Ellen Greene
Encyclopedia
Ellen Greene is an American
singer and actress. Greene has had a long and varied career as a singer, particularly in cabaret
, as an actor
and singer in numerous stage productions
, particularly musical theatre
, as well as having performed in many film
s – notably Little Shop of Horrors – and television program
s. She starred as Vivian Charles on the ABC series Pushing Daisies
.
. She attended W. Tresper Clarke High School
, in Westbury, New York. She spent summers at Cejwin Camps in Port Jervis, New York
where she performed in musical theater productions, including the role of Tzeitel in a 1966 production of Fiddler on the Roof
. She was first married to Tibor Hardik. She also had a relationship with Martin P. Robinson
. She has been married to Christian Klikovits since September 25, 2003.
singer in clubs such as The Brothers and Sisters, Grand Finale and Reno Sweeney. She received rave reviews from critics such as Rex Reed
, George Bell and John S. Wilson. Around this time she befriended the late Peter Allen
. Her first starring role was as the lead in the notorious Broadway bomb, Rachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don't You Ever Forget It)
in 1973, which co-starred Anita Morris
.
She then won the starring role of Chrissy in Joseph Papp
's production of In the Boom Boom Room
. Her reviews brought her to the attention of Paul Mazursky
who was at that time casting for Next Stop, Greenwich Village
; she got the role of Sarah, her first starring role in a film. Continuing her work with Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival
, Greene next essayed the role of Jenny in The Three Penny Opera at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre
in Lincoln Center for which her performance was nominated for a Tony Award
.
In addition to a number of other productions with the New York Shakespeare Festival as well as numerous other companies, Greene formed a close working relationship with the WPA Theatre, where she met Howard Ashman
and Alan Menken
, which led to a close, long-lasting friendship. This led, in turn, among other productions, to the role for which she is perhaps most-widely known, that of the hapless Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors
, a role she reprised in the film version opposite Rick Moranis
.
Greene has worked extensively in theater, such as the part of Suzanne/The Little Rose in The Little Prince and the Aviator
, as well as in films such as I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can
, Léon
, Talk Radio
, and Pump Up the Volume
. She has appeared on television in Miami Vice
, Glory! Glory!, The Adventures of Pete and Pete, Cybill
, Law & Order
, Suddenly Susan
, The X-Files
, Mystery Woman: Sing Me a Murder, Fielder’s Choice and Heroes
. In 1983 she was the voice of Creeping Ivy in the animated TV special The Magic of Herself the Elf
.
Greene released an album in 2004 entitled In His Eyes, on which she was accompanied by her husband and musical director, Christian Klikovits. Her latest work includes the recurring role of Vivian Charles in the television series Pushing Daisies
and the voice of Dolly Gopher in the animated Out of Jimmy's Head
. Greene was also the voice of Goldie in the Don Bluth
film, Rock-A-Doodle
.
In the summer of 2009, Greene starred as Miss Adelaide in a concert version of the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls, which had a 3-day engagement at the Hollywood Bowl
in Los Angeles, California. Her co-stars included Scott Bakula
as Nathan Detroit, theatre veteran and Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell
as Sky Masterson, and Jessica Biel
as Sarah Brown. In 2011, she appeared in five episodes of the soap opera
The Young and the Restless
as Primrose DeVille.
Greene performed in the musical Betwixt! at the Trafalgar Studios
in London's West End from 26th July to 20th August 2011.
for her performance in Threepenny Opera as well as for a Drama Desk Award
for her performance in Little Shop of Horrors
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer and actress. Greene has had a long and varied career as a singer, particularly in cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
, as an actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and singer in numerous stage productions
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
, particularly musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, as well as having performed in many film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s – notably Little Shop of Horrors – and television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
s. She starred as Vivian Charles on the ABC series Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies is an American comedy-drama television series created by Bryan Fuller that aired on ABC from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace as Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations...
.
