Sondra Lee, who starred in the original productions of Peter Pan and Hello Dolly!, passed away on Feb. 23 at the age of 97.
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Rev. Joshua Ellis, a colleague and friend of Lee’s, confirmed the news.
Born in September 1928, Lee went into show business in 1946 and first performed on Broadway in 1947. She appeared in various Broadway productions, including High Button Shoes, Jermone Robbins’ Ballet: USA, Sunday in New York, and Hello Dolly.
She performed as Tiger Lilly in the San Francisco production of Peter Pan in 1954. She also portrayed Daisy in the production of Bloomer Girl.
Along with Broadway productions, Lee appeared in television shows, including Once Upon a Tune and Starlit Time. She did choreography for The Voice of Firestone and performed in the NBC production of Hansel and Gretel in 1958.
Decades after her rise in Broadway, Lee directed hillbilly Women at the Arclight Theater. The film, based on Kath Kahn’s book of the same name, followed six women in Appalachia, each with a different life story to share.
Lee was previously married to fellow actor Sidney Armus, who passed away in 2002. The couple did not appear to have any children.
Sondra Lee Once Opened Up About Her Production of ‘Peter Pan’
During a 2014 interview with the New York Post, Lee spoke out about how her production of Peter Pan aged over the years.
“There was no such thing as political correctness when we did the show,” she recalled. “The song is about word games, and kids play word games all the time… People come up to me all the time and say, ‘Ugg-a-Wugg’! They love it. If you have a classic, don’t mess with it. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”
She also planned not to watch the 2014 NBC production of the famous musical.
“I just can’t bear it,” Lee stated. “I wish them well, but I have such wonderful memories of ours, of Jerry Robbins, his dances, his mind, of Mary and the adorable Cyril.”
“The only person I’d be fascinated to see is Chris,” she continued, referring to Christopher Walken, who played Hook. “Because he’s a song-and-dance man and he’s insane. Cyril was silly. Chris will be silly, but also demented.”
