Born as Valentine Ruth Henshall in Orpington, Greater London on 7 March 1967. English actress, singer and dancer, known for her work in musical theatre. Her debut performance was in the Cascade Revue at the West Cliff Theatre in Clacton-on-Sea. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, she took part in a touring production of A Chorus Line as Maggie. Her West End debut came in 1987 when she was cast in Cats, making appearances as Jemima, Demeter, Griddlebone and Grizabella.
Her first starring role came in the 1993 trans-Atlantic transfer of the Broadway production Crazy for You which opened at the Prince Edward Theatre. Her performance earned her the first of five Laurence Olivier Award nominations.
Besides starring in a lot of musicals, she pursued a career as a singer, releasing her debut album The Ruthie Henshall Album in 1996. In 2001 she released Pilgrim, which included a cover version of The Man With The Child In His Eyes.
In 1999 she made her Broadway debut in 1999 as Velma Kelly in Chicago and returned to the Broadway production to play Roxie Hart in 2010. She also starred as Mrs Wilkinson for two years in the West End production of Billy Elliot the Musical (2014–2016).
In 2020, Henshall participated in the twentieth series of I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here. She returned to television acting in 2021 by appearing as Miranda Evans in the BBC soap opera Doctors.
References
- Ruthie Henshall. Wikipedia, retrieved 30 November 2023
