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For almost three decades, Michael Ball has walked the boards of the West End and Broadway, as well as appearing on television and releasing several successful albums. Born in Bromsgrove, England on June 27, 1962, Michael Ball attended drama school and, soon after he left in 1984, his big break came when he was cast as Frederic in Cameron Macintosh's production of The Pirates of Penzance. His next big role was when Macintosh added him to the cast of Les Misérables; during which Ball began to suffer from anxiety attacks. To relieve the pressure, Macintosh moved Ball from Les Misérables to another successful musical, taking over from Michael Crawford in The Phantom of the Opera. It was at this point that Michael Ball’s stage career took off. In 1993, he released his self-titled debut album, and starred as Tony in a recording of West Side Story with the Philharmonic Orchestra. His second album Always (1993), went straight in at Number 3 in the UK charts and his fifth album, First Love (1996), went Gold. Further albums include The Collection (1997), Stage and Screen (2001), and the trio of albums - Together (2016), Together Again (2017) and Back Together (2019) - with fellow British vocalist Alfie Boe. Since the release of his debut album, Michael Ball has achieved the rarely successful crossover from stage to recording to television. He still returns to star on the stage, playing Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Edna Turnblad in Hairspray, winning the 2008 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical. In 2015, Michael Ball received an OBE for his services to musical theatre. He released the album Coming Home to You in 2019, followed by We Are More Than One (2021).
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