Bebe Neuwirth

Beatrice Jane "Bebe" Neuwirth ( ; born December 31, 1958) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Known for her roles on stage and screen, she has received two Emmy Awards, two Tony Awards, and two Drama Desk Awards.

Neuwirth made her Broadway debut in the musical A Chorus Line in 1980. She went on to win two Tony Awards, the first for Best Featured Actress in a Musical playing Nickie in the revival of Sweet Charity (1986) and received her second for Best Actress in a Musical for Velma Kelly in the revival of Chicago (1996). She has also starred as Lola in the revival of Damn Yankees (1994) and Morticia Addams in The Addams Family (2010). She was nominated for another Tony Award for her performance as Fräulein Schneider in Cabaret (2024).

On television, her breakthrough role was as Dr. Lilith Sternin, Frasier Crane's wife on the sitcom Cheers, as well as guest appearances in its spin-off Frasier and the 2023 Frasier revival. The role earned her two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Neuwirth was cast as Bureau Chief/ADA Tracey Kibre in NBC's Law & Order: Trial by Jury which ran for 2005 to 2006. She starred as Nadine Tolliver on the CBS political drama Madam Secretary from 2014 to 2017. She also appeared in recurring roles on Blue Bloods (2013–2019), The Good Wife (2012–2014), The Good Fight (2018–2021), and Julia (2022–2023).

In film, she portrayed Nora Shepherd in the original Jumanji (1995) and Jumanji: The Next Level (2019). Other film roles include Say Anything... (1989), Green Card (1990), Bugsy (1991), Celebrity, The Faculty (both 1998), Summer of Sam (1999), and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003).

Early life Bebe Neuwirth was born in Newark, New Jersey. Her mother, Sydney Anne Neuwirth, is a painter who also danced as an amateur for the Princeton Regional Ballet Company. she attended the Juilliard School for dance and left after only a year, disliking the school for having a "stifling creative environment" and no Broadway-style dance training. Immediately after leaving Juilliard in 1977, she took singing and jazz classes at a New York City-based YWCA, Neuwirth made her Broadway debut in the role of Sheila Bryant in A Chorus Line in 1980. She later appeared in revivals of Little Me (1982); Sweet Charity (1986), for which she won a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical at the 40th Tony Awards; and Damn Yankees (1994).

1996 saw Neuwirth play Velma Kelly in the Broadway revival of Chicago. She described the difficulty level of the role as "like performing microsurgery from 8 to 10:20." In 2014, she returned again, this time playing "Mama" Morton, making her the first person to play three different characters at three separate times during the course of a single Broadway run.

She appeared in the musical revue Here Lies Jenny, which featured songs by Kurt Weill. Neuwirth and a four-person supporting cast sang and danced to the song as part of an unspoken, ambiguous story in an anonymous seedy bar possibly in Berlin in the 1930s. The show ran from May 7 through October 3, 2004, in the Zipper Theater in New York. Neuwirth also appeared in the show in San Francisco in 2005. In 2009, Neuwirth toured a one-woman cabaret show with pianist Scott Cady. The cabaret included music by Kurt Weill, Stephen Sondheim, Tom Waits, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, John Kander and Fred Ebb amongst others. In 2010, she returned to Broadway to create the role of Morticia Addams in the original production of The Addams Family opposite Nathan Lane. In 2023, she was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame. In 2024, she returned to Broadway playing Fräulein Schneider in a revival of Cabaret, for which she received a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical at the 77th Tony Awards.

Film and television While in Los Angeles waiting to receive a Tony for her appearance in Sweet Charity in 1985, Neuwirth auditioned for the role of Dr. Lilith Sternin in the television series Cheers. At the time, Neuwirth was not interested in doing television work and her character was initially planned to be in only one episode of the series.

Neuwirth's dip into the film industry began in 1989 with small roles in films such as Say Anything... (1989), Pacific Heights (1990), and Penny Ante (1990). In 1990 she started doing supporting roles in films including Green Card (1990), Bugsy (1991), and Malice (1993), in all of which she received acclaim from critics for her performances. The producers had it edited slightly and put into a single theater for a single weekend in November 1996, and it became one of only two TV pilots to be nominated for an Oscar and, at the 69th Academy Awards, the only one to win.

Other small-screen credits include a guest appearance in the second season of NewsRadio, a small role on The Adventures of Pete and Pete (episode: "The Call"), Deadline (2000), Hack (2003), Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005) as ADA Tracey Kibre, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) as Nina Laszlo, a modeling agent/suspect, the miniseries Wild Palms, and the fourth season Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "First Contact" as Lanel.

