Bernadette Peters

Throughout her illustrious career, Bernadette Peters has dazzled audiences and critics with her performances on stage, in film and television, in concert, and on recordings. She has garnered numerous accolades, including three Tony Awards, a Golden Globe, four Emmy and four Grammy Award nominations, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Best known for her work on stage and as one of Broadway’s most critically acclaimed performers, Peters recently concluded a highly successful West End debut in the Cameron Mackintosh production of Old Friends, celebrating the life and work of Stephen Sondheim. It was recently announced that the production will transfer to Broadway for the 2025 season.

Peters starred as Dolly Gallagher Levi in the hit musical Hello, Dolly! She also starred in City Center’s Encores! production A Bed and a Chair: A New York Love Affair featuring the music of Stephen Sondheim with orchestrations by Wynton Marsalis. Prior to that, she starred on Broadway in Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music and Follies.

Peters garnered both the Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for her performance in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Song and Dance. She also won a Tony Award for her performance in Annie Get Your Gun. She received Tony nominations for her outstanding performances in Sam Mendes’ critically acclaimed revival of Gypsy, Neil Simon’s The Goodbye Girl, Stephen Sondheim’s Pulitzer Prize-winning musical Sunday in the Park with George, the Jerry Herman/Gower Champion ode to the movies Mack and Mabel, and the Leonard Bernstein/Comden and Green musical On the Town. In addition to these honors, Peters earned a Drama Desk nomination for her unforgettable portrayal of the Witch in Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods.

She also has enjoyed a career with an impressive list of television credits, most recently the Apple TV+ series "High Desert" and a guest-starring role on the NBC series "Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist," for which she earned an Emmy nomination. The popular series was made into a TV movie musical titled "Zoey’s Extraordinary Christmas" for The Roku Channel. Other TV appearances include the CW’s "Katy Keene," CBS All Access’ "The Good Fight," and Amazon Prime’s Golden Globe-winning series "Mozart in the Jungle."

Additional television credits include NBC's "Smash," and ABC's "Grey’s Anatomy" and "Ugly Betty." In addition to starring in the Lifetime TV movie "Living Proof," Peters has lit up the silver screen in more than 30 films throughout her distinguished career. She received a Golden Globe Award for her memorable performance in "Pennies from Heaven." Other film credits include "The Jerk," "The Longest Yard," "Silent Movie," "Annie," "Pink Cadillac," "Slaves of New York," Woody Allen’s "Alice," "Impromptu," "It Runs in the Family," "Coming Up Roses," "The Broken Hearts Gallery," and most recently, a surprise appearance in the popular Jonathan Larson biopic "Tick, Tick… Boom!"

Peters has recorded six solo albums, including the Grammy-nominated "I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight," "Sondheim, Etc.: Bernadette Peters Live at Carnegie Hall," and "Bernadette Peters Loves Rodgers & Hammerstein" in addition to numerous original Broadway cast recordings.

Peters devotes her time and talents to numerous events that benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Her "pet project," Broadway Barks, co-founded with Mary Tyler Moore, is an annual, star-studded dog and cat adoption event that benefits shelter animals in the New York City and tri-state area.

The American Theatre Wing honored her efforts and awarded her the Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award, which recognizes an individual from the theater community who has made a substantial contribution of volunteered time and effort on behalf of one or more humanitarian, social service, or charitable organizations, regardless of whether such organizations relate to the theater.

In November 2023, while in London, Peters presented West End Woofs, a sister organization to Broadway Barks that she co-hosted with her good friend, Elaine Paige. The event was the first of its kind in the U.K. and fostered a spirit of community among animal shelters and rescue groups.

She is a New York Times best-selling author who has penned three children’s books: "Broadway Barks," "Stella Is a Star," and "Stella and Charlie: Friends Forever." All of her proceeds from the sale of these books benefit Broadway Barks. Peters resides in New York and Los Angeles with her rescue dogs, Charlie and Rosalia.