Laura Ilene Benanti (born July 15, 1979) is an American actress and singer.
She initially became known on the Broadway scene, receiving five Tony Award nominations, eventually winning the 2008 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for playing Louise in the 2008 Broadway revival of Gypsy, and she played Elsa Schräder in the 2013 NBC television production of The Sound of Music Live!. She subsequently would become known in television; in 2015 she began playing twin sisters Alura and Astra in the TV series Supergirl, and since 2016, she has had a recurring role as now former First Lady Melania Trump, wife of former U.S. President Donald Trump, on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
She was married to Spin Doctors singer Chris Barron and actor Steven Pasquale and is currently married to Patrick Brown, and has a daughter with Brown.
Stage plays with pages on TV Tropes
- The Sound of Music (1998–99)
- Wonderful Town (2000)
- Into the Woods (2002)
- Nine (2003)
- Pippin (2004)
- The Secret Garden (2005)
- The Wedding Singer (2006 Screen-to-Stage Adaptation)
- Gypsy (2007, 2008–09)
- Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (2010–11 Screen-to-Stage Adaptation)
- The Tempest (2013)
- The Most Happy Fella (2014)
- Parade (2015)
- She Loves Me (2016)
- My Fair Lady (2018–19)
TV series with pages on TV Tropes
- Starved (2005) as Billie Frasier
- Eli Stone (2008) as Beth Keller
- Life on Mars (2009, episode: "Home Is Where You Hand Your Holster") as Denise Carling
- The Big C (2011, episode: "Fight or Flight") as Gia Sherman
- The Playboy Club (2011) as Carol-Lynne Cunningham
- Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2011–14) as Maria Grazie
- Go On (2012–13) as Lauren Bennett
- Royal Pains (2013) as Shelby Shackleford
- Elementary (2013, episode: "Poison Pen") as Anne Barker / Abigail Spencer
- The Sound of Music Live! (2013) as Elsa Schrader
- The Good Wife (2014–15, 2 episodes) as Renata Ellard
- Nurse Jackie (2014) as Mia Peyton
- Nashville (2014–15) as Sadie Stone
- Supergirl (2015–16) as Alura Zor-El / Astra In-Ze
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2016–present) as Melania Trump
- The Detour (2017–19) as Edie Randall
- Tangled: The Series (2017–19) as Lady Caine (voice)
- Younger (2018–19) as Quinn Tyler
Films with pages on TV Tropes
- Take the Lead (2006) as Tina
- No Hard Feelings (2023) as Allison Becker
