JO SULLIVAN LOESSER became one of the musical theatre's most radiant stars with her legendary performances as Rosabella in the landmark Frank Loesser Broadway musical, The Most Happy Fella, and as Polly opposite Lotte Lenya in the long-running, classic New York production of The Threepenny Opera.
At the pinnacle of her career, however, she married composer Frank Loesser and left the stage for seventeen years, devoting herself to her husband and to raising their two daughters, Hannah and Emily. After his untimely death, she returned to performing in 1977, choosing to honor her late husband with an acclaimed salute to him at the famed Ballroom in New York City.
A "vigilant keeper of the flame," Jo toured the country as Sarah Brown in Guys & Dolls, and re-created her role of Rosabella in The Most Happy Fella. She co-produced and starred in the Broadway musical, Perfectly Frank, and spent two years developing the revue, I Hear Music…of Frank Loesser and Friends, in which she starred Off-Broadway. But Frank Loesser wasn't her only theatrical inspiration: regional audiences have been delighted by her performances in A Little Night Music and The King and I, among others. She starred with John Raitt and Kitty Carlisle Hart in Yes, There Were Giants.
She has appeared in concert with numerous major symphony orchestras across the country, but especially enjoyed being guest artist with Skitch Henderson's New York Pops Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. She has sung at several galas at the Kennedy Center and has been a nightclub favorite, headlining at such prestigious spots as The Russian Tea Room, The Ballroom and Michael's Pub. Jo and her youngest daughter, Emily, appeared together in the Off-Broadway revue, Together Again for the First Time, and have also teamed up for concerts, club dates and recording sessions. They toured together in the Frank Loesser musical, Where's Charley?
Above all, Jo has continued to be a catalyst in preserving and furthering her husband's great musical legacy. She served as Artistic Associate for the highly acclaimed Broadway revival of The Most Happy Fella, as well as the New York City Opera production. She was instrumental in getting Guys and Dolls, which won the 1992 Tony Award for Best Revival, and How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, which starred Matthew Broderick, revived on Broadway, where both shows enjoyed rave reviews and record-breaking runs. Jo and her family recorded "Loesser by Loesser," a compilation of Loesser songs both familiar and obscure. She worked with DRG to release "An Evening with Frank Loesser," a collection of never-before-released "demo" recordings that Frank Loesser himself made for his musicals. She also arranged for Jay Records in England to record new, complete CD versions of Guys and Dolls and The Most Happy Fella, with Emily Loesser starring on both recordings.
Most recently, Jo helped to guide a production of Frank Loesser's final musical, Senor Discretion Himself, mounted at the Arena Stage in Washington D.C. and the winner of the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Resident Musical of 2005. She has just returned from London, where a new production of Guys and Dolls is a smash hit once again. Mrs. Loesser's upcoming project is a full-scale stage version of his classic film musical, Hans Christian Andersen, with a new book by Maury Yeston, scheduled to open in London in 2006. Jo Sullivan Loesser has long been an active member of the Board of Directors of the American Theatre Wing.
