Katherine "Katie" Rose Clarke (born August 25, 1984 in

Friendswood, Texas Friendswood is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the metropolitan area. The city lies in Galveston and Harris Counties. As of the 2010 census, the population of Friendswood was 35,805. In 2007, CNN/''Money'' magazine listed Fr ...

) is an American

musical theater 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 An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

Early life

Clarke was born on August 25, 1984 in

. She got her start acting and singing in the

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...

. Clarke is a BFA musical theatre graduate of Sam Houston State University.

Career

She first came to national attention for her portrayal of Clara Johnson 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 ...

production, the live

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broadcast, and the national tour of '' The Light in the Piazza''. She made her Broadway debut in ''The Light in the Piazza'' on December 9, 2005, at the age of 21, at the

Vivian Beaumont Theater The Vivian Beaumont Theater is a Broadway theater in the Lincoln Center complex at 150 West 65th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Operated by the nonprofit Lincoln Center Theater (LCT), the Beaumont is the only Bro ...

under the name "Katie Clarke".McKinley, Jessie
"New Stars in Old Parts as Broadway Feels the Chill"
''The New York Times'', January 6, 2006. Clarke succeeded

Kelli O'Hara Kelli Christine O'Hara (born April 16, 1976) is an American actress and singer, most known for her work on the Broadway and opera stages. A seven-time Tony Award nominee, O'Hara won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her pe ...

in the part of Clara Johnson, after O'Hara had left the show to play Babe Williams opposite Harry Connick Jr. in ''

The Pajama Game ''The Pajama Game'' is a musical based on the 1953 novel '' 7½ Cents'' by Richard Bissell. The book is by George Abbott and Richard Bissell; the music and lyrics are by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. and dances were staged by Bob Fosse in his ...

''. Her other theater credits include

Craig Lucas Craig Lucas (born April 30, 1951) is an American playwright, screenwriter, theatre director, musical actor, and film director. Biography Born on April 30, 1951, he was found abandoned in a car in Atlanta, Georgia. Lucas was adopted when he was ...

' 2007 play ''Prayer for my Enemy'' at the

Long Wharf Theatre Long Wharf Theatre is a nonprofit institution in New Haven, Connecticut, a pioneer in the not-for-profit regional theatre movement, the originator of several prominent plays, and a venue where many internationally known actors have appeared. Fou ...

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...

and the Deborah Abramson/

William Finn William Alan Finn (born February 28, 1952) is an American composer and lyricist. He is best known for his musicals, which include '' Falsettos'', for which he won the 1992 Tony Awards for Best Original Score and Best Book of a Musical, ''A New B ...

musical revue ''Travels With My Discontent'' at the Barrington Stage Company. She also performed in the regional production of TUTS Houston ''

Anything Goes ''Anything Goes'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madcap ant ...

'' in the ensemble. She was profiled in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' in January 2006. Clarke then portrayed the role of

Glinda Glinda is a fictional character created by L. Frank Baum for his ''Oz'' novels. She first appears in Baum's 1900 children's classic ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'', and is the most powerful sorceress in the Land of Oz, ruler of the Quadling Coun ...

on the first national tour of 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'' s ...

''. She succeeded Christina DeCicco on November 6, 2007 and starred alongside Carmen Cusack as Elphaba, who was later replaced by her standby

Donna Vivino Donna Marie Vivino is an American theatre, television, film actress and singer. She is well known for playing Elphaba in the Broadway production of ''Wicked'' and as the original Young Cosette in ''Les Misérables'' on Broadway. She was seen on ...

. She left the company in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...

on August 16, 2009 and was replaced by Chandra Lee Schwartz. She later reprised the role of Glinda 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 Broadway on January 14, 2010, replacing

Erin Mackey Erin Ashley Mackey (born June 19, 1986) is an American stage actress and singer, known for playing the role of Glinda in the Chicago, Los Angeles, Broadway, and Second National Tour productions of the musical '' Wicked''. She was also a double i ...

. She starred alongside

Dee Roscioli Dee Roscioli (born Danielle Marie Roscioli on July 20, 1977) is an American singer and actress, who is known for her performances as Elphaba in the Broadway, Chicago, San Francisco, and national touring productions of the musical ''Wicked''. E ...

Mandy Gonzalez Mandy Gonzalez (born August 22, 1978)Mandy Gonzalez
on

Teal Wicks Teal Wicks (born September 8, 1982 in Sacramento, California) is an American singer and stage actress, who is best known for her performances as Elphaba in the Broadway, San Francisco, and Los Angeles productions of the musical '' Wicked'' and as ...

during her run. Clarke took medical leave in March/April 2011, during which time the role of Glinda was played by Laura Woyasz. Clarke left the Broadway company on September 25, 2011 and was replaced again by Schwartz. Clarke returned to the 1st National Tour of ''Wicked'' as Glinda on November 15, 2011, replacing Amanda Jane Cooper. She was joined by Kyle Dean Massey, who had played the role of Fiyero alongside her in the Broadway production. During this run, she starred opposite Mamie Parris as Elphaba. She and Massey finished their limited engagement with the tour company on February 23, 2012, with Alli Mauzey replacing Clarke as Glinda. She returned to the role of Glinda in the Broadway production of ''Wicked'' from April 23, 2013 to September 22, 2013, where she starred alongside

Willemijn Verkaik Willemijn Verkaik (; born 16 June 1975) is a Dutch singer and actress. She is best known for her stage roles in '' Wicked'' and '' Elisabeth'', and for providing the singing voice for Elsa in both the German and Dutch versions of Disney's '' F ...

and later

Lindsay Mendez Lindsay Michelle Mendez (born March 1, 1983) is an American actress and singer, best known for her work in American musical theatre. Mendez won the 2018 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance as Carrie Pipperidge i ...

