Will American Idol Fave Diana DeGarmo Be Beauty and the Beast's Next Belle?
DeGarmo, the 17-year-old runner-up on last season's American Idol, is best known for her rendition of "Don't Cry Out Loud." After her run in the series ended, she embarked on a tour with the other American Idol finalists. She has also been concentrating on her recording career--RCA Records released her first solo CD, Blue Skies, in December 2004.
Under the guidance of her mother, DeGarmo started pursuing an entertainment career at a very young age. As a child, she performed one summer at Music Mansion in the Dollywood Amusement Park in Tennessee. She was then invited back to perform in the park's 1997 Christmas show. She also opened at the Georgia Music Hall of Fame Awards in 1997. A year later, she performed with Mike Snider and Steve Wariner on The Nashville Network's Christmas special. She has opened for The Baja Men, Pam Tillis, Diamond Rio, Trace Adkins, Tracy Byrd, Billy Dean, Toby Keith, Ty Herndon, Delbert McClinton, Dolly Parton and the Opry singers. Her previous musical theater credits include mountings of Annie and Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta.
DeGarmo would not be the first American Idol veteran to come to Broadway. Idol alum Frenchie Davis is currently performing in Rent, and Tamyra Gray, who appeared in the first season of the hit reality show, stepped into Bombay Dreams late last year. Another first season alum, Justin Guarini, was announced for the cast of Good Vibrations, but he withdrew from the project during rehearsals.
Beauty and the Beast currently stars Brooke Tansley as Belle and Steve Blanchard as the Beast.
A production spokesperson could not confirm the casting of DeGarmo.