| Vanessa Sears | |
| Birth Date: | 1 February 1993 |
| Birth Place: | Deep River, Ontario, Canada |
| Nationality: | Canadian |
| Education: | Sheridan College |
| Occupation: | Actress, singer |
| Years Active: | 2015–present |
Vanessa Sears is a Canadian actress and singer. She originated the role of Nicola in the Canadian premiere production of Kinky Boots, which played at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. In 2022, Sears originated the role of Anaia in the Canadian premiere production of Is God Is, for which she was nominated for a Dora Award for Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role.
Sears was born and raised in Deep River, Ontario.[1] She is of Guyanese and Jamaican heritage, since her father was born in Guyana and her mother was born in Jamaica.[2] She has two brothers and two sisters. As a child, Sears contracted flesh-eating disease, where she stayed at the Ronald McDonald House while receiving treatment at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario.[3]
Growing up, Sears performed in community theatre productions of Beauty and the Beast and My Fair Lady. She also performed as an entertainer at Canada's Wonderland. In 2014, Sears advanced to the semi-finals of an international singing competition to become the Voice of McDonald's.[4]
Although she considered pursuing studies to become a veterinarian, Sears decided to pursue musical theatre and graduated from the Honours Bachelor of Music Theatre Performance program at Sheridan College.[5] As of 2023, Sears started studying to also become a musical theatre director.
Shortly after graduating, Sears made her professional stage debut in the Canadian premiere production of Kinky Boots, where she played Nicola.[6] The musical began an open-ended run at the Royal Alexandra Theatre on June 16, 2015, before closing on May 15, 2016.
In 2016, Sears starred as Dorothy in a production of The Wizard of Oz by Young People's Theatre in Toronto, for which she won a Dora Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Musical.[7]
In 2017, Sears played Edwina in a production of Passing Strange, produced by the Musical Stage Company and Obsidian Theatre.[8] For her performance, Sears won the Toronto Theatre Critics Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical.[9]
Sears made her Shaw Festival debut in 2017. After appearing in the ensemble of two productions, Sears appeared as Zoe in the Canadian premiere of An Octoroon, which played between July 16 and October 14, 2017.[10]
In 2018, Sears starred as Mary Poppins in the Young People's Theatre production of Mary Poppins, which opened on November 8, 2018, and closed on January 6, 2019.[11] . At the 2019 Dora Awards, Sears was nominated in the Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role category for her performance as Mary Poppins.[12]
During the 2019 Stratford Festival season, Sears appeared as Ronnette in their production of Little Shop of Horrors and as Dead Mum in Billy Elliot the Musical.[13] [14]
In 2020, Sears played Emmie Thibodeaux in a production of Caroline, or Change by the Musical Stage Company and Obsidian Theatre.[15] The musical, which starred Jully Black and Measha Brueggergosman, played at the Winter Garden Theatre between January 30 and February 15, 2020. For her performance, Sears won the Dora Award for Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role.[16]
Sears starred as Anaia in the Canadian premiere of the play Is God Is, which was presented by the Canadian Stage Company between May 6 - 22, 2022.[17] She was nominated for a Dora Award for Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role.[18] Later that year, she played Regan in the world premiere production of Queen Goneril by the Soulpepper Theatre Company, for which she won the Dora Award for Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role.[19] [20] Sears also played Red Queen / Ruby in a regional production of Alice in Wonderland, which earned her a Dora Award nomination for Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role.[21]
In 2022, Sears starred in her first Hallmark movie, 14 Love Letters.[22]
In 2023, Sears made her Broadway debut in New York, New York. She was a standby for the lead role of Francine Evans in the musical, which played at the St. James Theatre between March 24, 2023, and July 30, 2023.[23]
In 2024, Sears returned to Stratford Festival where she will star as Juliet in a production of Romeo and Juliet.[24]
| Year | Production | Role | Theatre | Category | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015–2016 | Kinky Boots | Nicola | Royal Alexandra Theatre | Mirvish Productions | |
| 2016 | The Wizard of Oz | Dorothy | Regional: Young People's Theatre | ||
| 2016 | Million Dollar Quartet | Dyanne | Shoctor Theatre | Citadel Theatre | |
| 2017 | Passing Strange | Edwina | The Opera House | Musical Stage Company, Obsidian Theatre | |
| Me and My Girl | Ensemble | Festival Theatre | Shaw Festival | ||
| 1837: The Farmers' Revolt | Ensemble | Court House Theatre | |||
| An Octoroon | Zoe | Royal George Theatre | |||
| Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat | Narrator | Regional: Theatre Aquarius | |||
| 2018 | The Magician's Nephew | Polly | Festival Theatre | Shaw Festival | |
| Grand Hotel | Flaemmchen | ||||
| 2018–2019 | Mary Poppins | Mary Poppins | Regional: Young People's Theatre | ||
| 2019 | Little Shop of Horrors | Ronnette | Avon Theatre | Stratford Festival | |
| Billy Elliot the Musical | Dead Mum | Festival Theatre | |||
| 2020 | Caroline, or Change | Emmie Thibodeaux | Winter Garden Theatre | Musical Stage Company, Obsidian Theatre | |
| 2022 | Is God Is | Anaia | Berkeley Street Theatre | Canadian Stage Company, Obsidian Theatre | |
| Queen Goneril | Regan | Young Centre for the Performing Arts | World premiere: Soulpepper Theatre Company | ||
| King Lear | Regan | Soulpepper Theatre Company | |||
| Alice in Wonderland | Red Queen / Ruby | Regional: Bad Hats Theatre | |||
| 2023 | New York, New York | Francine Evans (standby) | St. James Theatre | Broadway | |
| 2024 | Romeo and Juliet | Juliet | Festival Theatre | Stratford Festival | |
| Twelfth Night | Olivia | ||||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Suits | Young Jessica | S6.E10: "P.S.L." | |
| 2017 | The Beaverton | Various characters | S1.E7; S1.E10 | |
| 2020 | Too Close for Christmas | Amy Parker-Barnett | TV movie | |
| 2021 | TallBoyz | Various characters | 4 episodes | |
| Sex/Life | Kyla | S1.E7: "Small Town Saturday Night" | ||
| Odd Squad | Reporter #5 | S3.E21: "Odd Off the Press" | ||
| Y: The Last Man | Steph | S1.E5: "Mann Hunt" | ||
| Royally Wrapped for Christmas | Monica | TV movie | ||
| 2022 | 14 Love Letters | Kallie | TV movie | |
| Additional voices | Voice role, S2.E1: "Izzy Does It" | |||
| Sappy Holiday | Joy Johnson | TV movie | ||
| 2024 | Sunny's Mom | Voice role, S2.E11: "Written In The Starscouts" |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Romance in the Wilds | Abi | |
| Christmas in the Wilds |
| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | BroadwayWorld Award | Best Featured Female in a Musical | Kinky Boots | [25] | |
| 2016 | Dora Awards | Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble | The Wizard of Oz | ||
| 2017 | Toronto Theatre Critics Award | Best Supporting Actress | Passing Strange | ||
| 2019 | Dora Awards | Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role | Mary Poppins | ||
| 2020 | Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role | Caroline, or Change | |||
| 2022 | Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role | Is God Is | |||
| 2023 | Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role | Queen Goneril | |||
| Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role | Alice in Wonderland |