (born September 14, 1910, Jackson, Mississippi - died August 29, 1982, New York City) was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film. Work in theatre, television and films Engel worked in a variety ...

, who had been a musical director for over 100 Broadway productions, in Toronto. In 1990, she was chosen along with 12 other participants to study with musical theatre composer and lyricist

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

at Oxford University. The sessions were organized by theatre producer

Cameron Mackintosh Sir Cameron Anthony Mackintosh (born 17 October 1946) is a British theatrical producer and theatre owner notable for his association with many commercially successful musicals. At the height of his success in 1990, he was described as being "th ...

Career

Her musical '' The Boys are Coming Home'' was part of the

American Music Theatre Project The American Music Theatre Project (AMTP) is a project at Northwestern University that associates the faculty and students at Northwestern with professional working artists of the music theatre to develop new musicals. It was founded in 2005. Mus ...

at North Western University and was showcased by the National Alliance of Musical Theatre in New York City. Theatre critic Richard Ouzanian says she is "the creator of some of the most sophisticated work on our stages"."Leslie Arden: The long road to creative freedom" https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/theatre/article/725055--leslie-arden-the-long-road-to-creative-freedom The

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

has commented that her work is "beautifully crafted" and

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

states she is a "major talent".''Broadway North: The Dream of a Canadian Musical Theatre'' Natural Heritage/Natural History Inc. She also wrote the Chalmers Award-winning ''The Happy Prince''. She collaborated with Canadian playwright Norm Foster for the musicals ''The Last Resort'' and ''Ned Durango''."Theatre Orangeville Archives 2010-2011" http://www.theatreorangeville.ca/2010_11.php

Works

*''A Meeting of Minds'' *''Feathers on the Page'' *''Ned Durango'' *''One Step Forward (formerly The Boys are Coming Home)'' *''The Greatest Gift'' *''The Happy Prince'' *''The House of Martin Guerre'' *''The Last Resort'' *''The Princess and the Handmaiden'' *''Harvest Moon Rising'' *''Moll'' *''The Gift of the Magi''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arden, Leslie Year of birth missing (living people) 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Canadian women writers 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Canadian women writers Canadian musical theatre composers Canadian women dramatists and playwrights Women musical theatre composers Living people Canadian women composers Canadian lesbian musicians 21st-century Canadian LGBT people 20th-century Canadian LGBT people