Emily Davis

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Emily Davis is an American actress. She is best known for portraying American whistleblower Reality Winner in the documentary play Is This A Room, directed by Davis's frequent collaborator Tina Satter.

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Early life and education

Davis was born and raised in Oak Cliff, Texas, [1] a neighborhood in South Dallas. She attended Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Downtown Dallas. After high school, she moved to New York City and attended New York University, where she studied acting and neurolinguistics. [2] She graduated with a BFA in Theater.

Career

In 2009, Davis began collaborating with Half Straddle, an Obie Award-winning New York City based ensemble of performers and designers, led by Tina Satter. [3] Half Straddle has premiered 10 full-length shows, plus a number of shorter works and video projects. Their work has been seen in theaters and festivals throughout the United States, Europe, Australia, and Asia. [4] Davis has originated roles in multiple Half Straddle productions, including Nurses in New England, Away Uniform, and Seagull (Thinking of you), a reimagining of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull . Davis has also frequently collaborated with artists Erin Markey, Becca Blackwell, and Jess Barbagallo.

Davis is best known for her portrayal of American whistleblower Reality Winner in Half Straddle's Is This A Room, a verbatim staging of the FBI transcription of Winner's interrogation in June 2017. The piece premiered in January 2019 at The Kitchen in New York City, [5] where Davis was described as "one of the most gifted realists in town" by Helen Shaw in Artforum . [6] The piece went on to an extended, critically acclaimed off-Broadway run at the Vineyard Theatre in the fall of 2019. [7] Ben Brantley of the New York Times called Davis's portrayal of Winner "one of the most trenchantly observed performances of the year." [8]

Davis went on to reprise the role in the Broadway production of Is This A Room at the Lyceum Theatre in 2021, which marked her Broadway debut. [9] She, again, received critical acclaim for her performance, being described as "sensational...[in a] career-making performance." [10]

Davis has also been seen in various television roles, [11] including Tulsa King on Paramount+, Servant on Apple TV+, and High Maintenance on HBO. She has also appeared in films such as The Plagiarists, The Harbinger, and the short film Gwen in Corpus, which she also wrote and directed. [12]

Awards

For her portrayal of Reality Winner in Is This A Room off-Broadway, Davis received the Obie Award for Performance and the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actress, both in 2020. She was also nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Lead Actress. [13]

Works

Theatre

TitleRoleTheaterDirector
Is This A Room Reality Winner The Lyceum Theatre, Vineyard Theatre, The Kitchen Tina Satter
SingletEmilyThe Bushwick StarrJordan Fein
Of GovernmentHeidi Clubbed Thumb Jeremy Bloom
My Old ManAndrea Dixon Place Jess Barbagallo
O, EarthPortia de RossiThe FoundryDustin Wills
When the Tanks BreakKate The Drama League Annie Tippe
Ancient LivesMargoThe KitchenTina Satter
In the Pony Palace/FOOTBALLEleanorThe Bushwick StarrTina Satter
The Seagull (Thinking of you)Nina P.S. 122 Tina Satter
Nurses in New EnglandFaye Greenwall New Ohio Theatre Tina Satter
FAMILYLily Ontological-Hysteric Theater Tina Satter
Particularly in the HeartlandAnnaP.S. 122 Rachel Chavkin

Film/TV

TitleRoleNotes
Moon V. StateNarrator (V.O.)
Single MaltAlyssa
Tulsa King RoxieRecurring
The Patient MaryGuest star
Servant HeatherGuest star
The Harbinger Mavis
American Rust Sue HerlitzRecurring
Cryptozoo Various (V.O.)
White WeddingKelly
High Maintenance JennieGuest star
The PlagiaristsAllison
Gwen in CorpusGwenAlso director and writer
ValeriaNurse
My Entire High School Sinking...Various (V.O.)
The Amy CharacterAnne

References

  1. ↑ Babb, Christina Hughes (December 29, 2022). "This Oak Cliff native appears in two shows to binge this holiday season". Oak Cliff.
  2. ↑ Shaw, Helen (September 2, 2021). "Emily Davis Doesn't Do Impressions". Vulture.
  3. ↑ "How Emily Davis Tackles Reality". www.tdf.org.
  4. ↑ "THE COMPANY". HALF STRADDLE.
  5. ↑ "Emily Davis to Play Reality Winner in Is This A Room | Playbill".
  6. ↑ Shaw, Helen (January 24, 2019). "AMERICAN HEROINE".
  7. ↑ "IS THIS A ROOM".
  8. ↑ Brantley, Ben (October 24, 2019). "'Is This a Room' Review: Why'd She Blow the Whistle?". The New York Times– via NYTimes.com.
  9. ↑ "Is This A Room (Broadway, Lyceum Theatre, 2021) | Playbill".
  10. ↑ Evans, Greg (October 12, 2021). "'Is This A Room' Broadway Review: The Unnerving Interrogation Of Reality Winner As Impeccable Drama".
  11. ↑ "Emily Davis | Actress, Director, Writer". IMDb.
  12. ↑ "Gwen in Corpus" – via IMDb.
  13. ↑ "Emily C. Davis Biography | Broadway Buzz | Broadway.com". www.broadway.com.
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