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Audra McDonald

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Audra McDonald
McDonald at the 74th Tony Awards in 2021
Born (1970-07-03) July 3, 1970 (age 54)
West Berlin, West Germany
(now Berlin, Germany)
EducationJuilliard School (BM)
Occupations
  • Actress
  • singer
Years active1994–present
Spouses
  • Peter Donovan
    ​
    ​
    (m. 2000; div. 2009)​
  • ​
    (m. 2012)​
Children4
AwardsFull list
McDonald's speaking voice
on researching for the role of Billie Holiday

Audra Ann McDonald[1] (born July 3, 1970)[2] is an American singer and actress. Primarily known for her work on the Broadway stage, she has won six Tony Awards, more performance wins than any other actor, and is the only person to win in all four acting categories.[note 1] In addition to her six Tony Awards she has received numerous accolades including two Grammy Awards, and an Emmy Award. She was honored with the National Medal of Arts in 2016 from President Barack Obama, and was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2017.[3]

She has performed in musicals, operas, and dramas. She has received six Tony Awards for her roles in Carousel (1994), Master Class (1996), Ragtime (1998), A Raisin in the Sun (2004), Porgy and Bess (2012), and Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill (2014). Her other Tony-nominated roles were in Marie Christine (2000), 110 in the Shade (2007), Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune (2020), and Ohio State Murders (2023).

On television, she portrayed Dr. Naomi Bennett in the ABC series Private Practice from 2007 to 2011, and Liz Lawrence in The Good Wife and its spinoff series The Good Fight. She received Primetime Emmy Award nominations for her roles in Wit (2001), A Raisin in the Sun (2008), and Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill (2016). She won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Program for hosting Live from Lincoln Center (2015). On film, she has acted in Ricki and the Flash (2015), Beauty and the Beast (2017), Respect (2021), and Rustin (2023).

As a classical soprano, she has performed in staged operas with the Houston Grand Opera and the Los Angeles Opera, and in concerts with symphony orchestras like the Berlin Philharmonic and New York Philharmonic. Her recording of Kurt Weill's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny (2008) with the Los Angeles Opera won the Grammy Award for Best Classical Album and the Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording. She maintains an active concert and recording career throughout the United States performing genres ranging from jazz standards to musical theatre.

Early life and education

[edit]

McDonald was born in West Berlin, West Germany, the daughter of American parents, Anna Kathryn (Jones), a university administrator, and Stanley James McDonald Jr., a high school principal.[1][4] At the time of her birth, her father was stationed with the United States Army. McDonald was raised in her father's native Fresno, California, the elder of two daughters; her sister, Alison, writes and directs for television and film. McDonald graduated from the Roosevelt School of the Arts program within Theodore Roosevelt High School in Fresno.[5]

She got her start in acting with Dan Pessano and Roger Rocka's Good Company Players, beginning in their junior company. In a feature article about her written when she was a child, she said that she knew she wanted to be involved in theater "when I had my first chance to perform with the Good Company Players Junior Company." She also said that the people who have had the most impact on her life are "Good Company director Dan Pessano and my mother."[6] She studied classical voice as an undergraduate under Ellen Faull at the Juilliard School,[7] graduating in 1993.[8]

Career

[edit]

1992–1999: Early work and breakthrough

[edit]
McDonald in 1998

McDonald made her Broadway debut as a replacement portraying Ayah in the musical The Secret Garden in from 1992 to 1993. For her role as Carrie Pipperidge in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel (1994), she won her first Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. The following year she played Sharon Graham in the Terrence McNally play Master Class (1995) earning her second Tony Award this time for Best Featured Actress in a Play. From 1997 to 1999 she played Sarah acting in 20th Century musical written by McNally, Ragtime at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts. She won her third Tony for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. In 1999 she played Marie Christine L'Adrese in the musical Marie Christine on Broadway and The Beggar Woman in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center.[9]

McDonald has also made many television and film appearances, both musical and dramatic. In 1996 she made her film acting debut in Seven Servants by Daryush Shokof.[10] After being cast in The Object of My Affection and Cradle Will Rock, in 1999, she appeared on the television series Homicide: Life on the Street; in television remake of Annie as Daddy Warbucks's secretary & soon-to-be wife, Miss Farrell; and in the television film Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years. In 2000, McDonald acted in two episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and in the television film The Last Debate.

2000–2010: Broadway stardom and acclaim

[edit]

McDonald was a three-time Tony Award winner by age 28 for her performances in Carousel, Master Class, and Ragtime, placing her alongside Shirley Booth, Gwen Verdon and Zero Mostel by accomplishing this feat within five years. She was nominated for another Tony Award for her performance in Marie Christine before she won her fourth in 2004 for her role in A Raisin in the Sun, placing her in the company of then four-time winning actress Angela Lansbury. She reprised her Raisin role for a 2008 television adaptation, earning her a second Emmy Award nomination. On June 10, 2012, McDonald scored her fifth Tony Award win for her portrayal of Bess in Broadway's The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, thus tying Angela Lansbury and Julie Harris.[11] Her 2014 performance as Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill earned McDonald her sixth Tony award and made her the first person to win all four acting categories.

