# Erika Henningsen
**Erika Henningsen** is an American actress and singer known for originating the role of Cady Heron in the Broadway musical *Mean Girls* and for voicing [Charlie Morningstar](https://www.edgepedia.org/charlie-morningstar) in the animated series *Hazbin Hotel*. Born in 1992 in Moraga, California, she built her career on Broadway before moving into television and voice acting.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1992, Moraga, California[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941) |
| Training | BFA in musical theater, University of Michigan, 2014[2](https://meangirls.fandom.com/wiki/Erika_Henningsen) |
| Broadway debut | Fantine (replacement) in the *Les Misérables* revival, March 3 to August 30, 2015[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/erika-henningsen-499266) |
| Signature stage role | Cady Heron, original cast of *Mean Girls*, March 12, 2018 to February 22, 2020[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/erika-henningsen-499266) |
| Recognition | 2018 Broadway.com Star of the Year; Female Breakthrough Performance Award[4](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/194463/erika-henningsen-is-the-2018-broadwaycom-star-of-the-year-heres-why-we-love-the-mean-girls-star/) |
| Screen and voice work | Charlie Morningstar in *Hazbin Hotel* (2024– ); Ginny in Netflix's *The Four Seasons* (2025)[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941) • [5](https://www.broadwayplus.com/artists/erika-henningsen) |
| Spouse | Kyle Selig, married May 22, 2023[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941) |
## Early life and education
Henningsen was born and raised in Moraga, California, the youngest of three daughters of Phil and Marybeth Henningsen.[2](https://meangirls.fandom.com/wiki/Erika_Henningsen) Her interest in performance began early: at age seven she read the Jack Prelutsky poem "The Turkey Shot out of the Oven" aloud and responded to the audience's reaction, and at 14 she was cast in a local production of *Grey Gardens*, after which she decided to pursue musical theater.[2](https://meangirls.fandom.com/wiki/Erika_Henningsen)
She graduated from Campolindo High School in 2010 and earned a BFA in musical theater from the University of Michigan in 2014, winning the Alan Eisenberg Award Scholarship given to a graduating senior for outstanding talent and career potential.[2](https://meangirls.fandom.com/wiki/Erika_Henningsen) After graduating she moved to New York to audition; her early jobs included a concert production of *Show Boat* at [Lincoln Center](https://www.edgepedia.org/lincoln-center) with the [New York Philharmonic](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-york-philharmonic) and the world premiere of [Sheryl Crow](https://www.edgepedia.org/sheryl-crow)'s musical *Diner* at Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia.[6](https://www.wmagazine.com/story/mean-girls-broadway-erika-henningsen)
## Broadway career
**Les Misérables.** Henningsen's first Broadway role was Fantine in the 2014 revival of *Les Misérables*, which she joined as a replacement on March 3, 2015 and played through August 30, 2015, appearing opposite [Ramin Karimloo](https://www.edgepedia.org/ramin-karimloo).[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/erika-henningsen-499266) • [7](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65556fb15ef3e7027c4db59e/t/6595d91fa1bd2a39c7f4798e/1704319266817/Henningsen%2C%2BErika.pdf) She had played the same role in her final undergraduate production, which she described as an odd coincidence.[6](https://www.wmagazine.com/story/mean-girls-broadway-erika-henningsen)
**Mean Girls.** While she was between jobs after *Les Misérables*, Tina Fey was adapting her 2004 film *Mean Girls* into a musical. Henningsen's agent suggested her for Cady, but she was first turned down after a lab presentation to producers; she was later brought back and won the part.[6](https://www.wmagazine.com/story/mean-girls-broadway-erika-henningsen) She originated the role during the show's Washington, D.C. tryout and opened on Broadway at the [August Wilson Theatre](https://www.edgepedia.org/august-wilson-theatre) on April 8, 2018.[4](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/194463/erika-henningsen-is-the-2018-broadwaycom-star-of-the-year-heres-why-we-love-the-mean-girls-star/) • [3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/erika-henningsen-499266) Critics responded to her performance: the New York Times noted her "plenty of presence," and the New York Stage Review wrote that she "knocks your socks off in her big numbers as Cady."[6](https://www.wmagazine.com/story/mean-girls-broadway-erika-henningsen) • [8](https://nystagereview.com/2018/04/08/mean-girls-feys-film-is-very-fetch-on-broadway/)
The musical received 12 Tony nominations but won none at the 2018 ceremony, losing the musical categories to *The Band's Visit*.[9](https://time.com/5308383/tonys-mean-girls-joke/) Henningsen's own year was busier than the awards table suggests: she performed at the [Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade](https://www.edgepedia.org/macys-thanksgiving-day-parade) and the [Tony Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/tony-awards), and led the Broadway.com vlog *Too Grool for School*, which ran nine episodes plus three holiday specials and was thrice extended.[4](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/194463/erika-henningsen-is-the-2018-broadwaycom-star-of-the-year-heres-why-we-love-the-mean-girls-star/) Fans voted her the 2018 Broadway.com Star of the Year, and she won the site's Female Breakthrough Performance Audience Choice Award.[4](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/194463/erika-henningsen-is-the-2018-broadwaycom-star-of-the-year-heres-why-we-love-the-mean-girls-star/) She left the cast on February 22, 2020, and the production closed on March 11, 2020.[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/erika-henningsen-499266) • [10](https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/BWW-Flashback-Look-Back-at-Erika-Henningsens-MEAN-GIRLS-Journey-20200113)
