WILMINGTON – Anne Hawthorne grew up in Wilmington, North Carolina, and is thrilled and honored to come home to be the North Carolina Azalea Festival Queen Azalea 2020 to celebrate Wilmington and return to her roots. Always following her dreams and supported by her family and friends in Wilmington, she made the move to the Big Apple — NYC after graduating cum laude from East Carolina University, where she performed on Broadway in Fosse with Ben Vereen, Ann Reinking, and Bebe Neuwirth, Pajama Game, The Merry Widow with Placido Domingo, A Christmas Carol with Tim Curry, and as a Radio City Rockette. Before her success on Broadway, she spent time on the road performing in CATS National Touring Company, Animal Crackers at Arena Stage, DC, where she was assistant choreographer to Baayork Lee.
She also performed in Street Scene with Wolff Trapp Opera Co., as well as other regional theaters. Her film credits include Tribal TV series, Realization Inc., A Miracle on Christmas Lake (nominated for AMPIA Best Actress), Dark Hearts, Flirting with Forty, Heart of the Country as actor/producer, Mutant World, Picking Up and Dropping Off, The Other Woman, Undercover Christmas, Hollywood Wives, Simple Revenge. As a founding partner in Zak Barnett Studios — an acting school in Los Angeles that specializes in entertainment rooted in spirituality and activism — Anne is able to continue her life arts education and share her craft with others.
Although Anne lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with her husband, three children, and golden retriever Jackson, she spends the summer months in Wrightsville Beach so that her family can grow up sharing the same North Carolina traditions and roots that nurtured her throughout her life.
