Kristen Vigard (born May 15, 1963) is an American actress and singer. She is known for being the first actress to play the title role in Annie in its pre-Broadway run and for her two-year run as Morgan Richards on Guiding Light (1980–81). She also had a two-year run on One Life to Live (1984–85).
Vigard has appeared in two feature films, The Black Stallion (1979) and The Survivors (1983). Additionally she had roles in two TV movies, Home to Stay (1978) and License to Kill (1984), and also had guest appearances on three TV series.
She released her second album, God, Loves and Angels[4] in 2004. More recently, she was a founding member of the downtempo acoustic rock band New White Trash, which released three albums between 2011 and 2014.
Early life and education
Vigard was born on May 15, 1963, in St. Paul, Minnesota,[5] the daughter of actress Mallory Millett Danaher[6] and Ronald Vigard, who worked for 3M.[7] In the late 1960s, she moved with her family to New York City where she made her acting debut at the age of 6.[7] She was one of the first clients to be signed to the children's division of the Ford Modeling Agency, along with Brooke Shields and Ricky Schroder.[7]
Vigard went to high school at Friends Seminary in Manhattan. She then studied classical orchestration and music listening at the Juilliard School of Music Extension Program.[7]
In 1976, she created the title role in the musical Annie at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Connecticut. However, the producers soon decided that Vigard's genuinely sweet interpretation was not tough enough for the street-smart character. After a week of performances, Vigard was replaced by Andrea McArdle, who played one of the orphans.[10][11] Vigard later went on to become McArdle's Broadway understudy.[12]
In 1977, Vigard played "Crissy" in the short-lived Broadway revival of Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical. Though the show met with mostly negative reviews, Vigard received some of the best notices. The New York Times wrote, "The very best song of all, and perhaps the best performance as well, is Miss Vigard in the stony and touching saga of a teenybopper, 'Frank Mills.' Miss Vigard looks like an ancient 12-year-old; she sings in a clear, clean style that cuts most satisfyingly through the general lushness."[13]Newsweek noted, "Angel-faced Kristen Vigard is the nicest of [the] cast."[14]
Vigard made her television debut alongside Henry Fonda in the 1978 TV movie Home to Stay.[15] In 1980, Vigard was cast as Morgan Richards on the daytime soap opera Guiding Light. That same year, she appeared on the cover of People as one of the "Torrid Teens on the Soaps".[16] She remained on the show for two years.[17]
Vigard made her film debut in the 1979 film, The Black Stallion.[18] In 1983, she appeared in her first major screen role alongside Robin Williams, playing Walter Matthau's daughter in The Survivors. Although the film itself was panned by critics, People magazine described Vigard's performance as "appealing."[19]
In 1988, she released her eponymous debut album on the Private Music label.[1] It was chosen as one of the top 100 albums of the year by Playboy and reached the Billboard Top 30. Reviewer Tim Marklein of The Stanford Daily gave the album an "A+" and compared her to Paul Simon, writing that "Twenty-six year old Kristen Vigard may look young, but her debut album shows that she has as much experience merging different forms of music as Paul Simon."[6]
From 2009 through 2013, Vigard was a member of the band New White Trash, a downtempo acoustic rock band. Vigard was a founding member,[28] along with Michael C. Ruppert, drummer Andy Kravitz, and guitarist Doug Lewis.[29] The band released two albums, Doublewide (2011)[30] and Age of Authority (2013).[31][32] Following Ruppert's suicide in 2014, the band announced its intention to release a tribute album.[32]Beyond the Rubicon was released on December 11, 2014.[33]
Personal life
Vigard lives with her husband and her daughter in Taos, New Mexico,[12] where she has appeared in local plays.[34]
Blake, Doug (video interview) (2010). Andy Kravitz and the New White Trash. Venice Arts Club / Smartchannel.TV. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2015.
Schinder, Scott; Schwartz, Andy (2008). Icons of Rock: An Encyclopedia of the Legends who Changed Music Forever. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN9780313338472.