. She was replaced by Alli Mauzey, whom she herself had replaced when she rejoined the show. In November 2013, Clarke made her cabaret debut at

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 ...

, where she performed a mix of acoustic pop, folk, country, and original songs. In March 2014, Clarke appeared in the

York Theatre Company York Theatre is an off-Broadway theatre company based in East Midtown Manhattan, New York City. In its 50th year, York Theatre is dedicated to the production of new musicals and concert productions of forgotten musicals from the past. Each se ...

's production of the 1960 musical '' Tenderloin'' as part of their Musicals in Mufti series. In May 2014, Clarke returned to the

to star as Cathy Hyatt in

Jason Robert Brown Jason Robert Brown (born June 20, 1970) is an American musical theatre composer, lyricist, and playwright. Brown's music sensibility fuses pop-rock stylings with theatrical lyrics. He is the recipient of three Tony Awards for his work on ''Parad ...

's two person musical, ''

The Last Five Years ''The Last Five Years'' is a musical written by Jason Robert Brown. It premiered at Chicago's Northlight Theatre in 2001 and was then produced Off-Broadway in March 2002. Since then it has had numerous productions both in the United States an ...

''. In October 2015, Clarke originated the role of Hannah in the Broadway production of ''

Allegiance An allegiance is a duty of fidelity said to be owed, or freely committed, by the people, subjects or citizens to their state or sovereign. Etymology From Middle English ''ligeaunce'' (see medieval Latin ''ligeantia'', "a liegance"). The ''al ...

'', which closed in February 2016. She was cast as Ellen in the Broadway revival of ''

Miss Saigon ''Miss Saigon'' is a stage musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby Jr. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's 1904 opera ''Madame Butterfly'', and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed roma ...

'', which began performances on March 1, 2017 and closed on January 14, 2018. Clarke once again returned to the role of Glinda in the Broadway production of ''Wicked'' beginning December 11, 2018, replacing Amanda Jane Cooper. She starred opposite Jessica Vosk and played her final performance on April 7, 2019, being replaced by Ginna Claire Mason. Clarke currently holds the record for longest-running actress to play the role of Glinda on Broadway. In 2020, Clarke starred as Tary in the groundbreaking musical podcast, ''Propaganda!''

Personal life

On December 15, 2012 she married Christopher Alan Rogers. Their wedding was held with special memories in Galveston, Texas and the couple reside in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. In April 2018, Clarke announced her pregnancy with her and Rogers' first child, due in June 2018. Clarke gave birth to their daughter Eleanor Rose Rogers on June 18, 2018.

Credits

; Broadway * ''

'' as Ellen Scott (2017-2018) * ''

'' as Hannah Campbell (2015) * ''

'' as Glinda (replacement) (2010-2011; 2013; 2018-2019) * '' The Light in the Piazza'' as Clara Johnson (replacement) (2005–2006) ; Off-Broadway * '' Merrily We Roll Along'' as Beth Spencer (2022-2023) ; Regional Theater * ''

The Heart of Rock and Roll "The Heart of Rock & Roll" is a song performed by Huey Lewis and the News, released as the third single from their 1983 album ''Sports (Huey Lewis and the News album), Sports'' in 1984. The single peaked at number six on the U.S. Billboard Hot 10 ...

as Cassandra (2018) * ''

'' as Cathy (2014) * '' Tenderloin'' (2014) * ''

'' (2007) * ''Prayer for my Enemy'' as Marianne (2007) * ''Travels With My Discontent'' (2006) ; National Tours * ''

'' as Glinda (replacement) (2007-2009; 2011-2012) * '' The Light in the Piazza'' as Clara Johnson ; Readings * ''

I Can Get It For You Wholesale ''I Can Get It for You Wholesale'' is a musical, produced by David Merrick, music and lyrics by Harold Rome, and book by Jerome Weidman, based on his 1937 novel of the same title. It marked the Broadway debut of 19-year-old Barbra Streisand ...

'' (2017)Clement, Olivia
"Broadway Stars Tapped for Industry Reading of 'I Can Get It for You Wholesale'"
Playbill.com, June 5, 2017. ; Concerts * '' Parade'' as Mrs. Frances Phagan at Lincoln Center (2015) * ''Back on the Ground'' at

(2013) ; Television and Film * ''Maybe There's a Tree'' as Jane (post-production) * ''Relevant'' as Sharon (2016-2017) 5 episodes * ''

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 l ...

'' as Reena Booth (2014) 1 episode *''

Live from Lincoln Center ''Live from Lincoln Center'' is a seventeen-time Emmy Award-winning series that has broadcast notable performances from the Lincoln Center in New York City on PBS since 1976. The program airs between six and nine times per season. Episodes of '' ...

: The Light in the Piazza'' as Clara Johnson / Herself (2006) ; Podcasts * ''Propaganda! The Podcast Musical'' as Tary (2020)

References

External links

Katie Rose Clarke interviewBroadway.com ArticleTheatermania Article
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Katie Rose 1984 births Actresses from Texas American musical theatre actresses Living people Singers from Texas Sam Houston State University alumni People from Friendswood, Texas American United Methodists 20th-century Methodists 21st-century Methodists