In 2001, she received her first Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for the HBO film Wit, which starred Emma Thompson and was directed by Mike Nichols.[12] In 2003, McDonald starred as Sarah Langley in It Runs in the Family,[13] and as Jackie Brock in nine episodes of short-lived Mister Sterling.[14] From 2005 to 2006, she acted in several television series and films, such as The Bedford Diaries and Kidnapped, while from 2007 to 2013 she played Dr. Naomi Bennett in Private Practice, a spinoff of Grey's Anatomy, replacing Merrin Dungey, who played the role in the series pilot.[15][16] She sang with the New York Philharmonic in the annual New Year's Eve gala concert on December 31, 2006, featuring music from the films; it was televised on Live from Lincoln Center by PBS.[17]

She has a close working relationship with composer Michael John LaChiusa who has written several works for her, including the Broadway musical Marie Christine, the opera Send (who are you? i love you), and The Seven Deadly Sins: A Song Cycle. With her full lyric soprano voice,[18] McDonald appeared as Lizzie in the Roundabout Theatre Company's 2007 revival of 110 in the Shade, directed by Lonny Price at Studio 54, for which she shared the Drama Desk Award for Best Actress in a Musical with Donna Murphy.[19] On April 29, 2007, while she was in previews for the show, her father was killed when an experimental aircraft he was flying crashed north of Sacramento, California.[20]

McDonald is known for defying racial typecasting in her various Tony Award-winning and -nominated roles. Her performances as Carrie Pipperidge in Nicholas Hytner's 1994 revival of Carousel, Lizzie Curry in Lonny Price's 2007 revival of 110 in the Shade, and Rose in George C. Wolfe's forthcoming revival of Gypsy have made her the first Black woman to portray those traditionally white roles in a major Broadway production. Of her groundbreaking work in encouraging diversity in musical theatre casting, she said in an interview for The New York Times, "I refuse to be stereotyped. If I think I am right for a role I will go for it in whatever way I can. I refuse to say no to myself. I can't control what a producer will do or say but I can at least put myself out there."[21] In a Talk of the Nation interview on NPR, Asian-American actor Thom Sesma said McDonald's performance in Carousel "transcended any kind of type at all", proving her to be "more actress than African-American."[22]

McDonald has also performed in opera. In 2006 she made her opera debut at the Houston Grand Opera performing Francis Poulenc's La voix humaine and the world premiere of Michael John LaChiusa's one-woman opera Send (who are you? I love you).[23] She had previously performed in the world premiere of John Adams' I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky which was given in concert, and can be heard on the 1997 recording of the opera. In 2007 she performed the role of Jenny Smith in Kurt Weill's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny at the Los Angeles Opera.[24] Her performance was recorded and won the Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording in 2009. In 2008, McDonald starred as Ruth Younger in the critically acclaimed television film A Raisin in the Sun,[25] and was nominated at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie,[26] and at the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie.[27]

2011–2019: Career expansion

[edit]

She appeared in a revised version of George Gershwin's opera Porgy and Bess, at the American Repertory Theatre (in Cambridge, Massachusetts) from August through September 2011, and recreated the role on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, which opened on January 12, 2012, and closed on September 23, 2012.[28] For this role, McDonald won her fifth Tony Award and her first in a Leading Actress category.[29] This American Repertory Theater production was "re-imagined by Suzan-Lori Parks and Diedre Murray as a musical for contemporary audiences."[30]

McDonald portrayed Billie Holiday on Broadway in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill (2014)

Since 2012, McDonald has served as host for the PBS series Live from Lincoln Center,[31] for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Class Program with the show's producers for Sweeney Todd, aired in 2015.[32] In 2013, McDonald appeared in the HBO documentary Six by Sondheim,[33] and she played Mother Abbess in the 2013 NBC live television production of The Sound of Music Live!.[34][35] In 2014, she was featured in Lynn Nottage's short play Poof!, alongside Tonya Pinkins. It was produced for radio and podcast by Playing On Air.[36] She appeared at the Williamstown Theatre Festival, Williamstown, Massachusetts, in Eugene O'Neill's play A Moon for the Misbegotten in August 2015, co-starring with her husband Will Swenson.[37] In 2016, McDonald starred on Broadway as the vaudeville performer Lottie Gee in a new musical titled Shuffle Along, or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed about the making of the 1921 musical Shuffle Along.[38] Shuffle Along closed on July 24, 2016, and McDonald began a maternity hiatus at that time.[39][40] In 2019 McDonald played as Frankie in Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune at the Broadhurst Theatre,[41] earning her ninth Tony Award nomination for her performance for Best Actress in a Play.[42]

McDonald played Billie Holiday on Broadway in the play Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill in a limited engagement that ended on August 10, 2014.[43] After previews that began on March 25, 2014, the play opened at the Circle in the Square Theatre on April 13, 2014.[43] Of the play, McDonald said in an interview, "It's about a woman trying to get through a concert performance, which I know something about, and she's doing it at a time when her liver was pickled and she was still doing heroin regularly...I might have been a little judgmental about Billie Holiday early on in my life, but what I've come to admire most about her – and what is fascinating in this show – is that there is never any self-pity. She's almost laughing at how horrible her life has been. I don't think she sees herself as a victim. And she feels an incredible connection to her music – she can't sing a song if she doesn't have some emotional connection to it, which I really understand".[43]

McDonald in 2018

McDonald won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for this role, making her the first person to earn six Tony Award wins for acting (not counting honorary awards) and the first person to win a Tony Award in all four acting categories.[44] In her acceptance speech, "she thanked her parents for encouraging her to pursue her interests as a child."[45] She also thanked the "strong and brave and courageous" African-American women who came before her, saying in part, "I am standing on Lena Horne's shoulders. I am standing on Maya Angelou's shoulders. I am standing on Diahann Carroll and Ruby Dee, and most of all, Billie Holiday. You deserved so much more than you were given when you were on this planet. This is for you, Billie."[46] This performance was filmed at Cafe Brasil in New Orleans and broadcast on HBO on March 12, 2016.[47] McDonald was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for her role in the broadcast.[48] She lost to Sarah Paulson playing Marcia Clark in The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story.

