Karen David
| Karen David | |
|---|---|
David in Cape Town, South Africa
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Karen David |
| Born | Shillong, Meghalaya, India |
| Genres | Pop |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, singer, songwriter |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Labels | AWAL |
| Website | karendavid |
Karen David is an actress, singer and songwriter, who is known for portraying "Princess Isabella Maria Lucia Elizabetta of Valencia" in ABC's fairytale-themed musical-comedy television series, Galavant, as well as Francesca "Cesca" Montoya in the BBC television series Waterloo Road, and Layla in the American action film The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior.
David also starred in Pixelface, a CBBC children's television series, where she plays Alexia, the glamorous legend hunter.
Contents
Career
Early years
David was born in Shillong, Meghalaya, India,[1] of what she calls a "Chinese, Indian and a sliver of Jewish heritage".[2] However, she was raised in Canada and then at age 17, David moved to London to study at the Guildford School of Acting.[2]
Acting
At age 20, upon finishing drama school, David joined the original cast of the West End musical Mamma Mia!. She made her professional acting debut as part of the ensemble and as understudy of Ali and Lisa. A. R. Rahman, who had been invited to see the show by the director Shekhar Kapur, asked David to assist him and Don Black in the development of the material for the Bollywood-themed musical Bombay Dreams. She performed songs on the show's US and Canada tour, and continued collaborating with Rahman at his Panchathan Record Inn and AM Studios in Chennai, India.[3]
She appeared in two short television videos, Dancers: The Trailer (2002), playing the role of Jenny, and The Paper Round (2002), playing the role of a policewoman. She then landed a role in the musical Bollywood Queen (2003), as a member of the R&B band at the story's center.[4][5] Through 2004 and 2005, she played Scarlet in MTV's Top Buzzer.
David played Lyla, a main character in the London-based film Take 3 Girls (2006). Other work during this time includes Steven Seagal's Flight of Fury (2007) as Barnes' Operational Soldier Flanders, The Colour of Magic (2008) as Liessa, the Dragonlady, and The Legend of Dick and Dom (2009) as Fairy Frampton. David appeared as the female lead, Layla, in The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior (2008), filmed in Cape Town, South Africa.[6][7][8][9]
In September 2010, David played the Spanish teacher, Francesca "Cesca" Montoya, in series six of BBC One's drama, Waterloo Road. While Waterloo Road was still airing, David landed the role of legend hunter Alexia Alderton in Pixelface, a CBBC children's comedy series about six video game characters and what they do when they are not inside their games. The second series aired on 3 January 2012.[10]
David appeared on American television with a guest role on the Fox series Touch in 2012, playing Kayla Graham. On the episode she performed the song "Three Little Birds", which was then released as a soundtrack single with Wendy & Lisa by 20th Century Fox TV Records on 28 February 2012.[11]
In February 2013, David appeared in the two-part episode "Target" of the ABC TV series Castle, in the USA. David played Sara El-Masri, daughter of Egyptian tycoon, Anwar El-Masri.[12] Whilst filming these episodes, David and a stuntman were injured when the door to the moving van they were in failed to close properly. David was placed in a neck brace, while the stuntman sustained serious head injuries.[13][14]
David has reappeared on US televisions, as "Princess Isabella Maria Lucia Elizabetta of Valencia", in the ABC television series Galavant, which premiered on January 4, 2015, for a four-week extravaganza.[12]
Music
David released her first single, "It's Me (You're Talking To)", in 2003, when she was signed to BMG Music. This single was a top 10 airplay hit in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.[15]
She collaborated with A. R. Rahman on the main theme song for the film Provoked in 2006. After working alongside Rahman to produce the soundtrack for this movie, she found herself back with him in his Chennai studio, in 2007, to write and record the song, "Alive".[16] The following year she released her first EP, The Live Sessions EP.[17] In 2009 she released her next EP, Magic Carpet Ride.[18]
In May 2010, David released the single "Hypnotize", along with three mixes and a Hypnotize Desi Mix EP.[19] The following year she released the album The Girl in the Pink Glasses. 20th Century Fox TV Records released "Three Little Birds", as sung by Kayla Graham (David), on Touch, on 28 February 2012.
In 2013 David released the EP Dust to Stars, on which she collaborated with songwriter-producers, Stefan Skarbek, Carl Ryden, Boots Ottestad, Adam Argyle and Martin Brammer.[20]
Charity work
David is active in Designers Against Aids,[21] the SOS Children's Villages Foundation,[22] and Breast cancer awareness, for which she did a fundraiser fashion show for London Fashion Week at The Dorchester Hotel.[when?]
