Donna McKechnie

b. 16 November 1940, Pontiac, Michigan, USA. An outstanding dancer, singer, and actress, McKechnie grew up in Detroit and decided she wanted to be a dancer after seeing the classic 1948 British film The Red Shoes. Her parents were opposed to the idea, but when she was 15 she moved to New York to try out for the American Ballet Theatre, but was turned down. There followed a brief and unhappy spell at Radio City Music Hall, before she discovered the world of the musical theatre. After touring in West Side Story in which she played one of the ‘Cool girls', and various other produ...