Griffin Matthews

Last updated
Griffin Matthews
Born1981/1982(age 39–40) [1]
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Alma mater Carnegie Mellon University [2]
OccupationActor, writer, director
SpouseMatt Gould [3]

Griffin Matthews (born 1981/82) [1] is an American actor, writer, and director. [4] Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a B.F.A. in musical theater. [5]

Matthews served two years in the Peace Corps in West Africa. In 2005, he founded a nonprofit, UgandaProject (originally named Be The Change Uganda), to support the education of teenagers in Uganda. [6]

With husband Matt Gould, Matthews co-wrote the musical Witness Uganda, later retitled Invisible Thread , based on his experience volunteering in Uganda. [4] [6] The musical won the 2014 Richard Rodgers Awards for Musical Theatre in 2012 and 2014. [7] [8]

Matthews appears as fashion designer Luke Jacobson in the 2022 Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law . [2] [9] His other television credits include Dear White People , The Flight Attendant , [1] [10] The Mentalist , Weeds , Torchwood , and Law & Order: LA . [5] [9]

Matthews, who is Black, has criticized institutionalized racism in American theater. [1] [4]

Matthews is openly gay. [1] [10] He married composer and writer Matt Gould in 2017; they had met in 2002 through their Peace Corps service in Africa. [3] [11] The couple adopted two sons in August 2022. [3] [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oscar Hammerstein II</span> American librettist, lyricist, theatrical producer, and director of musicals (1895–1960)

Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and director in the musical theater for almost 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Awards for Best Original Song. Many of his songs are standard repertoire for vocalists and jazz musicians. He co-wrote 850 songs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Schwartz (composer)</span> American musical theatre lyricist and composer (b1948)

Stephen Lawrence Schwartz is an American musical theater lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over five decades, Schwartz has written such hit musicals as Godspell (1971), Pippin (1972), and Wicked (2003). He has contributed lyrics to a number of successful films, including Pocahontas (1995), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), The Prince of Egypt, and Enchanted (2007). Schwartz has won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics, three Grammy Awards, three Academy Awards, and has been nominated for six Tony Awards. He received the 2015 Isabelle Stevenson Award, a special Tony Award, for his commitment to serving artists and fostering new talent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbara Cook</span> American actress and singer (1927–2017)

Barbara Cook was an American actress and singer who first came to prominence in the 1950s as the lead in the original Broadway musicals Plain and Fancy (1955), Candide (1956) and The Music Man (1957) among others, winning a Tony Award for the last. She continued performing mostly in theatre until the mid-1970s, when she began a second career as a cabaret and concert singer. She also made numerous recordings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Audra McDonald</span> American actress and singer

Audra Ann McDonald is an American actress and singer. 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 all four acting categories. She has performed in musicals, operas, and dramas such as A Moon for the Misbegotten, 110 in the Shade, Carousel, Ragtime, Master Class, and Porgy and Bess.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sutton Foster</span> American actress and singer (born 1975)

Sutton Lenore Foster is an American actress, singer and dancer. She is known for her work on the Broadway stage, for which she has won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical twice, in 2002 for her role as Millie Dillmount in Thoroughly Modern Millie, and in 2011 for her performance as Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes, a role which she reprised in 2021 for a production in London and for which she received a nomination for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical. Her other Broadway credits include Little Women, The Drowsy Chaperone, Young Frankenstein, Shrek the Musical, Violet, and The Music Man. On television, Foster played the lead role in the short-lived ABC Family comedy-drama Bunheads from 2012 to 2013. From 2015 to 2021, she starred in the TV Land comedy-drama Younger.

Lillias White is an American actress and singer. She is particularly known for her performances in Broadway musicals. In 1989 she won an Obie Award for her performance in the Off-Broadway musical Romance in Hard Times. In 1997 she won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical and Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical for portraying Sonja in Cy Coleman's The Life. She was nominated for a Tony Award again in 2010 for her work as Funmilayo in Fela Kuti's Fela!.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laura Osnes</span> American actress

Laura Ann Osnes is an American actress and singer known for her work on the Broadway stage. She has played starring roles in Grease as Sandy, South Pacific as Nellie Forbush, Anything Goes as Hope Harcourt, and Bonnie and Clyde as Bonnie Parker, for which she received a Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical. She also starred in the title role of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella on Broadway, for which she received a Drama Desk Award and her second Tony Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christiane Noll</span> American actress and singer (born 1968)

Christiane Noll is an American actress and singer known for her work in musicals and on the concert stage. She originated the role of Emma Carew in Frank Wildhorn's Jekyll & Hyde, and had roles in Urinetown, Ragtime, and Dear Evan Hansen.

