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David Bedella (born September 25, 1962) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles inJerry Springer: The Opera,In The Heights, and& Juliet. He has won threeOlivier Awards.

Bedella was born inGary, Indiana, on September 25, 1962. He graduated in 1980 fromMerrillville High School inMerrillville, Indiana.

After performing in Showboat '81 atOpryland USA, Bedella began eight years of theatre inChicago from 1982 to 1990. In 1985, he won his first professional acting award, theJoseph Jefferson Award (Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical)^[1] for his performance inA Chorus Line.^[2] After several National Tours includingDreamgirls,Jesus Christ Superstar, and42nd Street, he relocated toNew York City in the autumn of 1990 and began what would be 11 years ofregional andBroadway work which included the Goodspeed Opera House in 1991 and a tour ofLa Cage aux Folles. From 1992 to 1995, he played Caiaphas in the 20th anniversary national tour ofJesus Christ Superstar. In 1995, he joined the original company ofSmokey Joe's Cafe on Broadway, which he played on and off for five years before leaving to tour the United States inAlmost Like Being in Love.

Having relocated toLondon in 2001, Bedalla won his most famous role in 2002, playing Jonathan Wierus in the first act andSatan in the second act ofJerry Springer: The Opera at theNational Theatre.^[3] For this role, he received the 2004Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical. Later that year, he appeared in a recurring role as plastic surgeonDr. Carlos Fashola in the British medical drama seriesHolby City. He then played the title role inHedwig and the Angry Inch and had a 16-month run playing as Frank-N-Furter in the UK tour ofRichard O'Brien'sThe Rocky Horror Show from 2006 to 2007. During that period, he also had minor roles in films such asBatman Begins andAlexander.

In 2008, Bedella played Alexander Molokov in a concert version ofChess at theRoyal Albert Hall on 12 and 13 May 2008, and performed in theWest End gala performance ofElegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens at theSoho Revue Bar. Since 2009, he has provided voices of characters such as Carlos (The Great Race only), Victor, theMayor of Sodor, and a Cuban man in the British and American dubs ofThomas & Friends. In 2012, he replacedMatt Wilkinson as Victor in the British dub ofBlue Mountain Mystery. In 2015, he replacedKeith Wickham as the Mayor of Sodor in the British dub.

From 2009 to 2010, Bedella reprised his role as Frank-N-Furter in the UK tour cast ofThe Rocky Horror Show.^[1] In October 2011, he appeared in a concert of the new musicalSoho Cinders at theSondheim Theatre in London.^[1] From 2011 to 2012, he made hispantomime debut as Blackheart inRobinson Crusoe and the Caribbean Pirates at theNew Theatre inCardiff.^[1] In 2012, he played Arnold in Harvey Fierstein'sTorch Song Trilogy at theMenier Chocolate Factory in London.^[1] In 2013, he appeared in the British drama seriesBy Any Means. In 2014, he starred as popstar Frankie Parsons in the episode "Last Gasp" of the Britishdark comedy seriesInside No. 9.

In 2014, Bedella appeared withBradley Walsh inPeter Pan at theMilton Keynes Theatre and in the fall of that year, he portrayedthe title role in a production ofSweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street at the Twickenham Theatre.^[1] On 16 January 2015, it was confirmed that he would be joiningMel Brooks' musicalThe Producers as Roger De Bris.^[4] He again reprised his role as Frank-N-Furter inThe Rocky Horror Show alongside the show's writerRichard O'Brien.

For several years, Bedella has hosted his own live chat show calledDavid Bedella and Friends, which won the London Cabaret Society's Best Long Running Cabaret Award in 2015.^[1] The chat show began at the Alley Cat venue and moved to theSt. James Theatre in London, hosting an array of artists from stage and screen. From 2015 to 2017, he starred as Kevin Rosario in theTony Award-winningIn the Heights at theKings Cross Theatre in London, for which he won aWhatsOnStage Award and his secondLaurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical.^[5]

In 2017, Bedella recorded two songs for the albumWit & Whimsy – Songs by Alexander S. Bermange, which reached No. 1 in theiTunes comedy album chart. In 2018, he returned to Chicago as part of the cast of the American premiere ofNell Gwynn at theChicago Shakespeare Theater. In 2019, he originated the role of Lance in the musical& Juliet. The musical made its world debut at theManchester Opera House and then transferred to London'sShaftesbury Theatre. Bedella subsequently won the 2020Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his performance. This marked his second win in this category and third Olivier win overall.^[6] He left the production on 26 March 2022.

Bedella has also partnered withJohn Linehan in pantomime at theBelfast Grand Opera House in Northern Ireland. In 2023, he reprised his role as Frank-N-Furter in theAdelaide,Melbourne, andGold Coast legs of the Australian 50th Anniversary Tour ofThe Rocky Horror Show. In March 2024, Bedella began a run reprising his role as Lance in the Broadway production of& Juliet, marking his return to the Broadway stage.^[7]

Bedella has been in a relationship with Pressley Sutherland since 1997.^[8] In 2001, Sutherland was offered a job as avicar inLondon, and convinced Bedella to move there with him by reminding him of the opportunities in theWest End.^[8] They continue to reside in the city.^[8]

• BBC interview: David Bedella on Rocky Horror (March '07)
• David Bedella atIMDb
• London Theatre Guide interview with David Bedella
• BBCi interview: David Bedella on Holby City
• David Bedella wins best Musical Actor in the Laurence Olivier Awards
• [1]

• Living people
• 1962 births
• American expatriate male actors
• American expatriates in the United Kingdom
• American male film actors
• American male musical theatre actors
• American male television actors
• American male voice actors
• Laurence Olivier Award winners
• Male actors from Chicago
• People from Merrillville, Indiana

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