McDonald had planned to make her West End debut as Holiday in Lady Day in June through September 2016,[49] but after becoming pregnant she postponed these plans.[50] She performed in Lady Day in June 2017 through September 9, 2017, at the Wyndham's Theatre in the West End.[51] In 2016, McDonald starred as Billie Holiday in the filmed stage production, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill,[52] for which she received critical acclaim. She earned nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series.[53][54] In 2017, McDonald starred in Disney's live action remake film Beauty and the Beast (based on the 1991 animated film of the same name) as Madame de Garderobe, directed by Bill Condon, and co-starring with Emma Watson and Dan Stevens, earning a nomination at the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture.[55] On August 1, 2017, it was announced that she had been added to the main cast for the second season of The Good Fight, reprising her role as Liz Lawrence from The Good Wife season 4.[56] McDonald stayed in the cast for the next seasons, and was nominated twice for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series.[57]

2020–present

[edit]

In 2021, McDonald portrayed Rachel Boutella in television series The Bite and hosted the television ceremony of the 74th Tony Awards.[58][59] In 2021, she appeared as Barbara Siggers Franklin in Aretha Franklin's biographical musical drama film Respect, earning a nomination at the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture.[60] In 2022, she starred as Dorothy Scott in HBO's television series The Gilded Age.[61] In 2023, McDonald portrayed civil rights activist Ella Baker in the Netflix biographical drama Rustin.[62] That same year she acted in the comedy Down Low, the Civil Rights biopic and the Ava DuVernay directed drama Origin.[63] In May 2024, it was announced that McDonald would return to Broadway as Mama Rose in a revival of Gypsy, with previews beginning November 21.[64]

Recordings and concerts

[edit]
McDonald performing at the Wright Center in 2011

McDonald has maintained ties to her classical training and repertoire. She frequently performs in concert throughout the U.S.[65] and has performed with musical organizations such as the New York Philharmonic and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Carnegie Hall commissioned the song cycle The Seven Deadly Sins: A Song Cycle for McDonald, and she performed it at Carnegie's Zankel Hall on June 2, 2004.[66] She sang two solo one-act operas at the Houston Grand Opera in March 2006: Francis Poulenc's La voix humaine and the world premiere of Michael John LaChiusa's Send (who are you? I love you).[67] On February 10, 2007, McDonald starred with Patti LuPone in the Los Angeles Opera production of Kurt Weill's opera Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny directed by John Doyle.[68] The recording of this production of Mahagonny won two Grammy Awards, for Best Opera Recording and Best Classical Album in February 2009.[69]

In September 2008, American composer Michael John LaChiusa was quoted in Opera News Online, as working on an adaptation of Bizet's Carmen with McDonald in mind.[70]

McDonald has recorded five solo albums for Nonesuch Records. Her first, the 1998 Way Back to Paradise, featured songs written by a new generation of musical theatre composers who had achieved varying degrees of prominence in the 1990s, particularly LaChiusa, Adam Guettel and Jason Robert Brown.

Her next album, How Glory Goes (2000), combined both old and new works, and included composers Harold Arlen, Leonard Bernstein and Jerome Kern.[7] Her third album, Happy Songs (2002), was big band music from the 1920s through the 1940s.[71] Her fourth album, Build a Bridge (2006), features songs from jazz and pop.[72]

In May 2013, Audra McDonald released her first solo album in seven years, Go Back Home, with a title track from the Kander and Ebb musical The Scottsboro Boys. To coincide with the album's release, McDonald performed a concert at Avery Fisher Hall in New York City that aired on the PBS series Live from Lincoln Center titled Audra McDonald In Concert: Go Back Home.[73]

At the 2010 BCS National Championship Game on January 7, McDonald sang America the Beautiful for the sold-out stadium fans to celebrate the final game of the college football season.[74]

In May 2000, Audra McDonald appeared as "The Beggar Woman" in Lonny Price's concert version of Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, performed at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center, New York, with the New York Philharmonic with George Hearn and Patti LuPone. She reprised the role in some performances of the March 2014 Lincoln Center concert production, again directed by Price, this time opposite Bryn Terfel and Emma Thompson. She performed three concerts, titled "Audra McDonald Sings Broadway", in the Sydney Opera House in November 2015, which also included "The Facebook Song" by Kate Miller-Heidke.[75] In late December 2023, McDonald was a guest narrator at Disney's Candlelight Processional at Walt Disney World.[76]

Personal life

[edit]

McDonald married bassist Peter Donovan in September 2000.[7] They have one daughter, Zoe Madeline Donovan, named after McDonald's close friend and Master Class co-star Zoe Caldwell and the late Madeline Kahn. McDonald became close friends with Kahn after they filmed a TV pilot together, and she found out she was carrying a girl the same day she sang at Kahn's memorial.[77] McDonald and Donovan divorced in 2009.[78]

She married Will Swenson on October 6, 2012.[79] On October 19, 2016, she gave birth to their daughter, Sally James McDonald-Swenson.[80] She is the stepmother to Swenson's two sons from his previous marriage.[81]

McDonald attended Joan Rivers' funeral in New York on September 7, 2014, where she sang "Smile".