Personal life
Greene was born in Brooklyn, New York. Her mother is a guidance counselor, and her father is a dentistDentist
A dentist, also known as a 'dental surgeon', is a doctor that specializes in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity. The dentist's supporting team aides in providing oral health services...
. She attended W. Tresper Clarke High School
W. Tresper Clarke High School
W. Tresper Clarke High School is a high school in Westbury New York, USA. It is operated by the East Meadow Union Free School District, also known as the East Meadow School District. The school opened in 1957, and was named in honor of W. Tresper Clarke, a former president of the East Meadow...
, in Westbury, New York. She spent summers at Cejwin Camps in Port Jervis, New York
Port Jervis, New York
Port Jervis is a city on the Delaware River in western Orange County, New York, with a population of 8,860 at the 2000 census. The communities of Deerpark, Huguenot, Sparrowbush, and Greenville are adjacent to Port Jervis, and the towns of Montague, New Jersey and Matamoras, Pennsylvania face the...
where she performed in musical theater productions, including the role of Tzeitel in a 1966 production of Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof
Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters by Sholem Aleichem...
. She was first married to Tibor Hardik. She also had a relationship with Martin P. Robinson
Martin P. Robinson
Martin P. Robinson is a puppeteer for the Jim Henson Company. He originally built, designed, and performed the puppets for Little Shop of Horrors. He is perhaps best known for his work on Sesame Street. He has performed the characters of Telly Monster, Slimey the Worm, Mr. Snuffleupagus, and Tony...
. She has been married to Christian Klikovits since September 25, 2003.
Career
Greene’s career began as a nightclubNightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
singer in clubs such as The Brothers and Sisters, Grand Finale and Reno Sweeney. She received rave reviews from critics such as Rex Reed
Rex Reed
Rex Taylor Reed is an American film critic and former co-host of the syndicated television show At the Movies. He currently writes the column "On the Town with Rex Reed" for The New York Observer.-Life and career:...
, George Bell and John S. Wilson. Around this time she befriended the late Peter Allen
Peter Allen
Peter Allen was an Australian songwriter and entertainer. His songs were made popular by many recording artists, including Elkie Brooks, Melissa Manchester and Olivia Newton-John, with one, Arthur's Theme, winning an Academy Award in 1981...
. Her first starring role was as the lead in the notorious Broadway bomb, Rachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don't You Ever Forget It)
Rachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don't You Ever Forget It)
Rachael Lily Rosenbloom is a musical with a book by Paul Jabara and Tom Eyen, music by Jabara, and lyrics by Jabara, David Debin, and Paul Issa....
in 1973, which co-starred Anita Morris
Anita Morris
-Career:Among many roles, Morris's most prominent film role was as Carol Dodsworth, the mistress to Danny DeVito, in Ruthless People and for her sensual performance as Carla in the musical Nine opposite Raul Julia. While nominated for a Best Featured Actress Tony Award as Carla, she lost to Liliane...
.
She then won the starring role of Chrissy in Joseph Papp
Joseph Papp
Joseph Papp was an American theatrical producer and director. Papp established The Public Theater in what had been the Astor Library Building in downtown New York . "The Public," as it is known, has many small theatres within it...
's production of In the Boom Boom Room
In the Boom Boom Room
In the Boom Boom Room is a play by David Rabe. It focuses on a go-go dancer whose difficult relationship with her parents has propelled her into a series of unfortunate affairs with both men and women....
. Her reviews brought her to the attention of Paul Mazursky
Paul Mazursky
Paul Mazursky is an American film director, screenwriter and actor.-Personal life:He was born Irwin Mazursky in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Jean , a piano player for dance classes, and David Mazursky, a laborer. Mazursky was born to a Jewish family; his grandfather was an immigrant from...
who was at that time casting for Next Stop, Greenwich Village
Next Stop, Greenwich Village
Next Stop, Greenwich Village is a 1976 romantic comedy drama film, set in the early 1950s, written and directed by Paul Mazursky, featuring, amongst others, Lenny Baker, Shelley Winters, Ellen Greene, Lois Smith, and Christopher Walken. The film was generally well received by critics...
