Myrra Malmberg

Biography

Anna Myrra Malmberg (born 20 December 1966) is a Swedish singer, dancer, songwriter, and photographer.

Early life

Anna Myrra Malmberg was born in the Stockholm suburb of Farsta, and spent her childhood in Minneapolis, Minnesota and her teenage years in Stockholm, Sweden. She graduated the Stockholm High School of Music and immediately embarked upon a theatrical career. Early on she took on roles such as Maria in West Side Story, Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof and Grizabella in Cats, but also straight acting roles such as Poppy in Noises Off.

Career

In London's West End, where she was cast as Christine in The Phantom of the Opera by director Hal Prince, Malmberg also played Cosette in Les Misérables, Estella in Great Expectations and The Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. She caught the attention of Andrew Lloyd Webber and joined the cast of The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber at St Paul's Cathedral and elsewhere. Malmberg also appeared in the Royal Variety Show, broadcast by the BBC from the London Palladium, BBC's Blue Peter, GMTV and the BBC series Showstoppers, opposite Gary Wilmot.
Other roles include Eva Perón in Evita at the Gothenburg Opera, Emma Carew in Jekyll and Hyde at Stockholm's China Theatre and Maria in West Side Story at the Rome Opera in Italy and the Gothenburg Opera, Sweden.
Malmberg's Swedish TV credits span drama, including Fallet Paragon, to popular entertainment shows, such as Allsång på Skansen, Go'kväll, Söndagsöppet and Så ska det låta. She also appeared on Celebrity Jeopardy (which she won) and participated in Melodifestivalen (Eurovision Song Contest). She has also performed as a special guest star in Russia's own Eurovision in the early 1990s to 80 million viewers.
Her discography includes the Stephen Sondheim retrospective What Can You Lose, the string quartet Lloyd Webber retrospective Unexpected, a handful of bossa nova albums especially successful throughout Asia, the singer/songwriter album Serendipity×Serendipity2004 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Stars in the Sky4:462If Only Morning Would Come3:523You're Gone3:544Secret Lovers3:165Look at Me3:026Serendipity2:417Closer (To God)3:508There's Something About a Man3:209Close My Eyes4:4110Taxi Driver3:1911Rainbow Eyes5:02, plus various cast albums and soundtracks. She has been awarded a Grammy.
Malmberg's latest recording is the classical crossover, Another World. Together with the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra and internationally renowned conductor Paul Bateman she explores the musical territory between the classical and popular music genres.
Malmberg has lent her voice to a long list of Disney characters in their Swedish incarnations, including Princess Jasmine in Aladdin, Ariel in The Little Mermaid, Wendy in Peter Pan, Megara in Hercules and Norma Jean in Happy Feet.
She has written songs and lyrics for other recording artists and has translated lyrics and scripts into Swedish from English, French and Danish, including Jekyll and Hyde – the Musical for Malmö Opera.
Her photography includes portraits and album covers for various recording artists such as Benny Andersson, Berndt Rosengren, and The Sweet Jazz Trio. Malmberg has also held solo exhibits of her work.
On 14 March 1998 Myrra Malmberg competed at Melodifestivalen in Malmö with the song Julia, ending up third.

Cast recording & soundtracks

2009 – Bröderna Lejonhjärta, Naxos
2009 – Disney: En magisk värld, Egmont
2001 – Evita, Swedish cast, BMG
1997 – Hercules – Swedish soundtrack, Buena Vista
1995 – Great Expectations – Highlights Cast Recording, TER records
1994 – Aladdin: The Return of Jafar – Swedish soundtrack, Buena Vista
1993 – Aladdin – Swedish soundtrack, Buena Vista

Compilations

2010 – 100 Moments Lounge
2005 – Svenska Musikalfavoriter

Guest appearances

2005 – My Rubber Soul/Peter Nordahl Trio, BMG
1998 – Easy Listening för Masochister/Carl-Johan Vallgren, Twin