User:MattKap6689/Jennifer Cody

CAREER

Jennifer (Jen) Cody was born in Henrietta New York (outside of Rochester, NY) and began dancing at a very early age. Jen studied acting at Fredonia State University. Her career began on the road as Dainty June in the touring production of Gypsy. She then began her career on the Broadway stage as a replacement in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical CATS in the role of Rumpleteazer (after touring with the production. Her stage career continued to grow when she was featured in Grease as Cha-Cha, Beauty and the Beast as a Silly Girl, Seussical (opposite Rosie O'Donnell), The Pajama Game, Urinetown, Taboo, and most recently playing the Shoemaker's Elf in Shrek the musical.

Regionally, Jen has also played such places like the Papermill Playhouse (Milburn, NJ) as the scene stealing ugly stepsister Joy in the musical Cinderella, and the hilarious Hildy in On The Town, as Natalie Haller in All Shook up at the Ogunquit Playhouse (opposite Sally Struthers) as well as off Broadway productions of Junie B. Jones (Junie), Andrew Lippa's THE WILD PARTY (Mae), and the acclaimed Henry and Mudge (Annie) which earned her a Drama League Nomination. She was also featured in the role of Betty in No, No Nanette at New York City Center Encores opposite Sandy Duncan and Mara Davi.

Jen has also made her mark at the esteemed Sacramento Music Circus, starring in productions of West Side Story, Bye Bye Birdie, A Chorus Line, Summer of '42 (opposite Hunter Foster),

Jen has also appeared at the Cape Playhouse at Cape Cod in productions of Moon Over Buffalo with Gary Beach, John Scherer and her longtime husband, fellow actor Hunter Foster, whom she met during Cats,(star of Urinetown, Little Shop of Horrors and The Producers).

Jen is also famous for making appearances opposite Jeff McCarthy in the roles of Little Sally and Officer Lockstock respectively; characters that were made famous in Urinetown, the Musical. They usually appear at such events as Rosie Live and the Annual Easter Bonnet Competition.

Cody has also been a part of Broadway Bares, a benefit show to raise money and awareness for BC/EFA for many years now.

Jen has also been featured on Law and Order episode Crimebusters, as Vicki Saunders, a beauty shop associate. Cody was a series regular on the short lived Untitled Paul Reiser Project, playing the sassy secretary and friend (opposite Bobby Carnivale) Clarissa.

Most recently, Jen's voice can be heard in the Disney film, The Princess and the Frog as Charlotte Le Boeuf, the spoiled yet kind daughter of Big Daddy Le Boeuf (voiced by John Goodman).

AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS

For her work on The Princess and the Frog", Cody is nominated for an Annie Award in the Outstanding Voice Acting in a Feature Production.

Jen also recieved a Drama League Nomination for her work in the off-Broadway show by Brian Lowdermilk and Kait Kerrigan Henry and Mudge.

REVIEWS

It's not easy to serve as an unofficial corporate apology while remaining totally endearing, but Broadway vet Cody pulls it off in Disney's re-envisioning of their lucrative princess franchise. Man-crazy, sickeningly rich, and desperate to be royalty, Lottie serves as flouncing counterpoint to the movie's sensible heroine, Tiana — but pretty much steals the show. —Dan Kois (The Princess and the Frog).

“diminutive comic dynamo Jennifer Cody is a hoot” --CurtainUp (No, No Nanette)

“Cody immediately wins over not only Mudge but the audience. The pint-size thesp has made a mark as a dancer-singer, beginning with a memorable turn in Andrew Lippa's "The Wild Party" …” –Variety (Henry and Mudge)

Here, Cody is two-dimensional in the best sense of the word. When she kicks, her legs seem to spring out sideways like a cartoon character; you can almost see cartoonist's lines inked in as she moves. She sings, dances and is extremely funny, bringing to mind Kristin Chenoweth's Tony-winning turn in the 1999 revival of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown" -- except Cody seems to be playing Sally, Patty and Lucy simultaneously.---Variety (Henry and Mudge)

RECORDINGS

Jen Cody's voice can be heard on the cast albums of The Pajama Game, with Harry Connick Jr. and Kelli O'Hara, Shrek, the Musical, Lippa's The Wild Party, and Taboo.

OTHER INFORMATION

After attending a call for Guys and Dolls in her early days, Cody was cut right away for not meeting the height requirement but the casting director had thought she'd be great in CATS, and auditioned her the next day.

In 2006, Cody was involved in a regional production of Urinetown in the role of Little Sally at the Ohio's Akron Carousel Dinner Theater which was accused of plagiarizing the original Broadway production (in which Cody was involved in). The case was thrown out due to insufficent evidence.