The many talents of Broadway, concert and cabaret performer Christiane Noll By Ian Spelling

"My career so far has been a series of really cool experiences," says Christiane Noll, the talented singer and stage actress who grew up in Leonia and currently lives in Maplewood with her husband Jamie LaVerdiere and their year-old baby daughter. "I'd say a few of the highlights have been playing Mother in [the acclaimed but short-lived Broadway production of] Ragtime, singing with Placido Domingo at the Washington National Opera, and sharing a dressing room with Donna McKechnie and hearing all of her stories. I've done voice-overs for animated films like The King and I. Oh, and singing with Julie Andrews at the Hollywood Bowl. That was amazing. There are thousands and thousands of gifted, talented people, and to be one of the ones that solely makes a living doing this -- and I have a house in New Jersey and my husband and a baby -- I consider myself very fortunate."

"I'll be performing again with Julie Andrews, in London in May, and I'm lining up several other symphony concerts and one-woman shows. I actually thought I'd still be doing Ragtime, so there's been a little bit of scrambling to figure out what's next. At least Ragtime opened; that's what I keep telling myself. People say, 'Oh, I'm so sorry that closed [prematurely],' but at least we had a chance to run a while, which doesn't always happen. I'd rather open to great reviews and have something close than not open at all. At least some people will have seen it, and there's some acknowledgement of the work everyone is doing."

"My mom is still in Leonia. For shopping, we still go to anything Route 4 and Route 17. If you can't find something somewhere else, inevitably you will be able to find it in one of the seven or eight malls in that one five-mile radius. And, in terms of restaurants, we love Amarone Ristorante in Teaneck and Mo'Pho' in Fort Lee. And I still remember going to the Original Pancake House in Fort Lee."

"Leonia was a wonderful little town. They always call it a bedroom community; lots of professionals, artists, teachers and musicians. A lot of the people work in New York City, but want a small-town atmosphere and a house with a yard and trees. You could run outside and not worry about having to cross at the green and not in between. And growing up, Leonia and Bergen had incredible music and arts education programs. We got to perform and travel. I don't know if those programs still exist, but I feel so lucky to have had that opportunity."