One of the biggest Broadway stars of her era, Bernadette Peters was widely acclaimed as the finest singing actress to come along since Barbra Streisand. Born Bernadette Lazzara on February 28, 1948, in New York City, she began singing and dancing while a toddler, and was already a member of Actors' Equity by the age of nine. By 1959, having adopted the stage name Peters, she appeared in a revival of +The Most Happy Fella, subsequently co-starring in a road tour of +Gypsy; however, she then retired from performing for a time, extensively studying acting and singing during her late-teen years.