Lauri Peters

About

Lauri Peters (born July 1943, also known as Patti Peterson) is an American actress and dancer in theatre, film, and television.

Lauri Peters was born to Mr. and Mrs. Harold Peterson. She has three older brothers, Harold Jr., Victor, and Sidney. The Peterson family moved to Cleveland, Ohio when Peters was a year old. Having studied dance from a young age, Peters moved to New York City as a teenager to pursue ballet. She was known as Patti Peterson.

Peters made her Broadway debut in 1958 as a replacement in the children’s ensemble in Say, Darling. She was credited as Laurie Peterson (there was already a Patti Peterson registered with Actors Equity). Say, Darling closed in January 1959, and two months later she opened in her second Broadway show, First Impressions, this time billed as Lauri Peters. In the fall of 1959, Peters created the role of Liesl Von Trapp in the original Broadway production of The Sound of Music. She received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical, which she shared with her sibling castmates. She was married to actor Jon Voight (1962–67), whom she met when he joined the cast as Nazi messenger boy Rolfe, with…