Meredith Braun

Meredith Braun (born 1973) began her career as a child actor in her native New Zealand before relocating to the UK and starring in a number of West End musicals and touring productions. Early life As a child in Remuera, Auckland, Braun appeared in numerous stage productions plus occasional television shows (The Haunting of Barney Palmer) and advertisements. Her mother studied at the Royal College of Music in the 1950s and at the age of 16 Braun moved from New Zealand to London. In 1989, Braun earned a place at London's prestigious Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts. Career She began her West End career six months later with a lead role in short-lived musical Bernadette at the Dominion Theatre. Cameron Mackintosh then cast Meredith as Eponine in Les Miserables, a role she played in both London and Manchester. In 1993, she was cast as Betty Schaeffer in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical version of Sunset Boulevard. Having been part of an audition process that involved 300 other potential actresses, Lloyd Webber said of Meredith "When I saw Meredith and heard her I knew she was going to be a star".