McDonald resides with her family in Croton-on-Hudson, New York.[82]

Activism and charitable work

[edit]

In October 2020, McDonald joined many other Broadway stars in a virtual voter education and letter-writing party sponsored by VoteRiders to raise awareness about voter ID requirements.[83]

In June 2020, McDonald and a coalition of professionals from across the theatre industry launched Black Theatre United, an organization whose mission is to inspire reform and combat systemic racism within the theatre community and throughout the nation. Emphasizing four goals – awareness, accountability, advocacy, and action – BTU works at the community and national levels to elevate anti-racist causes and support the Black community through various resources and initiatives.[84]

McDonald joined other Broadway stars including Lin-Manuel Miranda, Josh Groban, Idina Menzel, Laura Benanti, and Kristin Chenoweth in 2018 to record Singing You Home, a bilingual children's album designed to benefit organizations that aid families separated at the border.[85]

She joined the Covenant House board of Directors in 2014. Covenant House oversees programs for homeless youth in 27 cities in six countries across the United States, Canada, and Latin America. Audra was the recipient of their 2018 Beacon of Hope Award.[86]

Acting credits

[edit]
Key
† Denotes works that have not yet been released

Film

[edit]
Year Film Role Notes
1996 Seven Servants Opera Singer
1998 The Object of My Affection Wedding Singer
1999 Cradle Will Rock Blitzstein – "Joe Worker" Singer
2003 It Runs in the Family Sarah Langley
2004 The Best Thief in the World Ruth
2011 Rampart Sarah
2015 Ricki and the Flash Maureen
2017 Beauty and the Beast Madame de Garderobe [87]
2017 Hello Again Sally (The Actress)
2021 Respect Barbara Siggers Franklin
2023 Down Low Patty
Rustin Ella Baker
Origin Miss Hale

Television

[edit]
Year Title Role Notes
1999 Annie Grace Farrell Television film
Homicide: Life on the Street Teresa Giardello Episode: "Forgive Us Our Trespasses"
Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years Young Bessie Delany Television film
2000 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Audrey Jackson 2 episodes
The Last Debate Barbara Manning Television film
2001 Wit Susie Monahan Television film
2003 Mister Sterling Jackie Brock 9 episodes
Partners and Crime Unknown Television film
Tea Time with Roy & Sylvia Sylvia Short
2005 Passion: Live From Lincoln Center Clara TV special
2006 The Bedford Diaries Professor Carla Bonatelle 8 episodes
2006–07 Kidnapped Jackie Hayes 3 episodes
2007–13 Private Practice Dr. Naomi Bennett 77 episodes
2007 Great Performances Jenny Smith Episode: "Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny"
2008 A Raisin in the Sun Ruth Younger Television film
2009 Grey's Anatomy Dr. Naomi Bennett Episode: "Before and After"
She Got Problems Herself Short
2012–13 Sesame Street Chicken 3 episodes
2013 The Good Wife Liz Lawrence Episode: "Runnin' with the Devil"
The Sound of Music Live! Mother Abbess Live telecast
Audra McDonald: Go Back Home Self Concert special
It Could Be Worse Sharon Episode: "Starring Veronica Bailey"
The Ordained Anthea Television film
2014 Submissions Only Tracy Mintzner Episode: "Dangerous Anaesthesia"
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Lucy Barker Filmed Live from Lincoln Center stage production
2015 Doc McStuffins Itty Bitty Bess Voice, episode: "Itty Bitty Bess Takes Flight"[87]
2016 Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill Billie Holiday Filmed stage production
2018 RuPaul's Drag Race Herself (guest judge) Episode: "Snatch Game"[88]
2018–19 BoJack Horseman Mother Superior Voice, 2 episodes
2018–22 The Good Fight Liz Lawrence-Reddick Main cast
2020 American Experience Additional voices Episode: "The Vote"
Central Park Ashley Voice, episode: "A Fish Called Snakehead"
Vampirina Medusa Voice, episode: "Vee and the Family Stone"
2021 The Bite Rachel Boutella 6 episodes
74th Tony Awards Herself (host) TV special
2022 The Gilded Age Dorothy Scott 6 episodes
2023 Great Performances Narrator Season 51, Episode 7: "Making Shakespeare: The First Folio"

