Robyn Hurder is a shining example of someone who has worked hard to achieve her dreams and is now dazzling audiences in a starring turn in a hit Broadway musical in New York City.
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| Robyn Hurder, a 2000 graduate of Windham High School, is the star of the new musical "Smash" which debuted on Broadway in April. She started taking dancing lessons at a young age and expressed a desire to appear on Broadway stages as a young girl. PHOTO BY MATTHEW MURPHY AND PAUL KOLNIK |
Hurder graduated in 2000 from Windham High School and is a former member of the Windham Chamber Singers and studied dance at the Maine State Ballet.
Her mother enrolled Robyn at age 7 in a dance studio in Scarborough. She says that she liked the tap and ballet lessons there but by age 8, she wanted out to spend time playing with her friends from school. Robyn’s mother was adamant that she continue her training in dance, and when the dance studio added jazz dance that spring, her interest in choreography intensified.
When she saw the musical “CATS,” Hurder says she figured out her life’s path.
“I’m that girl – who saw ‘CATS’ and said, ‘I’m gonna do that for a living.” she told Dance Magazine in 2020.
Dr. Richard Nickerson, the director of the Windham Chamber Singers, said Hurder was a special talent.
“There are some students that, from the moment you meet them, you know they are destined for greatness,” Nickerson said. “Robyn was one of those students I knew that she could do whatever she set her mind to.”
He said that Robyn was no different in high school than she is now and that's one of the things that makes her unique.
“She is as genuine a person as you will ever meet,” Nickerson said. “She has a positive energy about her that lights up a room. She always worked incredibly hard yet never complained. She is the kind of person that everyone wants to be around because she always makes you feel like a better person. I remember her singing voice, but what really sticks out in my memory is her laugh. She truly loves life.”
According to Nickerson, while Robyn is what he calls a triple threat for acting, singing, dancing, he believes that her greatest strength is her personality.
“She works in an industry that is extremely competitive, yet has remained positive,” he said. “That's not to say that she hasn't had struggles. She hasn't let those struggles define her. It has been inspirational to watch her hard work be rewarded.”
RSU 14 Superintendent of Schools Chris Howell had Hurder as a student when he taught Biology at Windham High School.
“She was a fantastic student who worked really hard in my class to be successful in mastering the content,” he said. “It has been exciting to follow her career over the years and see how far she has gone with her talents.”
After graduating from WHS, Hurder attended the University of New Hampshire for two years before moving to New York City and auditioning for Broadway shows. In 2003, she landed a part in a national tour of “Starlight Express” and her professional career was off and running.
She was a member of the original Broadway cast of “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” in 2005. That was followed in order by parts in productions of “Spamalot,” “The Wedding Singer,” “Chicago,” “Grease,” and “A Chorus Line.” During a tour of “A Chorus Line” Hurder married her castmate and Broadway actor Clyde Alves.
By 2010, Hurder was a veteran performer and appeared in 12 more productions over the next decade before originating the role of Nini in “Moulin Rouge” at the Al Hirschfield Theatre on Broadway in 2020. That performance earned Hurder her first Tony Award nomination for Best featured Actress in a Broadway Musical.
In her next role, she won a Chita Rivera Award for Dance and Choreography as Outstanding Dancer in a Broadway Show when she appeared as Neil Diamond’s second wife, Marcia Murphey, in “A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical” in 2023.
She’s also appeared in dramatic roles on television in such shows as “The Equalizer” and “Fosse/Verdon” and been interviewed on “CBS Sunday Morning with Jane Pauley,” “The Jennifer Hudson Show,” and “Late Show with David Letterman.”
Now she is currently starring as Ivy Lynn, who plays actress Marilyn Monroe in the new Broadway show “'Smash.”
The Broadway musical “Smash” with music by Marc Shaiman and lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman is based on the 2012-2013 NBC television series “Smash” created by Theresa Rebeck. It includes songs from the TV series and original songs written for this new production. Like the television series, the musical follows the creation of a musical about the life of actress Marilyn Monroe.
Nickerson and his wife saw “Smash” last week and he said it is outstanding.
“Robyn's performance was unlike anything I've seen,” he said. “Her performance filled me with an enormous amount of pride.” <
