Carole Shelley to Be Honored by Broadway

Select Broadway theaters will dim their lights in memory of the Tony-winning actor, who passed away at the age of 79.

Editorial Staff
Lights will dim at Broadway theaters significant to the career of Carole Shelley on Wednesday, September 6 at 6:45pm.
Lights will dim at Broadway theaters significant to the career of Carole Shelley on Wednesday, September 6, at 6:45pm.
(© Tristan Fuge)

The Committee of Theatre Owners will dim the lights of the Gershwin Theatre, the Walter Kerr Theatre, the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, and the Imperial Theatre in memory of Tony Award winner Carole Shelley, who died on Friday, August 31, at age 79. Lights will dim on Wednesday, September 5, at exactly 6:45pm for one minute.

Each of the theaters dimming lights in Shelley's memory holds significance in her career. She made her Broadway debut in 1965 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (formerly the Plymouth Theatre) in The Odd Couple. At the Gershwin Theatre, she originated the role of Madame Morrible in Wicked (2003) and appeared in Show Boat (1994). She received a Tony nomination in 2009 for her performance in Billy Elliot: The Musical at the Imperial Theatre. And she was last seen on Broadway in 2015 at the Walter Kerr in A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder.

"Carole Shelley was as skilled at the repartee of The Odd Couple as the heartbreak of The Elephant Man and the outsized joy of Show Boat; as indelible in plays as in musicals," said Thomas Schumacher, chairman of the Broadway League. "During an extraordinary 50-year Broadway career, she originated characters that stood the test of time and earned the devotion of anyone who worked with her. She will be greatly missed. Our thoughts are with her family and friends."