Theatre

[edit]
Year Show[89] Role Notes
1992 The Secret Garden Ayah (replacement) St. James Theatre
1992 – January 3, 1993
1994 Carousel Carrie Pipperidge Vivian Beaumont Theater
February 18, 1994 – January 15, 1995
1995 Master Class Sharon Graham Philadelphia Theatre Company
March 1995
Something Wonderful Performer Gershwin Theatre
July 12, 1995
Master Class Sharon Graham John Golden Theatre
October 26, 1995 – June 29, 1997
1997 Ragtime Sarah Ford Center for the Performing Arts
December 26, 1997 – October 29, 1999
January 10–16, 2000
1999 Marie Christine Marie Christine L'Adrese Vivian Beaumont Theater
October 30, 1999 – January 9, 2000
2000 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Lucy, The Beggar Woman Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center
May 4–6, 2000
2001 Dreamgirls Deena Jones New York Actor's Fund Benefit Concert
2002 Carousel Julie Jordan Carnegie Hall
June 6, 2002
2003 Passion Clara Ravinia Festival
August 22–23, 2003
Henry IV, Part 1 Lady Percy Vivian Beaumont Theater
October 28, 2003 – January 18, 2004[90]
2004 A Raisin in the Sun Ruth Younger Royale Theatre
March 30 – July 11, 2004
The Seven Deadly Sins: A Song Cycle Performer Carnegie Hall
June 2, 2004
Sunday in the Park with George Dot / Marie Ravinia Festival
September 3–4, 2004
2005 Passion Clara Lincoln Center
March 30 – April 1, 2005
Wonderful Town Eileen Berlin Philharmonic
Anyone Can Whistle Nurse Fay Apple Ravinia Festival
August 26–27, 2005
2006 La voix humaine/Send (who are you? I love you) Singer Houston Grand Opera, March
2007 Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny Jenny Los Angeles Opera
February 2007
110 in the Shade Lizzie Curry Studio 54
April 13 – July 29, 2007
2009 Twelfth Night Olivia Delacorte Theater
June 25 – July 12, 2009
2011 Porgy and Bess Bess American Repertory Theater
August/September 2011
Richard Rodgers Theatre
December 17, 2011 – September 23, 2012
2014 Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Lucy, The Beggar Woman Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center
March 5–8, 2014
Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill Billie Holiday Circle in the Square Theatre
March 25 – October 5, 2014
2015 A Moon for the Misbegotten Josie Williamstown Theatre Festival
August 2015
2016 Shuffle Along Lottie Gee Music Box Theatre
March 14 – July 24, 2016
2017 Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill Billie Holiday Wyndham's Theatre
June 27 – September 9, 2017[91][92]
2019 Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune Frankie Broadhurst Theatre
May 4 – July 28, 2019[41]
2022 Ohio State Murders Suzanne Alexander James Earl Jones Theatre
November 11, 2022 – January 15, 2023[93]
2023 Ragtime Sarah Minskoff Theatre
March 27, 2023
2024 Gypsy Rose Majestic Theatre
November 21, 2024 –

Accolades and achievements

[edit]
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Audra McDonald

Over her career she has received six Tony Awards out of ten nominations, two Grammy Awards out of three nominations, one Emmy Award out of five nominations in addition to nominations for two Screen Actors Guild Awards. She was honored with the National Medal of Arts in 2016 from President Barack Obama, and was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 2017. McDonald received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member General Colin Powell in 2012.[94][95]

On September 22, 2016, Audra McDonald was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama for 2015. The Award states, in part: "for lighting up Broadway as one of its brightest stars.... In musicals, concerts, operas, and the recording studio, her rich, soulful voice continues to take her audiences to new heights."[96] In 2017, she was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.[3] McDonald served as the grand marshal of the 2024 Tournament of Roses Parade.[97]

Concerts

[edit]

Audra McDonald in Concert (2013–14)

Date City State Venue
March 9, 2013 Chicago Illinois Lund Auditorium
March 16, 2013 Boca Raton Florida Mizner Park Amphitheater
April 6, 2013 Stamford Connecticut Palace Theatre
May 16, 2013 Norfolk Virginia Attucks Theatre
May 24, 2013 New York City New York Stern Auditorium[98]
October 5, 2013 Colden Auditorium
October 10, 2013 Washington, D.C. Library of Congress
October 12, 2013 Chicago Illinois Symphony Center
October 19, 2013 Louisville Kentucky Brown Theatre
October 20, 2013 Austin Texas Michael & Susan Dell Hall
October 22, 2013 Las Vegas Nevada Reynolds Hall
October 25, 2013 San Diego California Balboa Theatre
October 26, 2013 Los Angeles Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
November 15, 2013 St. Louis Missouri Sheldon Concert Hall
November 16, 2013 Kansas City Muriel Kauffman Theatre
December 21, 2013 Mesa Arizona Ikeda Theater
January 5, 2014, &
February 26, 2014 		West Palm Beach Florida Dreyfoos, Jr. Concert Hall
January 18, 2014 Rohnert Park California Joan and Sanford Weill Hall
February 1, 2014 Washington, D.C. Library of Congress
February 22, 2014 Worcester Massachusetts Hanover Theatre
February 28, 2014 Visalia California L.J. Williams Theater
March 8, 2014 Atlanta Georgia Atlanta Symphony Hall

23 concerts total; the gap between May and October 2013 is due to McDonald's work with television and her album coming out, causing the three and a half month gap. The tour ended due to McDonald's show, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill opening on Broadway, but she picked up again with a new tour once the show closed.