; she got the role of Sarah, her first starring role in a film. Continuing her work with Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival
New York Shakespeare Festival
New York Shakespeare Festival is the previous name of the New York City theatrical producing organization now known as the Public Theater. The Festival produced shows at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, as part of its free Shakespeare in the Park series, at the Public Theatre near Astor Place...
, Greene next essayed the role of Jenny in The Three Penny Opera at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre
Vivian Beaumont Theatre
The Vivian Beaumont Theater is a theatre located in the Lincoln Center complex at 150 West 65th Street on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The structure was designed by Finnish American architect Eero Saarinen, and Jo Mielziner was responsible for the design of the stage and interior.The Vivian...
in Lincoln Center for which her performance was nominated for a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
.
In addition to a number of other productions with the New York Shakespeare Festival as well as numerous other companies, Greene formed a close working relationship with the WPA Theatre, where she met Howard Ashman
Howard Ashman
Howard Elliott Ashman was an American playwright and lyricist. Ashman first studied at Boston University and Goddard College and then went on to achieve his master's degree from Indiana University in 1974...
and Alan Menken
Alan Menken
Alan Menken is an American musical theatre and film composer and pianist.Menken is best known for his numerous scores for films produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. His scores for The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and Pocahontas have each won him two Academy Awards...
, which led to a close, long-lasting friendship. This led, in turn, among other productions, to the role for which she is perhaps most-widely known, that of the hapless Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors
Little Shop of Horrors (musical)
Little Shop of Horrors is a rock musical, by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman, about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood. The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman...
, a role she reprised in the film version opposite Rick Moranis
Rick Moranis
Frederick Allan "Rick" Moranis is a Canadian comedian, actor, musician, and a magician. Moranis came to prominence in the late 1970s on the sketch comedy show Second City Television, and later appeared in several Hollywood films including Strange Brew; Ghostbusters; Spaceballs; Little Shop of...
.
Greene has worked extensively in theater, such as the part of Suzanne/The Little Rose in The Little Prince and the Aviator
The Little Prince and the Aviator
The Little Prince and the Aviator is a musical with a book by Hugh Wheeler, lyrics by Don Black, and music by John Barry.Based on the classic book by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, the musical deviates from the original in that aviator Toni, whose plane crashes in the Sahara Desert, explicitly is...
, as well as in films such as I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can
I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can
I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can is a 1982 American biographical film directed by Jack Hofsiss, starring Jill Clayburgh. The screenplay by David Rabe is based on the memoir of the same title by Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Barbara Gordon, whose addiction to and difficult withdrawal from...
, Léon
Léon (film)
Léon is a 1994 French thriller film written and directed by Luc Besson...
, Talk Radio
Talk Radio (film)
Talk Radio is a 1988 American drama film, starring Eric Bogosian, Ellen Greene and Leslie Hope. Directed by Oliver Stone, the film was based on the play by Eric Bogosian and Tad Savinar. Portions of the film and play were based on the assassination of radio host Alan Berg in 1984...
, and Pump Up the Volume
Pump Up the Volume (film)
Pump Up the Volume is a 1990 comedy-drama film written and directed by Allan Moyle and starring Christian Slater and Samantha Mathis.- Plot summary :...
. She has appeared on television in Miami Vice
Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
, Glory! Glory!, The Adventures of Pete and Pete, Cybill
Cybill
Cybill is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre, which aired on CBS from January 2, 1995 to July 13, 1998. Starring Cybill Shepherd, the series revolves around Cybill Sheridan, a twice-divorced single mother of two and struggling actress in her 40s, who has never gotten her show...
, Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
, Suddenly Susan
Suddenly Susan
Suddenly Susan is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC from 1996 to 2000. The show takes place at The Gate, a fictitious magazine which is based in San Francisco. Among the magazine's employees is Susan Keane , who always has been cared for by someone else...
