Francis Benhamou is an American actress. She received Lucille Lortel Award and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in the 2022 off-Broadway play Prayer for the French Republic.

Francis Benhamou
Born
OccupationActress
Years active2002–present
SpouseKevin Kane (m. 2017)

Life and career

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Benhamou was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, and grew up in Miami. From her mother's side, she is Ashkenazi, Polish and Russian, and from her father's side is North African Sephardim.[1] She graduated from the New York University.[1] She began her career starring in short films and had minor role in the 2004 drama film, Imaginary Heroes. In 2007, Benhamou played the leading role alongside Zoe Lister-Jones in the independent drama film, Arranged.[2][3] She later appeared in films Neal Cassady (2007), Breaking Upwards (2009), My Last Day Without You (2011), Big Words (2013), Listen Up Philip (2014), Women Who Kill (2016), and The Rainbow Experiment (2018).[4] On television, Benhamou made guest starring appearances on Inside Amy Schumer, Daredevil and Life & Beth.[5]

Benhamou has appeared in a number of stage productions, including notable off-Broadway productions Selling Kabul, The Profane, Invasion!; I Call My Brothers, and Motel Cherry.[5] She starred in the 2022 off-Broadway production of Prayer for the French Republic, for which she received Lucille Lortel Award and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play and Outer Critics Circle Award nomination.[6][7] She reprised her role in the 2024 Broadway production.[8][9][10][11]

References

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  1. ^ a b Rothstein, Mervyn (December 18, 2023). "She'd never played a Jewish character before. Then, a hit play about antisemitism came along". The Forward.
  2. ^ "Arranged | Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. September 11, 2016.
  3. ^ "Arranged (2007) - Stefan C. Schaefer, Diane Crespo, Stefan Schaefer | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie" – via www.allmovie.com.
  4. ^ "Francis Benhamou | Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com.
  5. ^ a b "Francis Benhamou Biography | Broadway Buzz | Broadway.com". www.broadway.com.
  6. ^ "Francis Benhamou". www.iobdb.com.
  7. ^ "Francis Benhamou – Broadway Cast & Staff | IBDB". www.ibdb.com.
  8. ^ "Review: 'Prayer for the French Republic' Is One of Broadway's Best New Plays". The New York Observer. January 10, 2024.
  9. ^ "Why Francis Benhamou Was Born to Play Her Character in 'Prayer for the French Republic'". www.tdf.org.
  10. ^ Shaw, Helen (January 11, 2024). "An Uneven "Prayer for the French Republic" Comes to Broadway". The New Yorker – via www.newyorker.com.
  11. ^ Green, Jesse (January 10, 2024). "Review: For Jews, an Unanswered 'Prayer for the French Republic'" – via NYTimes.com.
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