Actors - Michael Ball

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	Actors - Michael Ball

Michael Ball (born Michael Ashley Ball, on 27 June, 1962 in Leicester) is an actor and singer, best known for musical theatre roles such as Marius in Les Misérables, Alex in Aspects of Love, and Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Although born in England, Michael Ball is half Welsh (his mother comes from the Welsh Valleys). He studied Drama at the and graduated in 1984. After a brief stint in Rep, Cameron Mackintosh saw him and cast him as Marius in Les Miserables. Next came Raoul in the second casting of Phantom of the Opera, and Alex in Aspects of Love, both in London and on Broadway, and Giorgio in Stephen Sondheim's London production of Passion. Alone Together was Michael's one man show first performed at The Donmar Warehouse (it was reprised in 2004 for the Singular Sensations season at the Haymarket). In 2002 Michael took on the role of Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. In 2005, at 10 days' notice, he replaced Michael Crawford (after he had to leave the show due to ill health) as Count Fosco in Woman in White and gave a popular and critically-acclaimed performance.

Other performances include singing at the BBC's St David's Day concert, at the Les Misérables Tenth Anniversary Concert in 1995, and the fiftieth birthday party of Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1998. He is a dramatic baritone known for his range, expression and power.

Michael is an accomplished concert artist and tours frequently around the UK. He has also performed concerts in Australia and America. Since reaching the top of the British charts with "Love Changes Everything" (from Aspects of Love) Michael had small successes with follow up singles but in the main he has concentrated on releasing albums, all of which easily achieved Gold status within weeks. In the case of The Movies album in 1998, Platinium in 7 weeks. Michael represented the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest 1992, singing the song "One Step Out of Time", which finished second.

Michael has also turned his hand to presenting both on tv and radio and has presented The National lottery, Children in Need, This Morning on TV and on radio his own Ball over Broadway (which is in its fourth season), The Greenroom, and several specials for Radio 2 on subjects such as Nat King Cole, Cameron Mackintosh, and Cy Coleman.

In September, 2005 Michael made his NYC Opera debut as Reginald Bunthorne in Gilbert and Sullivan's Patience with the New York City Opera.

In November, 2005, Michael returned to Broadway as Count Fosco in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical The Woman in White, which transferred from London's West End. However, he was forced to leave the show due to the same health problems that had caused Michael Crawford to exit the show in London. The show closed soon after due to the health problems of Ball and leading lady Maria Friedman.

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