Spencer Lemon Kayden (born May 27, 1968) is an American actress, comedian and writer. Kayden played Little Sally in the

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 ''

Urinetown ''Urinetown: The Musical'' is a satirical comedy musical that premiered in 2001, with music by Mark Hollmann, lyrics by Hollmann and Greg Kotis, and book by Kotis. It satirizes the legal system, capitalism, social irresponsibility, populism, bu ...

'' and was a cast member on sketch comedy series ''

MADtv ''Mad TV'' (stylized as ''MADtv'') is an American sketch comedy television series originally inspired by ''Mad (magazine), Mad'' magazine. In its initial run, it aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox from 1995 to 2009. After a one-off reuni ...

.'' She also voiced Mrs. Pepper on ''

Blue's Clues ''Blue's Clues'' is an American live-action/animated children's television series, created by Angela C. Santomero, Todd Kessler, and Traci Paige Johnson, that premiered on Nickelodeon as part of its Nick Jr. block on September 8, 1996, and ...

'', taking over the role from Penelope Jewkes after the first season.

Biography

Spencer Kayden was born the only girl out of four siblings to a father who worked as a pop-up book publisher and a mother who worked as a psychotherapist. Kayden grew up in Orange County, California, and went on to study drama at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...

.McKinley, Jesse
"Theater; 'Urinetown' Uptown? Her Moment Has Come"
''The New York Times'', September 2, 2001 She joined the Chicago cast of ''

Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind ''Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind: 30 Plays in 60 Minutes'' (Too Much Light or TML) was the longest running show in the history of theater in Chicago and was the only open-run Off-Off-Broadway show in New York. The show was originally perfor ...

'' and moved to New York in 1993 to start the New York run of the show. Kayden received critical acclaim and notice for her performance in the musical ''

'', where she played Little Sally, the pig-tailed girl who helps explain the plot. She played in the 1999

New York International 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 sev ...

production, and then was in the original Off-Broadway and Broadway casts in 2001 and returned in 2003.

Simonson, Robert Robert Simonson (born September 11, 1964) is an American journalist and author. Personal life Robert Simonson was born in Wisconsin; he has lived in Brooklyn since 1988. Career Robert Simonson began writing about cocktails, spirits and bars for ...

and Jones, Kenneth
"Little Sally Comes Home: Spencer Kayden Returns to ''Urinetown'', March 25"
playbill.com, March 25, 2003 The ''CurtainUp'' reviewer noted in reviewing the Off-Broadway production: "But while Spencer Kayden does everything right in her portrayal of the droll little girl who alternates begging for 'penny for a pee' with Shirley Temple/Charlie McCarthy exchanges with the deceptively kindly neighborhood cop, her Sally is wrong. This 'bad' idea is outrageously good for lots of laughs. The central joke works." It is from her theater performances that she was discovered by

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

executives and cast as a featured performer on ''MADtv''. Kayden also played the role of Mrs. Pepper in the popular ''

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

'' kids series ''

'' since 1996. Kayden starred in the farce ''

Don't Dress for Dinner ''Don't Dress for Dinner'' is an adaptation of a two-act play titled ''Pyjama Pour Six'' by French playwright Marc Camoletti, who wrote '' Boeing-Boeing.'' It ran in London for six years and opened on Broadway in 2012. Productions After a succes ...

'' at the Royal George Theatre, Chicago, Illinois, from November 2008 to January 2009. She reprised her role as the cook in the Broadway production, which opened in March 2012 at the American Airlines Theatre.

Personal life

Kayden is the sister of film director

Michael Almereyda Michael Almereyda (born April 7, 1960) is an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer. Early work Almereyda studied art history at Harvard but dropped out after three years to pursue filmmaking. He acquired a Hollywood agent on ...

. She has been married to actor

Mark Harelik Marcus Frank Harelik (born June 5, 1951) is an American television, film, and stage actor, and playwright. Early life Harelik was born in Hamilton, Texas. In 1909, Harelik's Russian Jewish grandfather, Haskell Harelik—upon whom Harelik's ...

since 2004, and they have one child together. She has listed

Irene Dunne Irene Dunne (born Irene Marie Dunn; December 20, 1898 – September 4, 1990) was an American actress who appeared in films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She is best known for her comedic roles, though she performed in films of other gen ...

Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show'', featured on a number of hit comic songs ...

and

Frances McDormand Frances Louise McDormand (born Cynthia Ann Smith; June 23, 1957) is an American actress and producer. Throughout her career spanning over four decades, McDormand has received numerous accolades, including four Academy Awards, two Primetime Emm ...

as some her acting idols.

Awards and nominations

''MADtv''

References

External links

*
Internet Off-Broadway Database
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kayden, Spencer 1968 births Living people American television actresses American voice actresses American stage actresses American musical theatre actresses Clarence Derwent Award winners Northwestern University School of Communication alumni American sketch comedians 21st-century American comedians Theatre World Award winners 21st-century American actresses