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André De Shields

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"De Shields" redirects here. For a similar surname, see DeShields.

André De Shields
De Shields in 2022
Born (1946-01-12) January 12, 1946 (age 78)
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
EducationBaltimore City College
Wilmington College
University of Wisconsin, Madison (BA)
New York University (MA)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • singer
  • director
  • dancer
  • choreographer
Years active1967–present
WebsiteOfficial website

André Robin De Shields (born January 12, 1946) is an American actor, singer, dancer, director, and choreographer. He has received numerous accolades including an Emmy Award, Grammy Award, and Tony Award.

De Shields has appeared in the original broadway casts of multiple musicals, including The Full Monty, Warp! and The Wiz, most recently and notably originating the role of Hermes on Broadway in the musical Hadestown, winning the 2019 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical and the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album for his performance. He has also appeared on television, and won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for his performance in the 1982 NBC broadcast of Ain't Misbehavin'.

Early life and education

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André Robin De Shields was born on January 12, 1946, in Dundalk, Maryland, to Mary Gunther and John De Shields. He was raised in Baltimore, Maryland, the ninth of eleven children; his father died at the age of 50, when André was 17.[1] De Shields obtained his high school diploma at Baltimore City College in 1964, then attended Wilmington College, where he starred in a production of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun. He then transferred colleges and earned his B.A. in English literature from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1970. In 1991, De Shields received his M.A. in African American studies from the Gallatin School of Individualized Study of New York University.

He currently serves as an adjunct professor at Gallatin.

Career

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De Shields began his professional career in the 1969 Chicago production of Hair, which led to a role in The Me Nobody Knows and participation in Chicago's Organic Theater Company. He performed in a number of Off-Off-Broadway productions at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in the East Village of Manhattan during the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s. These included Ken Rubenstein's Sacred Guard (1973),[2] Lamar Alford's Thoughts (1974),[3] and the Cotton Club Gala with music by Aaron Bell and directed by Ellen Stewart (1985).[4] He co-wrote (with Judith Cohen) and directed an evening of songs called Judith and the Cohen Sisters in Midnight in Manhattan at La MaMa in September/October 1984.[5] He directed a production of Chico Kasinoir's The Adventures of Rhubarb: The Rock and Roll Rabbit in 1985[6] and a production of his own work, Saint Tous, to celebrate Black History Month at La MaMa in February 1991.[7]

He made his Broadway debut as Xander in Stuart Gordon's 1973 Warp! and next appeared in Paul Jabara's 1973 Rachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don't You Ever Forget It), which closed during previews.[8] He then appeared in the title role of The Wiz, Charlie Smalls and William F. Brown's 1975 musical directed by Geoffrey Holder.[9]

After choreographing two Bette Midler musicals, De Shields returned to Broadway to perform in the musical revue Ain't Misbehavin' in 1978.[10] The original production ran for over 1,600 shows and De Shields earned a 1978 Drama Desk nomination for his performance. Three years later, he returned to Broadway to perform in Stardust: The Mitchell Parrish Musical, a musical revue featuring the lyricist's work with Hoagy Carmichael, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, and Leroy Anderson.

In 1984, De Shields wrote, choreographed, directed, and starred in André De Shields' Haarlem Nocturne, a Broadway musical revue featuring standards from the American songbook, pop hits from the early 1960s, and De Shields' own songs.[11] The revue was produced at the Latin Quarter and at La MaMa (with music by Marc Shaiman).[12] He appeared in a revival of Ain't Misbehavin' in 1988, and next appeared on Broadway in 1997 as the Jester in Play On!, a musical based on Ellington's songs. De Shields earned Tony and Drama Desk nominations for his performance.[13]

In 2000, De Shields originated the role of Noah "Horse" T. Simmons in the Terrence McNally / David Yazbek musical adaptation of the film The Full Monty. As with Play On!, De Shields earned both Tony and Drama Desk nominations for this performance.[14] In 2004, he appeared in the Broadway production of Mark Medoff's Prymate at the Longacre Theatre.[15] In 2008, he received a Drama Desk nomination for his performance in an off-Broadway production of Langston Hughes' Black Nativity. In 2009, he appeared on Broadway opposite Joan Allen and Jeremy Irons in Impressionism.[16] The play ran through May 2009 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater.

De Shields' regional theatre credits include Play On!, The Full Monty, Waiting For Godot, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Death of a Salesman, Dusyanta: A Tale of Kalidasa, The Gospel According to James, Camino Real and King Lear. In 2013, he portrayed Akela and King Louie in the world premiere of Mary Zimmerman's adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, a co-production of the Goodman Theatre and Huntington Theatre Company. De Shields received his 3rd Jeff Award (Outstanding Achievement in the category of Actor in a Supporting Role – Musical) for his role as King Louie, and garnered an Elliot Norton Awards nomination for Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor as well as an IRNE Awards nomination for Best Supporting Actor – Musical.

