User:Apathyash/Gianna Yanelli

Gianna Yanelli (born December 27, 1991) is an American musical theater actress and singer. She is best known for originating the role of Sonja Acquino in the Broadway production of Mean Girls.

Early life and education
Yanelli grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She attended Waldron Mercy Academy for middle school and Merion Mercy Academy for high school, where she was an active member in their brother school, St. Joseph's Preparatory's Cape and Sword Drama Society. Yanelli has credited the Society's director, Tony Braithwaite, with inspiring her to pursue a career in theater. She graduated from Merion in 2010.

Yanelli graduated Summa Cum Laude from Texas State University (San Marcos) in 2014, with a BFA in Musical Theatre.

Career
Yanelli's first major role was as Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof in the Walnut Street Theater's 2010 season, for which she was nominated for a Barrymore Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Musical.

She was an ensemble member in Connecticut Repertory Theatre's 2014 production of Gyspy, as well as their 2013 production of The Drowsy Chaperone and their 2014 production of A Chorus Line.

In 2015, Yanelli starred as Junie B. Jones in Junie B. Jones the Musical at Theater Aspen in Colorado from June 29 to August 15. Andrew Travers of The Aspen Times called Yanelli's performance: "a pitch-perfect turn as the rambunctious Junie" in the first production of the musical outside of New York stages.

She was next seen as Annette in Westchester Broadway Theater's 2016 production of Saturday Night Fever, where the DC Metro Theatre Arts wrote: "[Yanelli] has a standout moment with a stirring performance of “If I Can’t Have You.”

In the April 5, 2017 episode of Law & Order: SVU, "Know It All", Yanelli is briefly seen as a young woman at a crime scene.

Currently, Yanelli can be found at the August Wilson Theatre nightly as ensemble member Sonja Acquino in Broadway's Mean Girls, where she also understudies for the role of Janis Sarkisian. The show's ensemble, including Yanelli, won the "Outstanding Ensemble in a Broadway Show" award at the 2018 Chita Riviera Awards.