She produced a T-shirt to raise money for ActionAid's PoverTee Day, which was auctioned off on 18 June 2010.[23] In December 2010, David released a charity Christmas EP, My Christmas List, to raise money for the housing and homelessness charity Shelter.[24]
Along with others, David painted a self-portrait to help raised funds for Face Britain, a project of The Prince's Trust Foundation.[25]
Personal life
In mid-2013, she married Swedish songwriter and music producer Carl Ryden at La Venta Inn in Palos Verdes, California.[26]
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Amar, Akbar & Tony (not yet released) | Meera |
| Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit | Penn | |
| 2012 | Red Lights | Dana |
| 2009 | Couples Retreat | Spa Attendant |
| 2008 | The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior | Layla |
| The Colour of Magic | Liessa | |
| 2007 | Flight of Fury | Barnes's Operational Soldier Flanders |
| 2006 | Take 3 Girls | Lyla |
| Provoked | Asha | |
| 2005 | Batman Begins | Courthouse Reporter No. 1 |
| 2003 | Bollywood Queen | Neeta |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Galavant | Princess Isabella | Series regular |
| 2013 | Castle | Sara El-Masri | 2 episodes: "Target" (season 5: episode 15) "Hunt" (season 5: episode 16) |
| 2012 | Touch | Kayla Graham | 1 episode |
| 2011–12 | Pixelface | Alexia | Main role, 26 episodes |
| 2011 | Strike Back: Project Dawn | Barmaid | 2 episodes: "Project Dawn #1" (season 2: episode 1) "Project Dawn #2" (season 2: episode 2) |
| 2010–11 | Waterloo Road | Francesca "Cesca" Montoya | Regular role, 20 episodes |
| 2009 | The Legend of Dick and Dom | Fairy Frampton | 1 episode |
| 2004 | Top Buzzer | Scarlet | 1 episode |
| 2003 | Holby City | Eve Hotton | 1 episode |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Dancers: The Trailer | Jenny | |
| The Paper Round | Police Woman |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | The Making of The Scorpion King 2: The Rise of a Warrior (video documentary short) | Herself | |
| 2005 | Eureka (commercial) | Police Woman | |
| 2003 | The Making of Bollywood Queen (video documentary) | Herself |
Music videos and live performances
Music videos
| Date | Song Title |
|---|---|
| Aug 2013 | Dust to Stars on YouTube |
| July 2013 | Daydreamer on YouTube |
| Jun 2011 | Superheroes on YouTube |
| Apr 2010 | Hypnotize on YouTube |
| Jun 2009 | Magic Carpet Ride on YouTube |
| Jun 2007 | Alive on YouTube |
| 2003 | It's Me (You're Talking To) on YouTube |
| 2000 | Higher and Higher on YouTube |
Remixes/radio edits
| Year | Song Title |
|---|---|
| Sep 2010 | Hypnotize : The Almighty Mix on YouTube |
| Sep 2010 | Hypnotize : The Definitive Radio Mix on YouTube |
| Jul 2009 | Magic Carpet Ride : Flavasia Desi Mix on YouTube |
| Jul 2009 | Magic Carpet Ride : Radio edit on YouTube |
Live performances
| Date | Song Title | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 23 August 2013 | Superheroes on YouTube | St Pancras Old Church |
| 23 August 2013 | Kaleidoscope on YouTube | St Pancras Old Church |
| 23 August 2013 | Heartstrings on YouTube | St Pancras Old Church |
| 23 August 2013 | Connected on YouTube | St Pancras Old Church |
| 23 August 2013 | Dust to Stars on YouTube | St Pancras Old Church |
| 7 June 2011 | Superheroes on YouTube | Soho Theatre London |
| 7 June 2011 | Slow Motion on YouTube | Soho Theatre London |
| 7 June 2011 | Pinky Square on YouTube | Soho Theatre London |
| 7 June 2011 | Tom, Dick or Harry on YouTube | Soho Theatre London |
| 7 June 2011 | Chinese Whispers on YouTube | Soho Theatre London |
| 31 March 2011 | Superheroes | The London Canal Cafe |
| 30 November 2010 | Pink Glasses on YouTube | Rich Mix London |
| 30 November 2010 | Hypnotize on YouTube | Rich Mix London |
| 30 May 2010 | Hypnotize | Indig02 Arena |
| 1 June 2008 | Pink Glasses on YouTube | Wychwood Festival |
| Jan 2008 | Magic Carpet Ride on YouTube | Royal Festival Hall |
Behind-the-scenes
| Date | Song Title |
|---|---|
| Feb 2012 | Touch – "Three Little Birds" on YouTube |
| Dec 2010 | Silent Night (ft. Navin Kundra) on YouTube |
| Dec 2010 | Baby It's Cold Outside (ft. Philip Martin Brown) on YouTube |
| Apr 2010 | Hypnotize on YouTube |
| May 2009 | Magic Carpet Ride on YouTube |
| Mar 2009 | The Chennai Sessions on YouTube |
References
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External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Karen David. |
- Pages containing links to subscription-only content
- Articles with dead external links from January 2014
- EngvarB from September 2014
- Use dmy dates from September 2014
- Articles with hCards
- Pages using Template:Infobox musical artist with unknown parameters
- Vague or ambiguous time from May 2012
- Commons category link is defined as the pagename
- Official website not in Wikidata
- Living people
- English dance musicians
- English film actresses
- Indian emigrants to Canada
- Canadian people of Jewish descent
- Canadian emigrants to the United Kingdom
- English people of Canadian descent
- English people of Chinese descent
- English people of Indian descent
- British people of Jewish descent
- Alumni of the Guildford School of Acting
- People from Shillong
- 21st-century English actresses
- Actresses of Indian descent