An Evening with Audra McDonald (2014–15)

Date City Country Venue
December 2, 2014 Los Angeles United States Walt Disney Concert Hall
December 5, 2014 Rohnert Park Joan and Sanford Weill Hall
December 6, 2014 Berkeley Zellerbach Hall
December 12, 2014 New York City Stern Auditorium
January 8, 2015 Ft. Lauderdale Parker Playhouse
January 17, 2015 Rochester Kodak Hall
January 24, 2015 Naples Hayes Hall
February 6, 2015 Chapel Hill UNC Memorial Hall
February 21, 2015 Des Moines Des Moines Civic Center
February 27, 2015 Kohler Kohler Memorial Theatre
March 1, 2015 Boston Boston Symphony Hall
March 12, 2015 Richmond EKU Auditorium
March 15, 2015 Tucson Fox Tucson Theatre
March 21, 2015 Jacksonville Jacoby Symphony Hall
March 22, 2015 Sarasota Van Wezel Hall
March 24, 2015 West Palm Beach Dreyfoos, Jr. Concert Hall
March 27, 2015 Bethesda The Music Center at Strathmore
April 7, 2015 Indiana Indiana University Auditorium
April 15, 2015 Pittsburgh Byham Theater
April 17, 2015 Princeton McCarter Theatre
April 19, 2015 Newark Prudential Hall
April 23, 2015 Greenville Peace Concert Hall
April 29, 2015 New York City Stern Auditorium
May 8, 2015 Englewood Bergen Performing Arts Center
May 9, 2015 Greenvale Tilles Center Concert Hall
May 11, 2015 Pittsburgh Byham Theater
May 15, 2015 Norfolk Virginia Arts Festival
June 12, 2015 Saratoga Mountain Winery
June 22, 2015 Vienna Wolf Trap
July 19, 2015 Lenox The Shed
September 1, 2015, &
September 3, 2015 		Los Angeles Hollywood Bowl
October 1, 2015 Richmond Carpenter Theater
October 7, 2015 Philadelphia Merriam Theater
October 8, 2015 Storrs Jorgenson Center
October 13, 2015 Greenville Peace Concert Hall
October 31, 2015 Melbourne Australia Hamer Hall

37 concerts; this tour marked her Australian debut. The lack of August shows was due to her run in A Moon for the Misbegotten.

Other concerts

McDonald in the East Room of the White House, 2013

Discography

[edit]

Solo recordings

[edit]

Source:[101]

[edit]

Source:[104]

Cast recordings

[edit]

Video recordings

[edit]

Audio books

[edit]

