Keala Settle

Keala Joan Settle is an American singer and actress. Settle originated the role of Norma Valverde in Hands on a Hardbody, which ran on Broadway in 2013, and was nominated for the Outer Critics Circle Award, Drama Desk Award, and Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.

Settle made her Broadway debut in 2011 in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert as Shirley and in the ensemble.

Settle originated the role of Norma Valverde in Hands on a Hardbody, a musical which ran briefly on Broadway in 2013, and is based on the 1997 documentary about real people competing to win a new truck. For this role, Settle was nominated for the Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk, and Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Additionally, she was awarded the Theatre World Award for Outstanding Broadway or Off-Broadway debut performance during the 2012-13 theatrical season.

Settle played the role of Madame Thenardier in the revival of Les Misérables, starting in March 2014,[12] and ending on March 1, 2015.

She starred in the stage musical Waitress, which opened on Broadway at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on April 24, 2016, as Becky. She played this role in the premiere production at the ART (Cambridge, Massachusetts) in August to September 27, 2015

Settle played the role of Tracy Turnblad in the national tour of Hairspray. She appeared in the national tour of the Lincoln Center production of South Pacific as Bloody Mary, starting in 2009.

In November through December 2012, Settle played the role of Mrs. Fezziwig in the Pioneer Theatre Company (Salt Lake City) production of the musical A Christmas Carol.

She played the role of the Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Ogunquit Playhouse, Ogunquit, Maine from July 31 to August 25, 2013.

Settle performed in the Encores! concert staging of Violet on July 17, 2013 with Sutton Foster, but did not move on to the Broadway revival due to taking the role Madame Thénardier in the revival of Les Misérables; she was replaced in Violet by Annie Golden.

In 2017, Settle portrayed Lettie Lutz, a bearded lady, in the biographical musical drama The Greatest Showman, alongside Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, and Zendaya. The song "This is Me" from the film, principally sung by Settle, won the 2018 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.