Ain't Misbehavin' is a musical revue with a book by Murray Horwitz and Richard Maltby Jr., and music by various composers and lyricists as arranged and orchestrated by Luther Henderson. It is named after the song by Fats Waller, "Ain't Misbehavin'".
Nell Carter was an American actress and singer.
Fantasia Monique Barrino-Taylor, known professionally by her mononym Fantasia, is an American singer and actress. She rose to prominence in 2004 for her performance of the Porgy and Bess standard "Summertime" during the third season of American Idol, and eventually became that season's winner. Following her victory, Barrino became the second woman to have her first single debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, following Lauryn Hill, when her debut single "I Believe", launched atop the chart. Her accolades include two Billboard Music Awards and a Grammy Award, along with nominations for a Golden Globe Award and a BAFTA Award. In 2024, Time named her one of the 100 most influential people.
Heather Headley is a Trinidadian-born American singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She won the 2000 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the title role of Aida. She also won the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album for her album Audience of One. In 2018, she recurred as Gwen Garrett on the NBC medical drama television series Chicago Med.
Phylicia Rashad is an American actress. She was most recently dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University before her three year contract ended in May 2024. She is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the sitcom The Cosby Show (1984–1992) which earned her two Primetime Emmy Award nominations in 1985 and 1986. She also played Ruth Lucas on Cosby (1996–2000).
Loretta Devine is an American actress. She is known for numerous roles across stage and screen. Her most high profile roles include Lorrell Robinson in the original (1981) Broadway production of Dreamgirls, the long-suffering Gloria Matthews in the film Waiting to Exhale (1995), and her recurring role as Adele Webber on the medical drama Grey's Anatomy, for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series in 2011.
Dreamgirls is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. Based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others, but closely follows the story of The Supremes as the musical follows the story of a young Black female singing trio from Chicago, Illinois called "The Dreams", who become music superstars.
Tyler Perry is an American actor, filmmaker, and playwright. He is the creator and performer of Mabel "Madea" Simmons, a tough elderly woman, and also portrays her brother Joe Simmons and her nephew Brian Simmons. Perry's films vary in style from orthodox filmmaking techniques to filmed productions of live stage plays, many of which have been subsequently adapted into feature films. Madea's first appearance was in Perry's play I Can Do Bad All by Myself (1999) staged in Chicago.
Franchell "Frenchie" Davis is an American Broadway performer and a soul, dance/electronica, and pop singer. She came to public attention in 2003 as a contestant on the singing competition show American Idol. Davis began performing in Rent on Broadway soon afterward, and was a member of the cast for four years. In 2011, Davis reached the top 8 on the first season of singing competition The Voice.
Euphemia LatiQue"Tika" Sumpter is an American actress and producer. Sumpter began her career as the host of Best Friend's Date. From 2005 to 2010, she appeared in the daytime soap opera One Life to Live. In 2010, she made her film debut in Stomp the Yard: Homecoming and later featured in supporting roles for What's Your Number? (2011), Sparkle (2012), and A Madea Christmas (2013).
Dreamgirls is a 2006 American musical drama film written and directed by Bill Condon and jointly produced and released by DreamWorks Pictures and Paramount Pictures. Adapted from the 1981 Broadway musical of the same name, Dreamgirls is a film à clef, a work of fiction taking strong inspiration from the history of the Motown record label and its superstar act, The Supremes. The story follows the history and evolution of American R&B music during the 1960s and 1970s through the eyes of a Detroit girl group known as "The Dreams" and their manipulative record executive.
The Color Purple is a musical with music and lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray, based on the 1982 novel The Color Purple by Alice Walker and its 1985 film adaptation. The musical follows the journey of Celie, an African American woman in the American South from the early to mid-20th century.
This page lists only acting roles and other projects undertaken in film, television and theater in the post-Idol career of American Idol contestants. It does not include guest musical performances or interviews on TV shows, or any pre-Idol work. It is also not intended to be a comprehensive list of all acting roles, appearances, awards nominated or won by any particular alum. Where there are multiple entries, only the more significant may be listed. Please see the appropriate links and references for individual alum for such more complete lists.
The Haves and the Have Nots is an American stage play which premiered in 2011. Part comedy and part drama, it was created, produced, written, and directed by Tyler Perry. The original stage production starring Palmer Williams Jr. as Floyd, the butler and chef to a wealthy family, and Patrice Lovely as their housekeeper, Hattie, toured 46 cities.
The Haves and the Have Nots is an American crime drama and soap opera created, executive produced, written, and directed by Tyler Perry. The premise of the series is based on Perry's 2011 play of the same name.
Crystal R. Fox is an American actress and singer. Fox has performed in many stage productions during her career, and is best known for her television roles as Luann Corbin in the NBC/CBS police drama series In the Heat of the Night (1989–1995), and as Hanna Young in the Oprah Winfrey Network prime time soap opera, The Haves and the Have Nots (2013–2021). Fox has also appeared in a number of films, most notably playing the leading role in the 2020 thriller A Fall from Grace.
Renée Lawless-Orsini is an American actress and singer. She is best known for starring as the bitter and distant matriarch, Katheryn Cryer, in the Oprah Winfrey Network prime time soap opera The Haves and the Have Nots.
The Color Purple is a 2023 American musical period drama film directed by Blitz Bazawule. Marcus Gardley's screenplay is based on the stage musical of the same name, which in turn is based on the 1982 novel of the same name by Alice Walker. It is the second film adaptation of the novel, following the 1985 film directed by Steven Spielberg and produced by Spielberg and Quincy Jones. Spielberg and Jones return as producers for the 2023 film, along with its Broadway producers Scott Sanders and Oprah Winfrey, the latter of whom also starred in the 1985 film.
Ron Kellum is an American producer, director, artist and choreographer known for being a Broadway veteran and the first African-American artistic director for the award-winning Cirque du Soleil. He was the artistic director for the productions of Koozå from 2015 through 2016 and Volta from 2018 through 2020.
Aisha Jackson is an American actress and performer. She is best known for her Broadway career.
