Adina Verson | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1983 (age 40–41) |
| Education | Boston Conservatory Yale School of Drama |
| Known for | Indecent Only Murders in the Building |
| Spouse | Michael McQuilken |
| Children | 1 |
| Website | www |
Adina Verson (born c. 1983) is an American actor who may be best known for their television role of Poppy White, assistant of Tina Fey's character Cinda Canning, in Only Murders in the Building . Primarily a stage actor, their Broadway debut was in Indecent , which ran for two years starting in 2017.
Verson grew up in the Midwest in a reform Jewish home. [1] [2] [3] They graduated from the Chicago Academy for the Arts in 2001, which inspired them to pursue a BFA in musical theater from the Boston Conservatory. [4] [1] [5] [6] They then received their MFA in acting from the Yale School of Drama. [7] [5] [8] In 2017, Verson appeared in Indecent on Broadway, playing Madje, Reine, and Virginia during the show's two-year run. [9] [10] [8] [1] They played Ali Pfefferman in the A Transparent Musical, based on the Amazon Prime show Transparent , which premiered in May 2023 at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles. The show is planned to open on Broadway in 2024. [11] [2] [1] They were one of the co-founders of the Old Sound Room theater company, which is made up of Yale School of Drama alumni. [12]
Verson auditioned for the role Cinda Canning on Hulu's Only Murders in the Building , a character written for Tina Fey, during the COVID-19 pandemic. When Fey confirmed she was available to play Cinda, the role of Poppy White was written for Verson. [13] Verson has also worked as an audiobook narrator for Penguin Random House. [7]
Though Verson's gender identity had been developing prior to joining the cast of Indecent, the play helped them "realize that [they] don't identify with being a woman, and [they] don't identify with being a lesbian." [1] They are married to Michael McQuilken; the couple has one child, Zelda. [14] [15] [2] Their pronouns are they/she. [2] [1]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Old Sound Room Lear | With the Old Sound Room company | [12] | |
| 2014 | As You Like It | Celia | With the Shakespeare Theatre Company | [16] |
| 2018 | Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties | Betty 2 | [5] | |
| The Lucky Ones | Emma | [17] [18] | ||
| 2017–2019 | Indecent | Madje, Reine, and Virginia | Broadway debut | [9] [8] |
| 2019 | Wives | Aloysius Patterson | [19] | |
| 2023 | A Transparent Musical | Ali Pfefferman | [2] [1] [11] |
| Year | Title | Role | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Deadbeat | Waitress | [20] |
| 2014–2015 | The Strain | Miriam Setrakian | [20] [21] |
| 2017 | Wormwood | Cocktail waitress | [22] [21] |
| 2016–2018 | Mozart in the Jungle | Maria Anna Mozart | [23] [21] |
| 2020 | New Amsterdam | Dr. Tabitha Park | [21] |
| 2021–2022 | Only Murders in the Building | Poppy White | [3] [13] |
| 2023 | And Just Like That... | Laurel | [24] |
The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Following the 1964 renaming as the Drama Desk Awards, Broadway productions were included beginning with the 1968–69 award season. The awards are considered a significant American theater distinction.
Paula Vogel is an American playwright. She is known for her provocative explorations of complex social and political issues. Much of her work delves into themes of psychological trauma, abuse, and the complexities of human relationships. She has received the Pulitzer Prize as well as nominations for two Tony Awards. In 2013 she was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.
The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards given since 1956 by The Village Voice newspaper to theater artists and groups involved in off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway productions in New York City. Starting just after the 2014 ceremony, the American Theatre Wing became the joint presenter and administrative manager of the Obie Awards. The Obie Awards are considered off-Broadway's highest honor, similar to the Tony Awards for Broadway productions.
The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) is a performing and media arts college of the University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio. Initially established as the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music in 1867, CCM is one of the oldest continually operating conservatories in the United States.
Alexandra Scott Billings is an American actress, singer, and teacher. Billings, a trans woman, played one of TV's first openly transgender characters in 2005 made-for-TV movie Romy and Michele: In the Beginning. She is also known for portraying the recurring character Davina in the Amazon series Transparent and has played transgender characters in ER, Eli Stone, How to Get Away with Murder, Grey's Anatomy and The Conners.
Wade McCollum is an American film actor, stage actor and composer/musician.
Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, known together as Pasek and Paul, are an American songwriting duo and composing team for musical theater, films and television.
The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres and Producers by special arrangement with the Lucille Lortel Foundation, with additional support from the Theatre Development Fund.
Alex Timbers is an American writer and director best known for his work on stage and television. He has received numerous accolades including two Tony Awards, a Golden Globe Award, a Drama Desk Award, as well as nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award and a Grammy Award. Timbers received the Drama League Founder's Award for Excellence in Directing and the Jerome Robbins Award for Directing.
Jayne Houdyshell is an American actress. Known for being a prolific character actor in theater, film, and television, Houdyshell has received numerous accolades including a Tony Award, two Obie Awards, and a Drama Desk Award.
New World Stages is a five-theater, Off-Broadway performing arts complex in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It is between 49th and 50th Streets beneath the plaza of the Worldwide Plaza complex at Eighth Avenue.
Conrad Wayne Ricamora-Jensen is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Oliver Hampton on the ABC television series How to Get Away with Murder (2014–20). As a stage actor, he is noted for his roles in the original Off-Broadway musicals Here Lies Love and Soft Power, which premiered in 2013 and 2019, respectively. He made his Broadway debut in the 2015 revival of The King and I.
Alyson Mackenzie Stroker is an American actress, author and singer. She is the first actor who uses a wheelchair to appear on a Broadway stage, and also the first to be nominated for and win a Tony Award. Stroker was a finalist on the second season of The Glee Project and later appeared as a guest star on Glee in 2013. She played Anna in Deaf West Theatre's 2015 revival of Spring Awakening, and won the 2019 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance in Oklahoma!
Michael McQuilken is an American, New York-based theater and opera director, filmmaker, and musician.
The 71st Annual Tony Awards were held on June 11, 2017, to recognize achievement in Broadway productions during the 2016–17 season. The ceremony was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, and was broadcast live by CBS. Kevin Spacey served as host.
Mean Girls is a rock musical with a book by Tina Fey, lyrics by Nell Benjamin, and music by Jeff Richmond. It is based on the 2004 film by Mark Waters, which was also written by Fey and was in turn inspired by Rosalind Wiseman's 2002 book Queen Bees and Wannabes. The musical focuses on Cady Heron, a teenage girl who transfers to a public high school after being homeschooled her whole life in Africa. At school, she befriends outsiders Janis Sarkasian and Damian Hubbard who persuade her to infiltrate the "Plastics", a clique consisting of wealthy but insecure Gretchen Wieners, sweet but dimwitted Karen Smith, and "queen bee" Regina George.
Indecent is a 2015 American play by Paula Vogel. It recounts the controversy surrounding the play God of Vengeance by Sholem Asch, which was produced on Broadway in 1923, and for which the producer and cast were arrested and convicted on the grounds of obscenity.
Micaela Diamond is an American actress and singer. She made her Broadway debut as Babe in The Cher Show (2018–2019). Diamond starred in the critically acclaimed Broadway revival of the musical Parade as Lucille Frank, a performance for which she was nominated for the 2023 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album.
The second season of the American mystery comedy-drama television series Only Murders in the Building, often abbreviated as OMITB, premiered on June 28, 2022, on Hulu. The series follows a trio of strangers, all with a shared interest in true crime podcasts, who become friends while investigating murders in the their apartment building, and producing their own podcast about the cases.
