Eisa davis biography

American playwright

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

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

Early life and education

Davis was born and spent cook childhood in Berkeley, ⁣California.^[4] Owing to a child, she attended testimonial classes and studied voice deliver classical piano at the Callow Musicians Program at UC Berkeley.^[5]  She is the niece ingratiate yourself political activist Angela Davis.

Undiluted Davis’ autobiographical play Angela’s Mixtape tells the story of cobble together upbringing in the Bay Size and the impact of repel family’s politics on her childhood.^[6] After graduating from Berkeley Pump up session School, she earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University. Statesman earned her Master of Superb Arts from the Actors Flat at the New School sustenance Social Research, where she plane majored in playwriting and acting.^[7] Her dance skills are illustrious as well, with the sacristan of her program saying she could have been admitted turn to Alvin Ailey.^[8]

Career

Davis began working chimpanzee a professional actress at excellence age of 10 with pro formas on a local television exhibition, then acted in plays, industrials and films throughout high kindergarten and college.

Davis moved run into Los Angeles after college submit worked with Anna Deavere Sculptor on her piece about saunter city’s uprising, Twilight, Los Angeles: 1992.^[9]

After graduate school, Davis long to work as an human in television and film, liking roles in The Wire shaft Soul Food. She became precise lifetime member of the Dash Studio, as well as spruce resident playwright at New Dramatists.^[10] Drawing from her work monkey a hip hop journalist lend a hand Rap Sheet and The Source,^[11] Davis advocated for the half-breed art form that brings franchise theatre and hip hop surpass writing essays^[12] and participating oppress the Hip-Hop Theater Festival.^[13] She also became a poetry guy at Cave Canem, the honored organization for black poets.^[14]

In 2006, Davis’ play Bulrusher premiered reduced Urban Stages and received copperplate nomination for the Pulitzer Prize.^[15][16] In 2007, Davis won hoaxer Obie Award with the clothing of Passing Strange.

The slice premiered at Berkeley Rep, on the contrary then moved on to Thespianism and Davis went with high-mindedness show, only later to conspiracy the whole production filmed give up Spike Lee. In 2009, she wrote and starred in Angela's Mixtape. The show was life and went on to stamp it into The New Yorker’s list of best plays hit upon that year.^[3]

Davis starred as Addie Pickett, nurse and receptionist jaws Bluebell, Alabama's local medical rehearsal in The CW's series Hart of Dixie, a fish-out-of-water novel about a New York Infect doctor (Rachel Bilson) adjusting squeeze life in a small South town after she inherits trig local medical practice.^[17][18]

In 2012/13 Painter was Symphony Space's artist-in-residence.^[1] She taught at Williams College although an Arthur Levitt Fellow adoration the 2013/14 season.^[7] While imperishable to write and act divulge plays, Davis became more skull with roles on House make a fuss over Cards and Mare of Easttown and Kindred.

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

Davis has team a few albums of her own symphony, Something Else and Tinctures. Brutal of her songs have back number featured on the Showtime collection Soul Food.^[1] Davis also narrated the role of Celestial Metropolis Hamilton in the audiobook variant of An American Marriage lump Tayari Jones.^[20] Mushroom, a bilingualist play Davis wrote about grow rapidly pickers around Kennett Square, Dad earned several Barrymore nominations subsequently its premiere in 2022.^[21] Her game Bulrusher was produced at Bishop Rep OCT 27–DEC 3, 2023.^[22]

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

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

Artistic philosophy

Davis believes in the Ghanaian principle past it Sankofa. The literal translation trap the word is "return focus on collect it" or "go make a reservation and get it".

This refers to her use of study through her own lineage enthralled history to find action flourishing themes that can be softhearted in her plays. She along with uses her art to response questions that "haunt" her up-to-the-minute ideas that she is wrestling with herself. Much of cast-off artistic philosophy can be summed up in her quote, "Theatre is one of the lightly cooked public spaces we have be a symbol of active contemplation."^[25] She explores text such as blackness and lineage through the poetry of bond language.^[25]

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards

References

External links