, The X-Files
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
, Mystery Woman: Sing Me a Murder, Fielder’s Choice and Heroes
Heroes (TV series)
Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring that appeared on NBC for four seasons from September 25, 2006 through February 8, 2010. The series tells the stories of ordinary people who discover superhuman abilities, and how these abilities take effect in the...
. In 1983 she was the voice of Creeping Ivy in the animated TV special The Magic of Herself the Elf
The Magic of Herself the Elf
The Magic of Herself the Elf is a 1983 animated television special produced by the Canadian animation company, Nelvana Limited. Directed by John Celestri and Raymond Jafelice, it stars the voices of Jerry Orbach, Georgia Engel and Priscilla Lopez...
.
Greene released an album in 2004 entitled In His Eyes, on which she was accompanied by her husband and musical director, Christian Klikovits. Her latest work includes the recurring role of Vivian Charles in the television series Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies is an American comedy-drama television series created by Bryan Fuller that aired on ABC from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace as Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations...
and the voice of Dolly Gopher in the animated Out of Jimmy's Head
Out of Jimmy's Head
Out of Jimmy's Head was Cartoon Network's second live-action/animated television series. It is based on the live-action/animated telefilm Re-Animated that aired on December 8, 2006...
. Greene was also the voice of Goldie in the Don Bluth
Don Bluth
Donald Virgil "Don" Bluth is an American animator and independent studio owner. He is best known for his departure from The Walt Disney Company in 1979 and his subsequent directing of animated films such as The Secret of NIMH , An American Tail ,The Land Before Time , and All Dogs Go to Heaven ,...
film, Rock-A-Doodle
Rock-A-Doodle
Rock-a-Doodle is a 1992 American animated re-telling of Edmond Rostand's comedy, Chantecler. This film was directed by Don Bluth, produced by Goldcrest Films for The Samuel Goldwyn Company, and originally released in the United States on April 3, 1992.-Plot:Chanticleer is a proud rooster whose...
.
In the summer of 2009, Greene starred as Miss Adelaide in a concert version of the Broadway musical Guys and Dolls, which had a 3-day engagement at the Hollywood Bowl
Hollywood Bowl
The Hollywood Bowl is a modern amphitheater in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California, United States that is used primarily for music performances...
in Los Angeles, California. Her co-stars included Scott Bakula
Scott Bakula
Scott Stewart Bakula is an American actor, known for his role as Sam Beckett in the television series Quantum Leap, for which he won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama in 1991 and was nominated for four Emmy Awards. He also had a prominent role as Captain Jonathan...
as Nathan Detroit, theatre veteran and Tony Award winner Brian Stokes Mitchell
Brian Stokes Mitchell
Brian Stokes Mitchell is an American stage, film and television actor. A powerful baritone, he has been one of the central leading men of the Broadway theatre since the early 1990s...
as Sky Masterson, and Jessica Biel
Jessica Biel
Jessica Claire Biel is an American actress, model, and occasional singer. Biel is known for her television role as Mary Camden in the long-running family-drama series 7th Heaven...
as Sarah Brown. In 2011, she appeared in five episodes of the soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
The Young and the Restless
The Young and the Restless
The Young and the Restless is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in a fictional Wisconsin town called Genoa City, which is unlike and unrelated to the real life village of the same name, Genoa City, Wisconsin...
as Primrose DeVille.
Greene performed in the musical Betwixt! at the Trafalgar Studios
Trafalgar Studios
Trafalgar Studios, formerly The Whitehall Theatre until 2004, is a West End theatre in Whitehall, near Trafalgar Square, in the City of Westminster, London....
in London's West End from 26th July to 20th August 2011.
Awards and honors
Greene was nominated for a Tony AwardTony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
for her performance in Threepenny Opera as well as for a Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
for her performance in Little Shop of Horrors
Little Shop of Horrors (musical)
Little Shop of Horrors is a rock musical, by composer Alan Menken and writer Howard Ashman, about a hapless florist shop worker who raises a plant that feeds on human blood. The musical is based on the low-budget 1960 black comedy film The Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Roger Corman...
.