Joan Diener

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Joan Diener
Stage actress, singer
Spouse(s)Albert Marre (1956–2006; her death); 2 children

Joan Diener (February 24, 1930 – May 13, 2006) was an American theatre actress and singer with a three-and-a-half-octave range. As her obituary in The New York Times summed it up, Diener's "lush beauty, showstopping stage presence and operatic voice made her a favorite in musicals, especially in the original 1965 Man of La Mancha."[1]

Early life

Born in Columbus, Ohio, Diener majored in psychology at Sarah Lawrence College and moonlighted as an actress while still a student.[2][3]

Career

She made her Broadway debut in the 1948 revue Small Wonder, directed by Burt Shevelove and choreographed by Gower Champion and co-starring Tom Ewell, Alice Pearce and Jack Cassidy.[4] She appeared in the 1950 comedy Season in the Sun, written by The New Yorker magazine's theatre critic, Wolcott Gibbs.[5]

Diener met her future husband, theatre director Albert Marre, in 1953, when she won the role of Lalume, the seductive wife of the Wazir, in Kismet, winning a Theatre World Award for her performance.[6] Times theater critic Brooks Atkinson wrote, "As an abandoned hussy, brazenly made up and loosely clad, Joan Diener looks like a fine case of grand arson and warms up the whole show."[7] Diener and Marre were married three years later, and subsequently had a son, Adam, and a daughter, Jennifer.[2][3] She reprised the role of Lalume in Kismet in London's West End alongside Alfred Drake and Doretta Morrow, who had all starred in the original Broadway production.

In 1958, Marre directed a production of At the Grand, a

ballerina in the book) who falls in love with a charming, but larcenous, faux baron.[8] (Although the show never reached Broadway, it was revamped drastically more than thirty years later and, directed by Tommy Tune, became the hit Grand Hotel
.)

Raúl Juliá when Sheena Easton
collapsed during one performance and Diener filled in for the second half of the show.

Diener reunited with Leigh as composer and Marre as director for both

Home Sweet Homer (1975), which closed on opening night, despite the presence of Yul Brynner as Odysseus.[12]

Diener's most famous stage roles went to others when they reached the screen -

Omnibus),[13] and in regional theatre
.

Death

Joan Diener died of complications from cancer in New York City, aged 76.[2][3] Diener and Marre had a son, Adam; and a daughter, Jennifer.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Ramirez, Anthony (May 16, 2006). "Joan Diener, 76, Dies; Dulcinea in 'La Mancha'". The New York Times. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Jones, Kenneth. "Joan Diener, Broadway's First Aldonza in Man of La Mancha, Dead at 76" Playbill, May 17, 2006
  3. ^ a b c Vallance, Tom "Obituary. Joan Diener" The Independent (UK), May 17, 2006
  4. ^ Small Wonder ibdb.com, retrieved November 9, 2017
  5. ^ Season in the Sun ibdb.com, retrieved November 9, 2017
  6. ^ Kismet ibdb.com, retrieved November 9, 2017
  7. ^ Atkinson, Brooks (December 4, 1953). "AT THE THEATRE: Alfred Drake and Miss Morrow Appear in 'Kismet' With a Musical Score From Alexander Borodin". The New York Times. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
  8. ^ At the Grand broadwayworld.com, retrieved November 9, 2017
  9. ^ " Man of La Mancha Broadway" ibdb.com, retrieved November 9, 2017
  10. ^ " 'Cry for Us All' Broadway Playbill (vault), retrieved November 9, 2017
  11. ^ Barnes, Clive (April 9, 1970). "Theater: Musicalizing 'Hogan's Goat'". The New York Times. Retrieved February 5, 2023.
  12. ^ " Home Sweet Homer Broadway" Playbill (vault), retrieved November 9, 2017
  13. ^ "Joan Diener". IMDb. Retrieved February 5, 2023.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Joan_Diener&oldid=1143581379"