Evelyn Laye

Evelyn Laye (London, 1900-1996) was an English soprano associated above all with operetta and the musical theatre of the West End. Her career spanned almost eight decades, up to her final stage appearances in 1992.

She made her debut in 1915 in Brighton as Nancy Ping in Mr Wu, and appeared in London in 1918 at the Gaiety in The Beauty Spot. During the 1920s she went on to lead roles in productions such as The Merry Widow, Madame Pompadour and The New Moon. The role of Sari Linden in Noël Coward's Bitter Sweet was written with her in mind; although she did not premiere it, she took it to Broadway in 1929, where it was a great success. After several tours through much of the 1940s and early 1950s, she returned to the West End with Wedding in Paris (1954), and later appeared in Charlie Girl and Phil the Fluter, both from 1969. In 1979 she played Mme Arnfeldt in Sondheim's A Little Night Music.

She also worked in film. In The Night is Young (1936) she introduced the song "When I Grow Too Old to Dream" by Romberg. She was appointed CBE in 1973 and published her autobiography, Boo, to my Friends, in 1958.