The Understudy, Ellen Tovatt Leary
The Understudy, Ellen Tovatt Leary
1 Rating(s)
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The Understudy
A Novel

Author: Ellen Tovatt Leary

Narrator: Molly Kidder

Unabridged: 7 hr 23 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/16/2021

Categories: Fiction, Women, Romance

Synopsis

The Understudy is the story of Nina Landau, an actress living in New York City in the early ’70s and trying hard to make it on Broadway. We follow her from her Broadway audition nerves to her eventual success on stage. Along the way we discover what goes on backstage during a Broadway show, how actors deal with the mistakes that occasionally occur, and how exciting it is to be at an opening night party at Sardi’s! Nina experiences thrilling triumphs as well as crushing setbacks and has a passionate love affair with her leading man.

About Ellen Tovatt Leary

Ellen Tovatt Leary spent twenty years acting on the professional stage. She performed in theaters from the Ahmanson in Los Angeles to the State Theater in Lincoln Center. She graduated from Antioch College and was a Fulbright scholar at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. She was a staff writer at Carnegie Hill News in New York for fourteen years and has published short stories as well as poems. A native New Yorker, she currently resides with her husband in LA.

About Molly Kidder

Molly Kidder was born and raised in Chicago where she began acting as a child in a production at the Goodman Theater directed by Robert Falls. She is a graduate of Connecticut College where she studied at the National Theater Institute and in Saint Petersburg, Russia. She had a recurring role on Grey’s Anatomy for three seasons and can be seen and heard in numerous television commercials. She has voiced campaigns for clients as varied as Discover Card, Nintendo, and Crystal Light.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Nicole on August 23, 2020

I feel like I went on this rollercoaster ride of being an actor means right along with Nina. It so viscerally conveys the ups and downs, the fears and triumphs, the fatigue and adrenaline of a new play, from the audition right through to opening night, the run to closing, and the 'what comes next'.......more

Goodreads review by Cheryl on November 20, 2020

Ellen Tovatt Leary's book, The Understudy, is the story of aspiring Broadway actor, Nina Landau, whose dream, for as long as she can remember, has always been, to play the lead role in a Broadway play. When the book begins, Nina is getting ready to go for "another" audition. Her friends encourage he......more

Goodreads review by Elisa on September 05, 2020

This was more of a fairytale about an actor's life in New York than anything remotely realistic. The characters were little more than ciphers, with each plot development like one stepping stone in front of the other. Absolutely nothing was surprising. As an actor, of course it was interesting to a po......more

Goodreads review by Rebecca Leary Safon on November 24, 2020

I loved everything about this book! The setting, the characters, the story. Ellen Leary has really captured the voice of her protagonist and the heartbeat of New York City in the ‘70s. This is a must-read for theatre-lovers, devotees of all things NYC, and of course, actors and anyone Broadway Bound......more

Goodreads review by Anne on August 11, 2020

This was a very good, enjoyable story about life and love in the American theater. I’ve been a theater nerd for decades, and I really enjoyed a glimpse into behind the scenes from point of view of one actress.......more

Quotes

“There are so many things to enjoy about this book…It’s all there—witty, funny, and deeply touching.” Joyce Van Patten, American stage, film, and television actress

“Ellen Tovatt Leary clearly and lovingly lays out the high wire act of a woman struggling to balance her acting career ambition with a life fully lived.” Andrew Robinson, stage, film, and television actor

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