Explanatory notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Best Actress in a Play, Best Actress in a Musical, Best Featured Actress in a Play, and Best Featured Actress in a Musical. "Tony Awards Facts & Trivia". Archived from the original on July 4, 2015. Retrieved June 9, 2014.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Audra McDonald Biography (1970–)". FilmReference.com. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  2. ^ "Audra McDonald Biography: Theater Actress, Singer, Television Actress (1970–)". Biography.com (FYI / A&E Networks). Archived from the original on August 2, 2014. Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  3. ^ a b "Audra McDonald, Matthew Broderick, Marin Mazzie among 2017 Theater Hall of Fame inductees". Playbill. September 11, 2017. Retrieved December 29, 2017.
  4. ^ Stated on Finding Your Roots, April 27, 2021
  5. ^ "Audra – Living Her Dream". The Fresno Bee. January 15, 1989. Retrieved May 21, 2008.
  6. ^ "Audra McDonald's a tough act to follow in Evita". The Fresno Bee. December 5, 2007. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved February 9, 2009.
  7. ^ a b c Green, Blake. "Never Short of Breath", sfgate.com (originally in the San Francisco Chronicle), July 16, 2000
  8. ^ "Alumni News: November 2011". Juilliard.edu. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Audra McDonald (BM '93, voice)
  9. ^ "Audra Talks: Tony Collector McDonald Takes on Marie Christine". Playbill. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  10. ^ Audra McDonald at IMDb
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  22. ^ "Casting Beyond Color Lines". NPR. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
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  24. ^ Spindle, Lee (February 12, 2007). "Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny". Theater Mania.
  25. ^ Lloyd, Robert (February 25, 2008). "A 'Raisin in the Sun' of many moons past". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  26. ^ "List of Primetime Emmy Award 2008 Nominations and Winners". The New York Times. September 21, 2008. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  27. ^ "The 39th NAACP Image Award Nominations". Variety. January 8, 2008. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  28. ^ "Porgy and Bess Broadway", Playbill, (Vault), retrieved February 5, 2017
  29. ^ Jones, Kenneth and Hetrick, Adam. 2012 "Tony Awards Nominations Announced; Once Earns 11 Nominations" Archived May 7, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Playbill.com, May 1, 2012
  30. ^ Gans, Andrew and Hetrick, Adam. "Norm Lewis-Audra McDonald Porgy and Bess Will Play Broadway's Richard Rodgers Theatre" Archived July 1, 2011, at the Wayback Machine playbill.com, June 29, 2011
  31. ^ Hetrick, Adam (May 14, 2013). "Audra McDonald's Go Back Home Concert Broadcast on "Live from Lincoln Center" May 24". Playbill. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  32. ^ "Emmys 2015: the full list of winners". The Guardian. September 21, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  33. ^ "Six By Sondheim Doc, With Performances by Audra McDonald, Darren Criss, Jeremy Jordan, Debuts on HBO Dec. 9". Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  34. ^ Audra McDonald, Laura Benanti and Christian Borle Join Cast of NBC's Sound of Music Archived December 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine Playbill, Retrieved September 16, 2013
  35. ^ "Sound of Music Live! with Carrie Underwood: NBC announces more cast, releases poster", Entertainment Weekly, retrieved September 16, 2013
  36. ^ "New Podcast! POOF! by Lynn Nottage". Playing On Air (Podcast). August 10, 2015. Archived from the original on August 18, 2017. Retrieved August 17, 2017.
  37. ^ "Audra McDonald and Will Swenson Star in Moon for the Misbegotten at Williamstown, Starting Tonight", Playbill, August 5, 2015
  38. ^ "Six-Time Tony Winner Audra McDonald Will Lead Shuffle Along Musical on Broadway", broadway.com, retrieved June 7, 2015
  39. ^ Hetrick, Adam and Viagas, Robert. "Shuffle Along Sets July Broadway Closing", Playbill, June 23, 2016
  40. ^ Viagas, Robert. "Shuffle Along Plays Final Broadway Performance Today", Playbill, July 24, 2016
  41. ^ a b Duboff, Josh. "Exclusive: Michael Shannon and Audra McDonald Smolder in First Look from 'Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune'" Vanity Fair, March 21, 2019.
  42. ^ "2021 Tony Awards: Complete list of winners and nominees". CBS. September 27, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  43. ^ a b c "Audra McDonald to Return to Broadway as Billie Holiday". The New York Times. February 25, 2014. Retrieved March 9, 2014.
  44. ^ "Audra Mcdonald Nets a Record Sixth Win", NPR, June 9, 2014
  45. ^ Purcell, Carey. "Gent's Guide, All The Way, Hedwig And the Angry Inch, Raisin in the Sun Win Top Prizes at 68th Annual Tony Awards" Archived June 12, 2014, at the Wayback Machine playbill.com, June 8, 2014
  46. ^ "Audra McDonald Wins 6th Tony Award Makes Broadway History" essence.com, June 8, 2014
  47. ^ Gans, Andrew. "Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill Debuts on HBO Tonight", Playbill, March 12, 2016
  48. ^ Clement, Olivia. "Audra McDonald, Viola Davis, Bryan Cranston Among 2016 Emmy Nominees", Playbill, July 14, 2016
  49. ^ Porteous, Jacob (January 15, 2016). "Record Six-Time Tony Award Winner Audra McDonald to Make West End Debut in Lady Day At Emerson's Bar And Grill". London Theatre Direct. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
  50. ^ Warner, Kara. "Baby on the Way for Will Swenson and Audra McDonald", People Magazine, May 10, 2016
  51. ^ Shenton, Mark. "Audra McDonald To Reprise Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill in the West End", Playbill, February 3, 2017
  52. ^ Billington, Michael (June 27, 2017). "Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill review – Audra McDonald sings the blues for Billie Holiday". The Guardian. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  53. ^ "Emmy Awards: The Complete Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. September 18, 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  54. ^ "The Complete List of the 2016 SAG Award Winners". Vogue. January 30, 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  55. ^ Kit, Borys (March 27, 2015). "Audra McDonald Joining Disney's Live-Action 'Beauty and the Beast' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  56. ^ "Audra McDonald Joins 'The Good Fight' as Season 2 Regular". Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  57. ^ White, Peter (December 10, 2021). "Nicole Byer & Taye Diggs To Host Critics Choice TV Awards On The CW & TBS". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 10, 2021.
