Matthew Broderick, Norm Lewis, Ashley Brown, Adrienne Warren and Jay Armstrong Johnson are among the special guests who will appear at Make Believe on Broadway, the 13th annual gala event by charity organization Only Make Believe on November 5. Law & Order: SVU actor Chris Meloni will host the event, which honors celebrity supporters Ian McKellen, Guy Chiarello and Petra Nemcova ...

British singing sensation Cheryl Cole, a member of the pop group Girls Aloud as well as a successful solo artist, is headed stateside as a judge on Fox's upcoming singing competition The X-Factor. Before Cole begins sifting through thousands of talented American hopefuls in the show's audition rounds, she caught some truly gifted performers showcasing their craft by ...

Saturday Night Live veteran Maya Rudolph is walking down the aisle in the new funny flick Bridesmaids, and on May 11 the pregnant actress "stepped in time" at Broadway's Mary Poppins. Rudolph, who is expecting her third child with partner Paul Thomas Anderson, took a break from her busy Bridesmaids promotional schedule to take in the magic of the ...

It was a jolly holiday over at the New Amsterdam Theatre on March 8 as Mary Poppins welcomed original show star Ashley Brown back as the "practically perfect" title nanny. The night also marked a reunion for Brown and her original co-star, Tony nominee Gavin Lee, who continues to play Mary's pal Bert. Take a look below as the ...

The life of one of Hollywood's most enduring icons will get the musical treatment when Limelight: The Story of Charlie Chaplin premieres at California's La Jolla Playhouse in September. Cast in the title role is Robert McClure, most recently seen on Broadway in Avenue Q, while Mary Poppins star Ashley Brown will take on the role of Chaplin ...

Ashley Brown, Broadway's original Mary Poppins, will give the rest of America a chance to see her stage magic next year. Brown has signed on to star in the national tour of Mary Poppins, which begins on March 25, 2009, at Chicago's Cadillac Theatre before setting up shop in St. Louis' Fox Theatre from August 13 through 30 ...

Mary Poppins and The Coast of Utopia topped the list of nominees for the 2007 Outer Critics Circle Awards, announced on April 23 by former winners John Lloyd Young Jersey Boys and Victoria Clark The Light in the Piazza at the Algonquin Hotel. Disney's newest Broadway musical garnered 11 nominations, and Tom Stoppard's three-part epic drew nine nods ...

Ashley Brown and London star Gavin Lee will play the roles of Mary Poppins and Bert, respectively, in the Disney/Cameron Mackintosh production of Mary Poppins on Broadway. The show is scheduled to begin performances at the New Amsterdam Theatre on October 14.

Brown is no stranger to Disney musicals—she has been playing Belle in Disney's Beauty and ...

Age: 23

Currently: Making her Broadway debut as the "Beauty" half of Disney's classic Beauty and the Beast, now the 6th longest-running show in Broadway history.

Hometown: Gulf Breeze, Florida, near Pensacola. Given the recent spate of severe weather hitting the South, Brown definitely sends her love back to the Sunshine State. "We got hit pretty bad by Ivan ...

Broadway.com has learned that On the Record star Ashley Brown is moving on to another Disney musical—she will be the next Belle in Beauty and the Beast. Brown is scheduled to start performances on September 20.

"When I was told I almost fainted," Brown told Broadway.com. "I was freaking out. Disney is the only reason I am ...