Michael Ball, Britain's leading musical star and The Variety Club of Great Britain's Best Recording Artist for 1998, has starred on Broadway and dominated many leading West End Shows for more than a decade. A proven and varied talent, Michael has won acclaim and the hearts of the public with his memorable performances on stage, film, and television.
Michael's theatre career to date boasts numerous roles including Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance at the Manchester Opera House. His star performance captured the attention of Cameron Mackintosh and led to his being offered the role of Marius in the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Les Miserables. This was soon followed by the role of Raoul in Andrew Lloyd's Webber's The Phantom of the Opera and a memorable performance as Alex in both the London and New York production of Aspects of Love. The title song, Love Changes Everything, gave Michael his first #1 hit single and it soon became his signature song. In 1996, he went on to win rave reviews for his performance as Giorgio in Stephen Sondheim's critically acclaimed new musical, Passion. In 1999, Michael was presented with the Theatregoers Club of Great Britain's award for Most Popular Musical Actor of the last 21 years.
Michael has the unique distinction of appearing on three of the four major cast recordings of Les Miserables and was delighted to be invited to recreate the role of Marius for the 10th Anniversary Gala Concert of Les Miserables. He was equally honoured to perform in Andrew Lloyd Webber's 50th Birthday Concert and at Cameron Mackintosh's tribute concert - Hey, Mr. Producer. All three concerts were released internationally on video and have been televised around the world, with Michael receiving overwhelming plaudits for his personal performances.
Other career highlights include representing Great Britain at the Eurovision Song Contest, watched live on TV by an audience of 600 million worldwide. His song entry, One Step Out of Time rocketed to the top of the UK charts and his first solo album, Michael Ball simultaneously captured the top of the Album's list. He has since experienced the thrill of watching eleven consecutive albums go Gold, including his latest release, "Centre Stage".
Since 1992, Michael has undertaken 7 sell-out UK tours, and many open air concerts including appearances at Hyde Park, the Liverpool Summer Pops, Hampton Court, and at the Chelmsford Spectacular. Other special appearances include singing at the European Youth Olympics, the 1999 Rugby World Cup Opening Ceremony, and performing for H.M. The Queen at The Royal Variety Show and the VE Day 50th Anniversary Concert at Hyde Park.
His other notable achievements include hosting two seasons of his popular television series "Michael Ball" on Carlton TV which attracted international acclaimed performers including Cher, Gloria Estefan, Monsterrat Caballe, The Bee Gees, Take That, Robert Palmer, Harry Connick Jr., Shirley Bassey, and James Brown. In 1995, Michael made his film debut starring in Tony Palmer's film England, My England playing Henry Purcell.
In 1999, Michael's video Live at The Royal Albert Hall entered the UK video charts at #1 and reached Platinum status just weeks after its release. The video was recently screened on PBS and Michael travelled to the US and underwent a promotional tour of five states. Once again, he embraced the US audiences with his incredible voice and unique stage and studio presence. In March 2001, Michael was able to fulfil a long-held career dream when he performed in a sell-out concert at the Lyric Theatre in Sydney, Australia. This was his first performance for the Australian audience and their welcome was one of the best he has ever experienced and has hopefully paved the way for a full concert tour.
In spite of his busy schedule, Michael has found time to record a charity single The Rose for the charity ROC (Research into Ovarian Cancer). As a founding member, he continues to be heavily involved in their work with sell-out fund raising concerts.
Michael returned to his musical theatre roots in 2001 by appearing at the Donmar Warehouse in his critically acclaimed one-man show, "Alone Together". This was followed by the release of his new solo CD, Centre Stage, which featured a compilation of songs from the musical theatre. Michael ended the year with a series of sold-out Christmas concerts in the UK and announced that he would be starring as Caractacus Potts in the new musical production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, set to open at the London Palladium in April 2002.