  58. ^ Fienberg, Daniel (May 20, 2021). "Spectrum's 'The Bite': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  59. ^ Mayer, Dan. "Audra McDonald and Leslie Odom Jr. Will Host the 74th Annual Tony Awards". Playbill. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  60. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (October 18, 2019). "'Respect': MGM Aretha Franklin Biopic Rounds Out Cast With Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Mary J. Blige & More". Deadline. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  61. ^ White, Peter (November 13, 2020). "'The Gilded Age': Audra McDonald & Broadway Stars Including Kelli O'Hara & Donna Murphy Join HBO's Julian Fellowes Drama". Deadline. Retrieved January 29, 2022.
  62. ^ "Audra McDonald Discusses The Good Fight, The Gilded Age and Playing Civil Rights Leader Ella Baker in Rustin". Ebony. September 12, 2022. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  63. ^ "Ava DuVernay's 'Caste' Film Adds Tony Winners Audra McDonald and Myles Frost". Variety. February 7, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  64. ^ "Audra McDonald in Gypsy, gypsybway.com, 2024
  65. ^ Gans, Andrew. "Audra McDonald to Offer Concerts Throughout U.S.", playbill.com, April 8, 2008
  66. ^ Gans, Andrew. "Audra McDonald Premieres The Seven Deadly Sins June 2 at Zankel Hall", Playbill, June 2, 2004
  67. ^ Gans, Andrew. "Audra McDonald to Debut New LaChiusa Piece at Houston Grand Opera", Playbill, July 26, 2005
  68. ^ Simonson, Robert and Gans, Andrew. "Doyle to Direct LuPone and McDonald in Mahagonny" Archived September 17, 2012, at archive.today, Playbill, January 16, 2006
  69. ^ Gans, Andrew. "In the Heights Cast Recording Wins Grammy; Hudson and LuPone-McDonald Mahagonny Also Win" Archived May 27, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, Playbill, February 8, 2009
  70. ^ Portantiere, Michael (September 2008). "Over the Borderline". Opera News Online. Vol. 73, no. 3. Archived from the original on September 7, 2008. Retrieved September 2, 2008.
  71. ^ Simonson, Robert. "Audra McDonald Sings Composers of Today and Future at Joe's Pub", Playbill, May 22, 2002
  72. ^ Suskin, Steven. "On The Record: A Complete Cabaret With Judi Dench, and Audra McDonald's "Build a Bridge", Playbill, November 12, 2006
  73. ^ Hetrick, Adam (April 9, 2013). "Audra McDonald's New Album, "Go Back Home" Sets May Release; PBS Concert Will Follow". Playbill. Archived from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved November 12, 2013.
  74. ^ Moon, Josh. "Alabama wins 13th national championship" Archived January 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine montgomeryadvertiser.com, January 8, 2010
  75. ^ "Audra McDonald review: reviving the fading art of singing" by John Shand, The Sydney Morning Herald, November 6, 2015
  76. ^ "Disney: 9 new narrators set for Candlelight Processional". October 5, 2023.
  77. ^ Rudetsky, Seth. "How Audra McDonald Handled a Ringing Cell Phone in Character As Billie Holiday" Playbill, April 18, 2017
  78. ^ "McDonald Sets Record Straight". BroadwayWorld News Desk. June 3, 2009.
  79. ^ Jones, Kenneth. "Audra McDonald and Will Swenson Get Married" Archived October 11, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, playbill.com, October 7, 2012
  80. ^ Gans, Andrew. "Audra McDonald and Will Swenson Welcome a Baby Girl", Playbill, October 20, 2016
  81. ^ "Shuffle Along's Audra McDonald is Pregnant! Six-Time Tony Winner Postpones West End Debut in Lady Day". Broadway.com.
  82. ^ Gisin, Matthew. "Three Westchester Natives Up For Tony Awards" Westchester Magazine, Retrieved October 2, 2014
  83. ^ "Audra McDonald, Will Swenson, Josh Gad, Andrew Rannells & More Host Voter Education Virtual Party". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  84. ^ "Who We Are". www.blacktheatreunited.com. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  85. ^ Blistein, Jon (October 18, 2018). "Lin-Manuel Miranda, Josh Groban Join Charity Record for Separated Families". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  86. ^ "Causes – The Official Website of Singer and Actress Audra McDonald". Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  87. ^ a b "Audra McDonald (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved October 22, 2023. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information.
  88. ^ Rudolph, Christopher (July 18, 2018). "Shania Twain, "Broad City" Stars And More Join The Judges' Panel On "Drag Race" Season 10". NewNowNext.com. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
  89. ^ Audra McDonald at the Internet Broadway Database Edit this at Wikidata
  90. ^ ​Henry IV, Part 1​ at the Internet Broadway Database
  91. ^ Gans, Andrew. "Audra McDonald and Will Swenson Are Expecting a Baby", Playbill, May 10, 2016.
  92. ^ Marshall, Charlotte. "Audra McDonald's 'Lady Day' Postponed", officiallondontheatre.co.uk, May 11, 2016.
  93. ^ "Ohio State Murders". Playbill. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  94. ^ "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement". www.achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement.
  95. ^ "Audra McDonald Biography Photo". Golden Plate Awards Council member General Colin L. Powell, presents Audra McDonald with the Gold Medal of the American Academy of Achievement in a 2012 ceremony at the Academy's headquarters in Washington, D.C.
  96. ^ Dwyer, Colin. "At White House, a Golden Moment for America's Great Artists and Patrons", NPR, September 22, 2016
  97. ^ "Acclaimed Award-Winning Performer Audra McDonald Selected As 2024 Tournament of Roses Grand Marshal". December 2023.
  98. ^ As part of Audra McDonald: Go Back Home, which aired on Live from Lincoln Center
  99. ^ Way Back to Paradise listing barnesandnoble.com, retrieved January 8, 2010
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  101. ^ McDonald record listing nonesuch.com, retrieved January 8, 2010
  102. ^ "Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square: Featuring Audra McDonald and Peter Graves" Archived January 5, 2010, at the Wayback Machine mormontabernaclechoir.org, retrieved January 8, 2010
  103. ^ Jule Styne in Hollywood listing Archived March 22, 2017, at the Wayback Machine footlight.com, retrieved January 8, 2010
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  105. ^ "I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky", listing nonesuch.com, accessed August 15, 2009
  106. ^ Suskin, Steven. "On the Record: Dazzling Dreamgirls and 1943 Show Tunes", playbill.com, March 10, 2002
  107. ^ Hetrick, Adam and Gans, Andrew. "Complete Allegro Recording, with McDonald, Gunn and Wilson, to Arrive In Stores Feb. 3" Archived May 24, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, playbill.com, December 8, 2008
  108. ^ Adam Hetrick (May 22, 2012). "Two-Disc Porgy and Bess Cast Album, With Norm Lewis and Audra McDonald, Released May 22". Playbill. Archived from the original on May 25, 2012. Retrieved August 16, 2024.
  109. ^ "Audra McDonald Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill Original Broadway Cast Recording", retrieved July 17, 2014.
  110. ^ Rita Dove (2004). "Second-Hand Man". Getting There from Here (3 CDs). read by Audra McDonald. New York City: Symphony Space. ISBN 978-0971921818 – via Goodreads.
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