by Sandi Durell . . . .
Beloved by so many in the theater and cabaret communities, we are all saddened and shocked hearing of the passing of this very special lady. Aside from her years as a notable performer with the voice of an angel, she was an animal lover, especially of cats . . . the many she had, the many she rescued and placed in homes. She produced and sang concerts for many worthwhile causes.
Thanks to Stuart J. Allyn for sending this to me to share with all of you.
Sarah Rice, born in Okinawa Japan, died Saturday January 6, 2024 of cancer at NYU Langone Hospital at the age of 68. Before her first birthday, the family moved to Arizona, where she, a sister, and two brothers grew up. Rice acted in some amateur productions and attended college for one year before she moved to New York at age 18. She originated the role of Marianne in a musical adaptation of THE MISER called HANG ON TO YOUR RIBBONS, Off-Off Broadway. This led to being cast as Luisa in the long-running original Off-Broadway production of THE FANTASTICKS. She continued in the role for over two years. She also played Anne in A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, Cunegonde in CANDIDE, at the Guthrie, Miranda in THE TEMPEST, Zan in REGINA, Gretel in HANSEL AND GRETEL and Liesl in THE SOUND OF MUSIC. Stephen Sondheim and Harold Prince chose her to become part of musical theatre history when she was cast as the original Johanna in SWEENEY TODD, THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET on Broadway for which she won a Theatre World Award and recorded on RCA. In 2019, with fellow Broadway Stars Carole Demas and Hal Robinson, they created a Bistro Award Winning tribute to Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt all of whom worked together on numerous shows over many decades. During the Pandemic, she was a guest star on a number of Live Stream concerts with her friend Carole Demas. Most recently she was seen and heard at St. Malachy’s, The Actor’s Chapel, on Christmas Eve, singing Oh, Holy Night.
She is a 2010 Bistro Award and 2011 MAC AWARD winner, Female Vocalist, for her critically acclaimed solo cabaret debut, SARAH RICE sings SCREEN GEMS, Songs of Old Hollywood and voted favorite female cabaret debut performer by Cabaret Hotline Online readers in 2009. Recent shows include her Ivor Novello/Noel Coward show, celebrating the music of the era of Downton Abbey, GLAMOROUS NIGHTS & CARELESS RAPTURE, and serial guest-starring in the award-winning SONDHEIM UNPLUGGED both at 54 Below, and The Mabel Mercer Foundation’s Cabaret Convention where she returned for their Sondheim Evening a few years ago. She was also known for playing the theremin, unique among musical instruments, as it is played without physical contact. She captivated audiences watching Sarah playing radio waves in the air. R.I.P.
www.sarahrice.com
