Ava Brennan

Ava Brennan (born 7 January 1987) is an English film and theatre actress from Liverpool, Merseyside, England. She is best known for her portrayal of Nala in the musical The Lion King in the West End and in Hamburg.^[1]

Biography

Brennan grew up in Liverpool and attended Belvedere girls’ school. She trained at the Loretta Legge Theatre School in Maghull, where she learned ballet, modern dance and tap dance, and later joined the National Youth Music Theatre, appearing on stage in London aged 15 in Oklahoma!^[2]

Theatre

Ava Brennan's theatre credits, including Nala in The Lion King (West End), Luisa Vampa in The Count of Monte Cristo, Mercedes in Miami Nights, Dynamite in Hairspray, Cover Aida in Aida, and Ikette in Tina (musical), as well as appearances in Aladdin and Oklahoma!. Brennan also played the female lead Angelica in Lin Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton in London’s West End, she appears as Fantine in Boublil and Schönberg’s Les Misérables at London’s Sondheim Theatre ^{[3][4][5][6][7][8]}

In 2023 Brennan was cast in a leading role in the captivating new musical stage adaptation of The Secret Life of Bees based on the best-selling novel by Sue Monk Kidd at the Almeida Theatre in North London.^[9]

Film

Ava Brennan has appeared in the following movies: Beauty and the Beast, Mama Mia! Here We Go Again, Hellboy and Rocket Man. She also performed as a singer in the famous TV production West Side Stories: The Making of a Classic and Blue Peter. Brennan plays series regular Vee in season 4 of Top Boy for Netflix.^{[10][11][12][13]}

References

1. Hunt, Helen (2011-05-07). "Merseyside actress Ava Brennan makes her West End debut in Disney's The Lion King". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
2. Jones, Catherine (2014-05-10). "The return of the Lion Queen". CheshireLive. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
3. "Ava Brennan | West End Performers | London Theatre Direct". www.londontheatredirect.com. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
4. "Ava Brennan". InterTalent Rights Group. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
5. "Ava Brennan". Theatre Weekly. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
6. Swire, Laura (2014-05-09). "The Lion King: Ava comes full circle". North Wales Live. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
7. Ltd, Cameron Mackintosh. "Les Misérables | Welcome to the Official Website". www.lesmis.com. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
8. "BBC Radio Merseyside - Billy Butler, 28/05/2014, Liverpool girl Ava Brennan talks to Billy Butler while she's back home playing Nala in 'The Lion King' at the Empire Theatre". BBC. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
9. "The Secret Life of Bees – final casting revealed | WestendTheatre.com". www.westendtheatre.com. 2023-03-01. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
10. "Ava Brennan | West End Performers | London Theatre Direct". www.londontheatredirect.com. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
11. "Ava Brennan | Performers". Stage Faves. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
12. Anderson, Hayley (2022-03-15). "Top Boy season 2 cast: Who is joining the cast?". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-12-25.
13. Ahluwalia, Navi (2022-03-09). "Meet the Women of "Top Boy" Season 4". POPSUGAR Entertainment. Retrieved 2022-12-27.