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Merle Louise, Broadway star who collaborated with Sondheim, dies at 90

Merle Louise, an actress who starred in "Gypsy," "Sweeney Todd" and other Stephen Sondheim musicals on Broadway, has died at age 90. Photo courtesy of Pixnio
Merle Louise, an actress who starred in "Gypsy," "Sweeney Todd" and other Stephen Sondheim musicals on Broadway, has died at age 90. Photo courtesy of Pixnio

Jan. 17 (UPI) -- Merle Louise, a Broadway star best known for her collaborations with Stephen Sondheim, has died.

The actress died Jan. 11 in New York City, her family announced in an obituary. She was 90.

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Louise, born Merle Louise Letowt, originated the role of Thelma in Sondheim's musical Gypsy, which opened on Broadway in 1959. She played the lead role of Dainty June in later productions.

Louise appeared in three other Sondheim musicals, portraying Susan in Company (1970), "The Beggar Woman" in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1979), and the roles of Cinderella's mother, Granny, and the Giantess in Into the Woods (1987).

These collaborations make her the only performer to have appeared in the original Broadway casts of four of Sondheim's musicals, according to Deadline.

Louise's other theater credits include Charlotte Sweet (1982), La Cage aux Folles (1983), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1993) and Billy Elliot (2008).

In addition, she was featured in the televised production of Into the Woods and a documentary about the original cast album of Company.

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Louise's family remembered her as "a dynamic force of nature -- energetic, funny, adventurous, and full of life."

Beyond her acting career, Louise was an "avid traveler and scuba diver" whose accomplishments included climbing to the base camp of Mount Everest.

She is survived by three children, son Matt Simon and daughters Laura and Heather Simon, her sister, Jane Halteman, and her brother, Alvin "Butch" Letowt Jr.

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