Stephanie Lawrence, actress in stage musicals, dead at 50

Stephanie Lawrence, a veteran actress who starred in a string of musicals on the London stage, has died at the age of 50.

Stephanie Lawrence, a veteran actress who starred in a string of musicals on the London stage, has died at the age of 50.

The actress was found dead at her southwest London home on Saturday. The cause of death was not immediately disclosed, but police said it was not being treated as suspicious.

Ms Lawrence was best known for her leading role as Mrs. Johnson, a disaffected Liverpool housewife, in Willy Russell's "Blood Brothers," which played in London for four years and went on to Broadway in 1993.

She made her debut on the London stage at the age of 16, playing a roller-skating tap dancer. Her big break came in 1982, when she starred in Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Evita."

Ms Lawrence went on to star in London productions of other Lloyd Webber hits including "Starlight Express" and "Cats." She also performed in long-running stage tributes to Marilyn Monroe and Marlene Dietrich.

Earlier this year, Lawrence married Laurie Sautereau.