Diane Marie Paulus is an American theater and opera director who is currently the Terrie and Bradley Bloom Artistic Director of the American Repertory Theater at Harvard University. Paulus was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical for her revivals of Hair and The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, and won the award in 2013 for her revival of Pippin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Platt</span> American actor and singer (born 1993)

Benjamin Schiff Platt is an American actor, singer, and songwriter. He began his acting career in musical theater as a child and appeared in productions of The Sound of Music (2006) and The Book of Mormon (2012–2015), rising to prominence for originating the title role in Broadway coming-of-age musical Dear Evan Hansen (2015–2017). His performance in the latter earned him multiple accolades, including a Tony, Emmy, and Grammy Award. At 23, Platt became the youngest solo recipient of the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical. Platt reprised the role of Evan Hansen in the 2021 film adaptation of the musical.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corey Cott</span> American actor and singer

Corey Michael Cott is an American actor and singer. He is best known for playing Jack Kelly in the Broadway musical Newsies, replacing Jeremy Jordan, and for originating the role of Donny Novitski in the Broadway musical Bandstand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leslie Odom Jr.</span> American actor and singer (born 1981)

Leslie Lloyd Odom Jr. is an American actor and singer. He made his acting debut on Broadway in 1998 and first gained recognition for his portrayal of Aaron Burr in the musical Hamilton, which earned him a 2016 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album in the same year.

Witness Uganda is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews. It was based on the true story of Matthews' humanitarian trips to Uganda, and his work to fund his nonprofit organization, Uganda Project. The musical premiered under the title Witness Uganda on February 4, 2014 at Cambridge's American Repertory Theater, and ran through March 16, 2014. Under the title Invisible Thread, the show transferred to off-Broadway's Second Stage Theatre in a production which ran during December 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denée Benton</span> American actress and singer (born 1991)

Denée Ayana Benton is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her performance as Natasha Rostova in the 2016 musical Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet of 1812 on Broadway, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award. Benton assumed the role of Eliza Hamilton in the Broadway production of Hamilton, beginning performances on October 30, 2018. Her television acting credits include UnREAL and The Gilded Age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Casey Cott</span> American actor (born 1992)

Casey Morton Cott is an American actor, known for his role as Kevin Keller on The CW series Riverdale.

Scott Wasserman is an American musician, composer, orchestrator, musical director, and electronic music programmer who has worked on many shows both on and off Broadway. He originated the technical role of Ableton Programmer for Hamilton, and has reprised that role for Dear Evan Hansen and Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812.

The Flight Attendant is an American dark comedy drama mystery thriller television series developed by Steve Yockey based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Chris Bohjalian. It stars Kaley Cuoco in the title role and premiered on HBO Max on November 26, 2020. In December 2020, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on April 21, 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicolette Robinson</span> American stage and television actress

Nicolette Kloe Robinson is an American stage and television actress. She is known for her role as Jane in the television show The Affair and Jenna in the stage musical Waitress, the latter of which marked her debut on Broadway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Micaela Diamond</span> Actor and singer (b. 1999)

Micaela Diamond is an American actor and singer who is best known for originating the role of Babe in the biographical Broadway musical The Cher Show. She performed alongside Stephanie J. Block and Teal Wicks as the youngest version of Cher.

Benjamin Levi Ross is an American stage actor and singer. He is best known for his work in the Tony Award winning musical Dear Evan Hansen, where he played Evan, Connor and Jared (understudy) on Broadway and Evan in the national tour.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Lambe, Stacy (November 25, 2020). "Griffin Matthews on 'Flight Attendant' and Life-Changing Experience on 'Dear White People' (Exclusive)". ET Online . AOL . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  2. 1 2 Axelrod, Joshua (September 22, 2022). "Carnegie Mellon graduates invade the MCU on Disney+ 'She-Hulk' series". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 Stinson, Katherine (September 15, 2022). "Did You Know That 'She-Hulk' Star Griffin Matthews Co-Created a Musical With His Husband?". Distractify . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 Fierberg, Ruthie (June 3, 2020). "Griffin Matthews Speaks Out on His Racism-Laden Experience During the Production of His Musical Invisible Thread". Playbill . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  5. 1 2 "Griffin Matthews Full Biography". BroadwayWorld . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  6. 1 2 Greenstein, Colette (January 30, 2014). "UgandaProject spreads word with award-winning musical". The Bay State Banner . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  7. ↑ Gioia, Michael (February 10, 2012). "Matt Gould and Griffin Matthews' Witness Uganda Wins 2012 Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater". Playbill . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  8. ↑ Kozinn, Allan (February 3, 2014). "'Witness Uganda' Wins Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater". The New York Times . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  9. 1 2 Kaplan, Rebecca (September 19, 2022). "She-Hulk's Fashion Designer Luke Jacobson's Surprise Return from Marvel's Dakota North Series". MovieWeb . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  10. 1 2 Shea, Ryan (January 20, 2021). "'The Flight Attendant's Griffin Matthews' Career Continues To Soar". Instinct . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  11. ↑ "The Love Portfolio: Griffin Matthews & Matt Gould". Out . January 13, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
  12. ↑ Matthews, Griffin (August 8, 2022). "Last Monday, August 1st, 2022, we finally adopted our boys!". Instagram . Retrieved September 22, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.