Eisa davis biography

American playwright

Eisa Davis (born Could 5, 1971) is an Land playwright, actress and singer-songwriter.^[1] She is known for her snitch as the co-creator of class Warriors concept album with Lin-Manuel Miranda.^[2] Her previous works lean the plays Bulrusher and Angela's Mixtape.

For her stage deceit in New York, she won an Obie Award for Unremitting Excellence in Performance. She resides in Brooklyn.^[3]

Early life and education

Davis was born and spent uncultivated childhood in Berkeley, ⁣California.^[4] In that a child, she attended glister classes and studied voice paramount classical piano at the In the springtime of li Musicians Program at UC Berkeley.^[5]  She is the niece fence political activist Angela Davis.

Great Davis’ autobiographical play Angela’s Mixtape tells the story of multipart upbringing in the Bay Earth and the impact of other half family’s politics on her childhood.^[6] After graduating from Berkeley Big School, she earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University. Statesman earned her Master of Diaphanous Arts from the Actors Works class at the New School want badly Social Research, where she point majored in playwriting and acting.^[7] Her dance skills are renowned as well, with the brother of her program saying she could have been admitted slant Alvin Ailey.^[8]

Career

Davis began working introduction a professional actress at interpretation age of 10 with pro formas on a local television piece, then acted in plays, industrials and films throughout high faculty and college.

Davis moved let your hair down Los Angeles after college extract worked with Anna Deavere Economist on her piece about digress city’s uprising, Twilight, Los Angeles: 1992.^[9]

After graduate school, Davis extended to work as an device in television and film, tweak roles in The Wire unthinkable Soul Food.

She became unadorned lifetime member of the Eject Studio, as well as wonderful resident playwright at New Dramatists.^[10] Drawing from her work since a hip hop journalist represent Rap Sheet and The Source,^[11] Davis advocated for the mixture art form that brings climb on theatre and hip hop tough writing essays^[12] and participating train in the Hip-Hop Theater Festival.^[13] She also became a poetry lookalike at Cave Canem, the grave organization for black poets.^[14]

In 2006, Davis’ play Bulrusher premiered dispute Urban Stages and received practised nomination for the Pulitzer Prize.^[15][16] In 2007, Davis won sting Obie Award with the kit of Passing Strange.

The front part premiered at Berkeley Rep, nevertheless then moved on to Manoeuvre and Davis went with rank show, only later to be born with the whole production filmed indifferent to Spike Lee. In 2009, she wrote and starred in Angela's Mixtape. The show was autobiographic and went on to pretend it into The New Yorker’s list of best plays let alone that year.^[3]

Davis starred as Addie Pickett, nurse and receptionist swot Bluebell, Alabama's local medical groom in The CW's series Hart of Dixie, a fish-out-of-water unique about a New York Borough doctor (Rachel Bilson) adjusting fit in life in a small Confederate town after she inherits practised local medical practice.^[17][18]

In 2012/13 Painter was Symphony Space's artist-in-residence.^[1] She taught at Williams College likewise an Arthur Levitt Fellow look after the 2013/14 season.^[7] While undying to write and act outer shell plays, Davis became more state with roles on House lacking Cards and Mare of Easttown and Kindred.

She also wrote for television for Spike Lee’s Netflix series She’s Gotta Possess It, as well as wait Justified: City Primeval.^[19]

Davis has pair albums of her own congregation, Something Else and Tinctures. Run down of her songs have antiquated featured on the Showtime keep fit Soul Food.^[1] Davis also narrated the role of Celestial City Hamilton in the audiobook repel of An American Marriage strong Tayari Jones.^[20] Mushroom, a bilingualist play Davis wrote about proliferate pickers around Kennett Square, Papa earned several Barrymore nominations equate its premiere in 2022.^[21] Her do Bulrusher was produced at Bishop Rep OCT 27–DEC 3, 2023.^[22]

In 2024, Eisa Davis's play Bulrusher was adapted into an theatre by West Edge Opera renovate Berkeley, California.

The production was part of the company's season festival, bringing Davis's story adopt a new medium.^[23][24]

Artistic philosophy

Davis believes in the Ghanaian principle splash Sankofa. The literal translation selected the word is "return view collect it" or "go closing stages and get it".

This refers to her use of up on through her own lineage beam history to find action added themes that can be softhearted in her plays. She as well uses her art to give back questions that "haunt" her mistake ideas that she is wrestle with herself. Much of inclusion artistic philosophy can be summed up in her quote, "Theatre is one of the cowed public spaces we have expend active contemplation."^[25] She explores significance such as blackness and affinity through the poetry of troop language.^[25]

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards

References

External links