De Shields has portrayed Barrett Rude Sr. in The Fortress of Solitude, the musical based on Jonathan Lethem's novel The Fortress of Solitude, since its inception in 2012 at Vassar College. The Fortress of Solitude premiered at the Dallas Theater Center in spring 2014,[17] and the off-Broadway production of The Fortress of Solitude, co-produced with The Public Theater, ran through November 2014. De Shields, Lillias White, Stefanie Powers, and Georgia Engel starred in the new musical Gotta Dance, directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell. The musical began performances on December 13, 2015, at Chicago's Bank of America Theatre and ran through January 17, 2016.[18][19]

He played Hermes in the Broadway musical Hadestown, which began previews on March 22, 2019, at the Walter Kerr Theatre. He received the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for Hadestown on his third nomination.[20] He played his final performance on May 29, 2022. On January 26, 2021, it was announced that De Shields would reprise his role as Hermes in Live From Mount Olympus, a narrative podcast for tweens directed by Rachel Chavkin and Zhailon Levingston.[21] The series was produced by The Onassis Foundation and TRAX from PRX. De Shields' co-stars include fellow Hadestown cast member Amber Gray, Divine Garland, Vinie Burrows, Kristen Sieh, and more.[22]

De Shields has appeared on television on Another World, Cosby, Sex and the City, Great Performances, Lipstick Jungle, Law & Order, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. He won an Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for his performance in the 1982 NBC broadcast of Ain't Misbehavin', and played Tweedledum in a 1983 televised production of Alice in Wonderland that also featured Eve Arden, Richard Burton, Colleen Dewhurst, James Coco, Kaye Ballard, and Nathan Lane. Most recently, De Shields appeared in John Mulaney's John Mulaney & the Sack Lunch Bunch in which he sang "Algebra Song!" The comedy/musical/variety special was released on Netflix on December 24, 2019. In 2020, he played the role of Chubby, a recurring character, in the television series Katy Keene on The CW.

On December 28, 2020, it was announced that De Shields would star as Anton Ego in a benefit concert presentation of Ratatouille the Musical, an internet meme that originated on TikTok, inspired by the 2007 Disney/Pixar film. The concert streamed exclusively on TodayTix on January 1, 2021.[23] De Shields appeared in Lin-Manuel Miranda's directorial debut film, tick, tick... BOOM!, released on Netflix on November 12, 2021, as a patron of the Moondance Diner in the musical scene for "Sunday", as well as other Broadway actors such as Chita Rivera, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Phillipa Soo, among others. He also plays the significant supporting role of Jack in Netflix comedy Uncoupled, released in July 2022.

In September 2022, De Shields began performances as Uncle Ben in Death of a Salesman on Broadway at the Hudson Theatre.[24] In March 2024, De Shields was announced to be portraying Old Deuteronomy in Cats at the Perelman Performing Arts Center in the summer of that year.[25]

Personal life

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De Shields is gay,[26] but prefers to be described as "a Black man who is queer" or "a Black man who loves other men".[1] He is also a "long-term survivor" of HIV, living with HIV for over 40 years, having been diagnosed during the early AIDS epidemic after noticing his lymph nodes were swollen when shaving before a Los Angeles performance on Ain't Misbehavin's 1980 national tour and being formally diagnosed in 1991.[1][27] His partner of 17 years, Chico Kasinoir, died in June 1992 of AIDS-related lymphoma.[28] Another partner of De Shields', a man named John whom he was with for two years, died of AIDS-related meningitis in 1995.[29]

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Production Result
1978 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Musical Ain't Misbehavin' Nominated
1982 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program Won
1984 AUDELCO Recognition Award Outstanding Direction of a Musical Blackberries Won
Outstanding Choreography of a Musical Won
1991 Excellence in Black Theatre Saint Tous Won
1992 Haarlem Nocturne Won
1997 Tony Award Best Featured Actor in a Musical Play On! Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical Nominated
2001 Tony Award Best Featured Actor in a Musical The Full Monty Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical Nominated
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical Won
2004 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Prymate Nominated
AUDELCO Recognition Award Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actor in a Play Dream on Monkey Mountain Won
2007 Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, University of Wisconsin–Madison Won
Obie Award Sustained Excellence of Performance Won
2008 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Musical Black Nativity Nominated
2009 AUDELCO Recognition Award Outstanding Performance in a Musical [Male] Archbishop Supreme Tartuffe Won
National Black Theatre Festival Living Legend Award Won
2013 Jeff Award Outstanding Achievement in the category of Actor in a Supporting Role – Musical The Jungle Book Won
IRNE Award Best Supporting Actor - Musical Nominated
Elliot Norton Award Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor Nominated
Fox Foundation Fellowship Grant for Distinguished Achievement ($25,000 to support his work at the Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago)[30] Won
2014 AUDELCO Recognition Award Special Achievement Award[31][32] Won
2018 Bistro Awards Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award Won
2019 Tony Award Best Featured Actor in a Musical[33] Hadestown Won
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical Won
Drama League Award Distinguished Performance[34] Nominated
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical[35] Won
2020 Grammy Award Best Musical Theater Album Won
2023 Drama League Award Distinguished Achievement In Musical Theater[36] Honoree