**Just In Time.** In 2025 she returned to Broadway as [Sandra Dee](https://www.edgepedia.org/sandra-dee), an original cast member of the musical *Just In Time* at the Circle in the Square Theatre, appearing alongside [Jonathan Groff](https://www.edgepedia.org/jonathan-groff).[3](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/erika-henningsen-499266) • [5](https://www.broadwayplus.com/artists/erika-henningsen)
## Screen and voice work
Henningsen voices Charlie Morningstar, the daughter of Lucifer who opens a rehabilitation hotel for demons, in the animated musical series *Hazbin Hotel*, a role she has played since the series reached Amazon in 2024.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941) • [7](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65556fb15ef3e7027c4db59e/t/6595d91fa1bd2a39c7f4798e/1704319266817/Henningsen%2C%2BErika.pdf) She also voiced Bethany Ghostfucker in a 2024 episode of the related series *Helluva Boss* and appeared in the 2025 special *Hazbin Hotel: Live on Broadway*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941)
Her television work includes a 2024 guest role as Beatrice Cormack in *FBI: International* and a supporting turn as Ginny in the Netflix comedy *[The Four Seasons](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-four-seasons-tv-series)*, which premiered in 2025 with a cast including [Tina Fey](https://www.edgepedia.org/tina-fey), Will Forte, and [Colman Domingo](https://www.edgepedia.org/colman-domingo).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941) • [5](https://www.broadwayplus.com/artists/erika-henningsen) In a 2024 interview around a concert appearance, she said she missed the music that drew her to musical theater more than the eight-shows-a-week Broadway schedule itself.[11](https://cnu.edu/news/2024/11/25-cnu-erika-henningsen/)
## Recordings
Henningsen appears on the *Mean Girls* Original Broadway Cast Recording (2018) and on the *Hazbin Hotel* soundtracks, including the 2024 original soundtrack and the 2025 Season Two soundtrack, with songs such as "Happy Day in Hell" and "Speedrun to Redemption."[12](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/erika-henningsen/1117280299) She has also toured the United States with her cabaret show *Raise Your Standards*, a program of [Great American Songbook](https://www.edgepedia.org/great-american-songbook) material that played sold-out dates at Feinstein's in New York, Indianapolis, and San Francisco.[7](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65556fb15ef3e7027c4db59e/t/6595d91fa1bd2a39c7f4798e/1704319266817/Henningsen%2C%2BErika.pdf)
## Personal life
Henningsen married actor Kyle Selig, her *Mean Girls* co-star who played Aaron Samuels, on May 22, 2023.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941) In 2024 she appeared in the livestreamed "Broadway Rallies for Kamala" fundraiser supporting the Harris-Walz campaign.[13](https://apnews.com/article/becad1e85819fba8a2822ea8ab32ecd2)
## References
1. [Erika Henningsen, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6039941)
2. [Erika Henningsen, Mean Girls Wiki](https://meangirls.fandom.com/wiki/Erika_Henningsen)
3. [Erika Henningsen, Broadway Cast & Staff, IBDB](https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/erika-henningsen-499266)
4. [Erika Henningsen Is the 2018 Broadway.com Star of the Year, Broadway.com](https://www.broadway.com/buzz/194463/erika-henningsen-is-the-2018-broadwaycom-star-of-the-year-heres-why-we-love-the-mean-girls-star/)
5. [Book with Erika Henningsen, Broadway Plus](https://www.broadwayplus.com/artists/erika-henningsen)
6. [Erika Henningsen Is Your New Cady Heron, W Magazine](https://www.wmagazine.com/story/mean-girls-broadway-erika-henningsen)
7. [Erika Henningsen biography PDF](https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65556fb15ef3e7027c4db59e/t/6595d91fa1bd2a39c7f4798e/1704319266817/Henningsen%2C%2BErika.pdf)
8. [Mean Girls: Fey's Film Is Very Fetch on Broadway, New York Stage Review](https://nystagereview.com/2018/04/08/mean-girls-feys-film-is-very-fetch-on-broadway/)
9. [Everyone Made the Same Joke About Mean Girls at the Tony Awards, Time](https://time.com/5308383/tonys-mean-girls-joke/)
10. [BWW Flashback: Look Back at Erika Henningsen's MEAN GIRLS Journey, BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/BWW-Flashback-Look-Back-at-Erika-Henningsens-MEAN-GIRLS-Journey-20200113)
11. [Gratitude and Awe, Christopher Newport University](https://cnu.edu/news/2024/11/25-cnu-erika-henningsen/)
12. [Erika Henningsen, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/artist/erika-henningsen/1117280299)
13. [Kristin Chenoweth, Audra McDonald and Kelli O'Hara join livestreamed 'Broadway Rallies for Kamala', AP News](https://apnews.com/article/becad1e85819fba8a2822ea8ab32ecd2)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Theater and dance › Theater traditions by region › Theater of the Americas › Broadway theatre*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license