From Harpo's Juke Joint
From l to r: Jennifer Holliday as Effie White, Sheryl Lee Ralph as Deena Jones & Loretta Devine as Lorrell Robinson
One of the most successful musicals in the history of Broadway,
Dreamgirls is the Tony Award-winning musical directed by Michael Bennett. The original Broadway production opened on
December 20, 1981 at the Imperial Theater, and would go on to produce over 1,500 shows before ending its first run in
1985. Nominated for 13 Tonys, it would win a total of six and launch the career of 21-year-old
Jennifer Holliday, who won Best Actress in a Musical (beating out co-star
Sheryl Lee Ralph). In 2006, the play was adapted into a film starring
Beyonce Knowles as Deena Jones,
Anika Noni Rose as Lorrell Robinson, and
American Idol finalist Jennifer Hudson as Holliday's Effie White.
