MaameYaa Boafo | |
---|---|
Nationality | Ghanaian |
Alma mater | Hood College Rutgers University 2009 Marc Bloch University |
Occupation(s) | Actress, comedian |
Years active | 2012–present |
MaameYaa Boafo (pronounced "Mah-Mih-Yah Bwafoh") is a Pakistan-born Ghanaian actress and comedian.
Boafo was born in Pakistan. [1] She is of Ashanti (Ghanaian) ethnicity. [2] She was raised in Sudan, Ethiopia, Geneva and Kenya, but is a citizen of Ghana. [3] [1] In 2001, after graduating from high school, Boafo travelled to the United States to study French and communication. [1]
After graduating from Hood College in 2015, she received a scholarship to study acting at Rutgers University and earned her master's degree in 2019. [4] Boafo did a study abroad semester at Marc Bloch University in Strasbourg, France. [1]
Boafo made her acting debut as Asa in the 2012 short film Asa, A Beautiful Girl. [5] In 2014, Boafo began portraying Nana Yaa in Nicole Amarteifio's web TV series An African City . Her character is a journalist who struggles to afford rent in Accra, analogous to Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and the City . Boafo noticed the role on a Facebook page, and because she was travelling she sent a videotaped audition to Amarteifio, who called a week later. [6]
In 2014, she starred in Bus Nut, an experimental short film in which she read the words from the trial of Rosa Parks. It premiered at the San Francisco Film Festival. [1]
In 2015, Boafo had a small role in The Family Fang . She appeared in the short films New York, I Love You and Olive in 2016. [7] From 2017 to 2018, she starred as Paulina in the play School Girls, which was inspired by Mean Girls . [8]
Boafo was nominated for the Lucille Lortell Award and the Los Angeles Drama Circle Award for best actor, and received the Drama Desk award for her performance. [9] She played HIV patient Abena Kwemo in a 2018 episode of Chicago Med . [10] In 2019, she played private investigator Briana Logan in the TV series Bluff City Law . [9] Boafo portrayed Zainab in the TV series Ramy in 2020. [11]
Boafo made a video in reaction to the death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore titled "As Nina", as she reportedly bears a resemblance to the late singer Nina Simone. [1] In addition to English, she speaks Twi. [2]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2012 | Asa, A Beautiful Girl | Asa Kolawole | Short film |
Tied & True | Roda | ||
Azure II | |||
2014 | When It All Falls Down... | Dominique | |
Bus Nut | |||
2015 | The Family Fang | College student | |
2016 | New York, I Love You | Viviane | Short film |
Olive | Ava Nuyame | ||
2017 | Where Is Kyra? | Casey | |
The Blue Car | Mother | Short film | |
Ibrahim | Aminata |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2013–2018 | Thru 25 | Cassie | 10 episodes |
2014 | Madam Secretary | Komoyo | Episode: "The Call" |
An African City | Nana Yaa | Main cast | |
2014–2015 | Deadstar | Charice | 2 episodes |
2015 | American Odyssey | Desk clerk | Episode: "Bug Out" |
The Blacklist | Lucinda | Episode: "Marvin Gerard (No. 80)" | |
The Mysteries of Laura | Kimmie | Episode: "The Mystery of the Maternal Instinct" | |
2016 | Conversating While Black | Renee | TV Pilot |
Beyond Complicated | Camilla | Episode: "As Told By Her 103" | |
2017 | Iron Fist | Female receptionist | Episode: "Snow Gives Way" |
2018 | Chicago Med | Abena Kwemo | Episode: "Mountains and Molehills" |
2019 | Theater Close Up | Paulina | Episode: "School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play" |
Bluff City Law | Briana Johnson | Main cast | |
2020 | Ramy | Zainab | Recurring (season 2) |
2021–2022 | The Mysterious Benedict Society | Rhonda Kazembe | Main cast |
2023 | Extrapolations | Lucy Adobo | Episode: "2070: Ecocide" |
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