Biography
Whether under the bright lights of Broadway, appearing upon the small or silver screens of Hollywood - or even on the country music stages of Nashville - Laura Bell Bundy was at home no matter where she performed. Born April 10, 1981, Bundy was raised in Lexington, KY with nary a showbiz leaning among her family (save for her aunt, Marcia Malone Bell, Miss Kentucky in both 1978 and 1979). Still, that didn't stop Bundy (who studied dance at an early age) from appearing in a Radio City Christmas Spectacular at the tender age of nine - the same year she debuted in regional theatre. She followed this four years later with her professional film debut in Disney's "The Adventures of Huck Finn" (1993), which coincided the same year as her role in "Ruthless! The Musical" off-Broadway. More film work followed in 1995, specifically, the role of young Sarah in the hit Robin Williams vehicle "Jumanji." With TV the next medium to tackle, she appeared on "Home Improvement" (ABC) in 1996, with a repeating role on the soap "Guiding Light" (CBS) coming between 2000-2001. However, the call of the stage eventually beckoned her back - this time to Broadway - where Bundy making her debut there in 2002 in "Hairspray." After understudying in "Wicked" through 2004, Bundy later starred in the lead role of Ellie Woods in "Legally Blonde: The Musical" in 2007, where her work merited a Tony Award nomination. Later stage credits included revivals of "The Sound of Music" and "Gypsy" as well as the jukebox musical "Rock of Ages." Still, both of these creative avenues proved not yet enough for Bundy, who in 2007 debuted her first country music release, Longing For a Place Already Gone. Three years later, the first single from her follow-up CD Achin' and Shakin' peaked at #31 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The Another Piece of Me album followed in 2012. In 2010, Bundy began a recurring role as babyish news anchor Becky on the sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" (CBS 2005-2014). During the same period, she also appeared regularly on the comedy-drama "Hart of Dixie" (CW 2012-15) and the Charlie Sheen sitcom "Anger Management" (FX 2012-14), playing Sheen's therapist.
