Idina Menzel

Menzel with then-husband Taye Diggs in 2011, photo by Prphotos.com

Birth Name: Idina Kim Mentzel

Place of Birth: Manhattan, New York City, New York, U.S.

Date of Birth: May 30, 1971

Ethnicity: Ashkenazi Jewish

Idina Menzel is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She is one of the most successful Broadway performers of her time, and is also known for voicing Elsa in the Frozen empire, and for the films Rent, reprising her stage role, Ask the Dust, Enchanted, and Cinderella (2021).

Idina is the daughter of Helene and Stuart Mentzel. She was born into a Jewish family, of Polish Jewish and Russian Jewish descent. She changed her name from Mentzel to Menzel because of frequent mispronunciations. Idina was raised mostly in Syosset, New York, on Long Island. She worked as a wedding and Bar Mitzvah singer as a teenager.

Idina is married to actor and singer Aaron Lohr. She has a son with her former husband, actor and singer Taye Diggs.

Idina was named after her great-grandmother Ida.

Idina’s paternal grandfather was Zelig Mentzel (the son of Adam Mentzel and Sarah Shapiro). Zelig was born in New York, to parents from Warsaw, Warszawa, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland.

Idina’s paternal grandmother was named Sarah Hassan. Sarah was born in New York.

Idina’s maternal grandfather was Nathan “Nat” Goldberg (the son of Mordche Kuschnier and Celia Rozinksky). Nathan was born in New York. Mordche was born in Haisyn, Vinnyts’ka oblast, Ukraine, the son of Meir/Mayer Kuschnier and Rachel Cohen.

Sources: http://www.nytimes.com

Genealogy of Idina Menzel – https://www.geni.com

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