Neuwirth appeared as herself in episodes of Will & Grace, Strangers with Candy and Celebrity Jeopardy!. In 2009, she co-starred as Ms. Lynn Kraft in the remake of Fame. She had a recurring role as Caroline Taylor, the literary editor of Jonathan Ames (Jason Schwartzman), on the HBO series Bored to Death. She also had a recurring role on Blue Bloods.

Neuwirth starred as Nadine Tolliver in the 2014 CBS political drama Madam Secretary. In October 2017, Neuwirth announced her decision to leave the series after four seasons. No reason was given. She later reprised the role of Nora Shepherd in Jumanji: The Next Level in 2019; the film grossed $800 million worldwide and received positive reviews from critics.

Personal life In 1984, Neuwirth married Paul Dorman. The two divorced in 1991.

Bebe Neuwirth was born to a Jewish family but was not raised in a religious household. She has described herself as a "cultural Jew" with no formal religious training or temple attendance, though she had some limited exposure to holidays like Hanukkah and Passover as a child.

Neuwirth has supported and worked for several non-profit charity organizations. Following two hip replacement surgeries, and after hearing stories of other dancers facing hip problems, Neuwirth was moved to establish the Dancers' Resource program at The Actors Fund, which caters to financial and physical needs unique to professional dancers. Neuwirth currently serves as vice chair on the board of trustees for The Actors Fund. She has also helped Seeds of Peace. Neuwirth is particularly fond of cats. data-sort-value="Adventures of Pinocchio, The" | The Adventures of Pinocchio Felinet data-sort-value="Associate, The" | The Associate Camille Scott Dear Diary Annie Short film

Celebrity Nina data-sort-value="Faculty, The" | The Faculty Principal Valerie Drake An All Dogs Christmas Carol Annabelle/Belladonna Voice 2019 Jumanji: The Next Level Nora Shepherd Cameo 2020 Modern Persuasion Vanessa Perry 2021 Tick, Tick... Boom! "Sunday" Legend

Don't Say Good Luck Linda Jumanji: Open World Nora Shepherd Post-production

Television Year Title Role Notes 1986–1993 CheersDr. Lilith Sternin-Crane Main cast (81 episodes)1986 Simon & Simon Receptionist Episode: "Family Forecast" Fame Phyllis Turner Episode: "Stagefright"1990 The Famous Teddy Z Donna Gates Episode: "Teddy Gets a Guru" The Magical World of Disney Dr. Lilith Sternin Episode: "Disneyland's 35th Anniversary Celebration" Without Her Consent Gloria Allred Television film 1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation Lanel Episode: "First Contact" 1992 Wings Dr. Lilith Sternin-Crane Episode: "Planes, Trains and Visiting Cranes" 1993 Wild Palms Tabba Schwartzkopf 5 episodes 1994 The Adventures of Pete & Pete Mailwoman McGinty 2 episodes 1994–1995 Aladdin Mirage Voice, 6 episodes 1994–2003 Frasier Dr. Lilith Sternin 12 episodes 1995 NewsRadio Sandi Angelini Episode: "Friends"1996 Duckman Tamara La Boinque Voice, episode: "Noir Gang" Freakazoid! Deadpan Voice, episode: "The Wrath of Guitierrez" Frasier Dr. Lilith Sternin Episode: "Freddy's Birthday"2024 Hailey's On It! Babs Cadabs Voice, episode: "Magician: Impossible"TBA Myron Bolitar Ellen Bolitar Recurring role, upcoming series

Stage

Audiobooks Year Title Role Production company 2004 Snow, Glass, Apples The Queen Audible 2020 The Sandman The Siamese Cat Audible

Awards and nominations Year Association Category Nominated work Result1986 Drama Desk Awards Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical Sweet Charity Tony Awards Best Featured Actress in a Musical 1990 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Cheers Viewers for Quality Television Best Supporting Actress in a Quality Comedy Series 1991 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Viewers for Quality Television Best Supporting Actress in a Quality Comedy Series 1995 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series Frasier 1997 Drama Desk Awards Outstanding Actress in a Musical Chicago Tony Awards Best Actress in a Musical 1998 Annie Awards Outstanding Achievement in Voice Acting, Female All Dogs Go to Heaven 1999 American Comedy Awards Funniest Female Guest Appearance in a Television Series Frasier Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie Dash and Lilly 2000 American Comedy Awards Funniest Female Guest Appearance in a Television Series Frasier 2003 Satellite Awards Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture Tadpole 2024 Drama Desk Awards Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical Cabaret Tony Awards Best Featured Actress in a Musical Outer Critics Circle Awards Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Musical