Annaleigh Ashford

**Annaleigh Ashford** (née **Swanson**; an haife ta a ranar 25 ga Yuni, 1985 ) 'yar wasan kwaikwayo ce ta Amurka, mawaƙa, kuma mai rawa. Matsayinta na farko a Broadway sun hada da Wicked (2007), Legally Blonde (2007), da Hair (2010). Ta sami lambar yabo ta Tony don 'yar wasan kwaikwayo mafi kyau a cikin wasan kwaikwayo don wasa da Essie Carmichael a cikin You Can't Take It with You (2014-2015). Sauran rawar da ta zaba na Tony sune Lauren a cikin *Kinky Boots* (2013) da Mrs. Lovett a cikin Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2023). Ta kuma fito a cikin farfadowar Broadway na Lahadi a cikin Park tare da George (2017).

Ta fitar da kundi na farko Lost in the Stars: Live at 54 Below a cikin 2015. Shahararrun fina-finai da talabijin na Ashford sun haɗa da wasan kwaikwayo na Showtime Masters of Sex (2013-2016), Netflix miniseries Unbelievable (2019), fim din HBO Bad Education (2019), wasan kwaikwayo na FX Impeachment: American Crime Story (2021) da kuma CBS sitcom B Positive (2020-2022). Ta sami kyautar Primetime Emmy Award saboda rawar da ta taka a matsayin Irene a cikin jerin Hulu Welcome to Chippendales (2022). Ta sami gabatarwa ta farko ta Grammy a cikin rukunin Best Musical Theater Album don rikodin rikodin Broadway na 2023 na Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street .

## Rayuwa ta farko
An haifi Ashford a ranar 25 ga Yuni,  'yar Holli Swanson, malamin wasan motsa jiki na makarantar firamare, da Chris Swanson, *Mai* mallakar karamin kasuwanci. Ta fara yin rawa a Cibiyar Dance da Performing Arts ta Kit Andrée a aji na biyu. Ta yi aiki kuma ta raira waƙa a cikin wasanni da gasa da yawa a garinsu. Ashford ta fara sana'a ne tun tana 'yar shekara tara a Denver, lokacin da aka jefa ta a matsayin Tina Denmark, jagora a cikin Ruthless!. A shekara goma sha huɗu, an bayyana ta a matsayin "The Teen to Watch" ta Rocky Mountain News . Sauran kyaututtuka na Denver sun haɗa da bayyana a cikin rukunin The Sound of Music, West Side Story, da Paint Your Wagon, da kuma Little Women kamar Amy March, *Rodgers da Hammerstein's Cinderella* kamar Ella, Grease kamar Sandy Dumbrowski, da Anything Goes kamar Reno Sweeney. Ta kammala karatu daga makarantar sakandare ta Wheat Ridge a cikin shekaru uku, tana da shekaru 16, sannan ta halarci Kwalejin Marymount Manhattan, inda ta sami digiri a wasan kwaikwayo a cikin wasu shekaru uku, yana da shekaru 19.  Yayinda yake halartar Kwalejin Marymount Manhattan, Ashford ta buga Rosa Bud a cikin The Mystery of Edwin Drood da Emma a Tell Me a ranar Lahadi.

## Ayyuka

### 2004-2009: Matsayi na farko da Broadway debut
A shekara ta 2004, yayin da yake rataye a cikin kulob din Lower East Side na Birnin New York, Ashford ya sadu da mutumin rayuwar dare Lady Starlight, DJ na dutse na gida kuma mai zane-zane. Lady Starlight ta gayyaci Ashford don yin rawa a cikin bikinta na 1970s mai haske "Lady Starlight's English Disco" kuma ta yi mata baftisma ta *Hollywood Starr* .  Ashford ta yi a cikin Tom Kitt da Brian Yorkey's Feeling Electric a matsayin Natalie a bikin wasan kwaikwayo na New York a shekara ta 2005. 

Ba da daɗewa ba bayan kammala karatun jami'a, Ashford ta sami babban hutunta tana yin wasa a matsayin ɗaya daga cikin abokan Glinda, Pfanne, kuma ta koyi rawar Glinda a zagayen farko na ƙasa na *Wicked* . Ta shiga cikin 'yan wasan kwaikwayo a watan Disamba na 2005 kuma ta tafi a watan Satumba na 2006. Daga nan ta fara rawar Margot a cikin *Legally Blonde: The Musical*, farkonta na Broadway. Ta fahimci rawar da Elle Woods ta taka, amma sau ɗaya kawai ta taka. An nuna ta a cikin rikodin 'yan wasan kwaikwayo na asali kuma ta fito a cikin watsa shirye-shiryen MTV a talabijin. Ashford ta bar shirin a watan Satumba na 2007. &#x5B; ** &#x5D; A watan Yulin 2007, ta yi aiki a kan wani shiri na kiɗa na *Catch Me If You Can* a matsayin Brenda Strong. Ta yi karatu a shirye-shiryen aikin a ƙarƙashin daraktan da ya lashe kyautar Tony Award na *Hairspray*, Jack O'Brien . 

Ashford daga nan ya koma Wicked, a wannan lokacin yana taka rawar Glinda a cikin samar da Broadway. Ta maye gurbin Kendra Kassebaum a ranar 9 ga Oktoba, 2007.  Ta bar kamfanin a ranar 11 ga Mayu, 2008, lokacin da Kassebaum ya koma rawar, kuma ya koma samar da Chicago, ya maye gurbin Kate Fahrner a matsayin Glinda a ranar 3 ga Yuni, 2008.  Ta buga wasan karshe a matsayin Glinda a ranar 25 ga watan Janairun shekara ta 2009, lokacin da aka rufe samar da Chicago. A shekara ta 2008, ta fara fim dinta tare da karamin bangare a *[[Sex and the City: The Movie|Jima'i da Birni: Fim din]]* tana wasa da "sarauniyar lakabi mai lalata". A wannan shekarar ta kuma fito a fim din Jonathan Demme Rachel Getting Married tare da Anne Hathaway . Ashford ta taka leda a matsayin yarinya. 

## manazarta