Song:Bali Ha'i
Album:South Pacific: The New Broadway Cast Recording
Loretta Ables Sayre emerged from obscurity to get a Tony nomination for her performance as Bloody Mary in the 2008 Broadway revival of South Pacific. And as has been the fate of most actresses who have played Bloody Mary, she returned to obscurity afterwards. She was born Apr. 1, 1958 in Stockton, CA. After her parents divorced, she moved with her mother and her new husband to Hawaii. He was stationed there in the US Navy. Inspired by her mom's Dinah Washington and Sarah Vaughan recordings, Loretta decided to become a singer. After graduating high school, she started working the Honolulu hotel circuit and eventually became a regular singing pop and jazz standards in hotels in Honolulu and Wakiki. She did that for twenty years. When the 2008 Broadway revival of South Pacific was being cast, the producers couldn't seem to find a Bloody Mary in New York. They held auditions in Hawaii and Loretta was cast. Other stars included Paulo Szot, Kelli O'Hara and Matthew Morrison. The show did very well and Loretta was nominated for a Tony. Since then Loretta returned to Hawaii and has appeared in TV shows that film there like Hawaii Five O. And of course she has returned to singing the hotel circuit. I don't think we'll see her on Broadway again. She obviously prefers living in Hawaii. Here's Loretta Ables Sayre performing Bali Ha'i on the 2008 Tony Awards Preview show.
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