Catherine Zeta-Jones (pronounced /ˈziːtə/ "zeeta"; born September 25, 1969) is a Welsh actress based predominantly in the United States. She began her career on stage at an early age. After starring in a number of UK and US television films and small roles in films, she came to prominence with roles in Hollywood movies such as The Phantom, The Mask of Zorro, and Entrapment in the late 1990s. She won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for portraying Velma Kelly in the 2002 film adaptation of Chicago, making her the first and only Welsh actress to win in that category. Zeta-Jones is married to Michael Douglas, who is exactly 25 years older than she is. They have two children – Dylan (named after Dylan Thomas) and Carys.Zeta-Jones' stage career began in childhood. She often performed at friends and family functions when she was younger. She was a part of a Catholic congregation's performing troupe before she was 10. During this time Zeta-Jones made her professional acting debut when she played the lead in Annie, a production at Swansea's Grand Theater. She also starred in a version of Bugsy Malone. At 14, Mickey Dolenz (of "The Monkees" fame) was visiting Wales and stopped by the Grand Theater to audition her for The Pyjama Game. He was so impressed with her performance that she was offered the opportunity to join his show for the rest of the tour. By 1987 Zeta-Jones was starring in 42nd Street as Peggy Sawyer in the West End. She also played Mae Jones in a Kurt Weill opera called Street Scene with English National Opera at the London Coliseum in 1989 . Once the show closed, the actress travelled to France, where she received the lead role in French director Philippe de Broca's 1001 Nights (also known as Sheherazade), her feature film debut.
