Laura Benanti: Actress says she went on stage while having miscarriage

Broadway star Laura Benanti has said she performed on stage earlier this week while having a miscarriage.

"I knew it was happening. It started slowly the night before," the Tony Award-winning actress wrote on Instagram.

"If it had been our first loss, or even our second, I likely wouldn't have been able to go on.

"But unfortunately, I am not a stranger to the pain and emptiness of losing a pregnancy."

She added that it was "a path I have walked before, hand in hand with my husband".

"But this time we walked it alongside some of the kindest, most loving humans I will ever have the honor to share space with," she added.

Benanti, 43, who has appeared in TV shows Nashville and Supergirl, was performing for 2,000 people on a Broadway-themed cruise, which also features Alan Cumming and Jeremy Jordan.

She continued: "Thank you to everyone in that audience for the grace your presence allowed. For lifting me out of my grief for that Holy hour...

"Thank you to my friends and fellow performers for rallying around me and so graciously accommodating my changing needs."

She also thanked the band, crew, producers and "that little soul for choosing me as your home, even for a short time".

She and husband Patrick have two children, one of whom was born last year via a surrogate.

"My husband and I are heartbroken but we will move through this together as we, and so many others, have done before," she went on.

"I share all of this, not to garner sympathy or attention, but to remind the many people and families who have and will suffer in this way that there is no shame in this kind of loss. That you are not alone. And to remind myself as well."

There was support on Instagram, including from fellow performer Randy Rainbow, who is also on the cruise. He said: "You are remarkable in every way. All my love to you and Patrick."

During her career, Benanti has been nominated for five Tonys, winning for Gypsy in 2008.