References

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  1. ^ a b c Sanchez, Charles (January 3, 2022). "Inviting Death to Tea". POZ. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
  2. ^ La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. "Production: Sacred Guard (1973)".
  3. ^ La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. "Production: Thoughts (1974)".
  4. ^ La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. "Production: Cotton Club Gala (1985)".
  5. ^ La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. "Production: Judith and the Cohen Sisters in Midnight in Manhattan (1984)".
  6. ^ La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. "Production: Adventures of Rhubarb: The Rock and Roll Rabbit, The (1985)".
  7. ^ La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. "Production: Saint Tous (1991)".
  8. ^ "Warp – Broadway Play – Original". ibdb.com. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  9. ^ "Giants in the Earth: A Tribute to Geoffrey Holder". AmericanTheatre.org. October 17, 2014.
  10. ^ Wilson, John S. (February 20, 1978). "'Here 'Tis' - A Musical Bow to Fats Waller; The Cast". The New York Times. p. C13. Retrieved January 17, 2012.
  11. ^ Wilson, John S. (January 31, 1984). "Cabaret: De Shields's 'Harlem Nocturne'". The New York Times.
  12. ^ La MaMa Archives Digital Collections. "Production: Haarlem Nocturne (1984)".
  13. ^ Armstrong, Linda (August 12, 1997). "Black Fest '97: Andre De Shields Back After Play On!". Playbill. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  14. ^ Ehren, Christine (May 29, 2001). "Playbill On-Line's Brief Encounter with Andre de Shields". Playbill. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  15. ^ Murray, Mathew (May 5, 2004). "Broadway Reviews: Prymate". Talkin' Broadway.
  16. ^ Kachka, Boris (March 22, 2009). "The Impressionist: André De Shields". New York.
  17. ^ "Hopes are high and sights quietly Broadway-set for 'The Fortress of Solitude,' premiering in Dallas". Dallas Morning News. March 9, 2014. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  18. ^ Cox, Gordon (June 29, 2015). "Stefanie Powers, Georgia Engel Join Cast of Broadway-Bound 'Gotta Dance'". Variety.
  19. ^ Gans, Andrew (December 14, 2015). "Gotta Dance, Helmed by Jerry Mitchell, Extends Chicago Run; Broadway Debut Set for Fall". Playbill. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  20. ^ Hetrick, Adam (March 12, 2019). "Hadestown Begins on Broadway March 22". Playbill.
  21. ^ White, Peter (January 26, 2021). "'This American Life' Distributor PRX, Onassis Foundation & Theater Company TEAM Launch Tween Podcast Series 'Live from Mount Olympus'". Deadline. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  22. ^ Harms, Talaura (January 26, 2021). "In the News: André De Shields Voices Hermes in New Podcast With Rachel Chavkin, More". Playbill. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  23. ^ Evans, Greg (December 28, 2020). "'Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical' All-Star Cast to Include Wayne Brady, Tituss Burgess & Adam Lambert". Deadline.
  24. ^ "Wendell Pierce, André De Shields, and Miranda Cromwell Talk Death of a Salesman at 92Y October 3 | Playbill".
  25. ^ "Antwayn Hopper, Junior LaBeija, André De Shields, More Will Star in Drag Ball Cats | Playbill".
  26. ^ Teeman, Tim (April 30, 2019). "Broadway Star André De Shields on Hadestown, Tony Awards, Racism, Sexuality, and Fulfilling His Parents' Dreams". The Daily Beast.
  27. ^ Porter, Juan Michael (February 3, 2020). "Broadway Legend André De Shields Is Thriving at His Own Pace". The Body. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  28. ^ "'Mr. Wiz' eases on back to Baltimore for reprise of 1975 musical role". The Baltimore Sun. February 21, 1993. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  29. ^ Teeman, Tim (April 29, 2019). "Broadway Star André De Shields on 'Hadestown,' Tony Awards, Racism, Sexuality, and Fulfilling His Parents' Dreams". The Daily Beast. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  30. ^ "Andre De Shields Awarded Fox Foundation Grant for Distinguished Achievement; Heads to Chicago's Victory Gardens Theatre in 2013". BroadwayWorld. October 3, 2012.
  31. ^ Peterson, Tyler (November 13, 2014). "Andre De Shields to Receive Audelco Special Achievement Award at 42nd Annual Gala, 11/17". BroadwayWorld.
  32. ^ Audelco Awards "The VIV's"-2014 Vivian Robinson Recognition for Excellence in Black Theater on YouTube
  33. ^ McPhee, Ryan (April 30, 2019). "2019 Tony Award Nominations: Hadestown and Ain't Too Proud Lead the Pack". Playbill. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
  34. ^ Lefkowitz, Andy (April 17, 2019). "Nominations Announced for 85th Annual Drama League Awards". Broadway.com. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  35. ^ Lefkowitz, Andy (April 23, 2019). "Hadestown, Tootsie & Oklahoma! Lead 2019 Outer Critics Circle Award Nominations". Broadway.com. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  36. ^ "2023 Awards - The Drama League". November 3, 2022.
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