Renee Elise Goldsberry
Encyclopedia
Renee Elise Goldsberry is an American
actress, singer and songwriter
.
Goldsberry was born in San Jose, California
and raised in both Houston, Texas
and Detroit, Michigan
. After graduating from Cranbrook Kingswood School in Bloomfield Hills she went to Carnegie Mellon University
where she graduated with a bachelors degree in theater. She went on to attend graduate school at the University of Southern California
, where she received her masters degree in vocal jazz performance. In 2002, she married New York attorney Alexis Johnson. Goldsberry gave birth to the couple's first child, a son named Benjamin, in May 2009.
as Nicole, and co-wrote more than half of the soundtrack, including the title song. She is also a grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest
.
She has made past appearances on the FOX series
Ally McBeal
in which she played one of the back-up singers who frequently accompanied Vonda Shepard
's performances, and as Nala in the Broadway
production of The Lion King
.
Goldsberry portrayed attorney Evangeline Williamson
on the ABC
soap opera
, One Life to Live
from 2003 until 2007. She was nominated for an NAACP Image Award
in 2004 for "Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series" and won a Soap Opera Digest Award in 2005 for Favorite Triangle, with co-stars Michael Easton
and Melissa Archer
. Goldsberry was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award
for "Outstanding Supporting Actress
" in both 2006 and 2007 for the role.
Goldsberry was nominated for a Drama League Award
for "Distinguished Performance" and won a New York magazine
Best of 2005 Award for her performance as Silvia in the 2005 New York City
Shakespeare in the Park
revival of Two Gentlemen of Verona
. She later originated the role of Nettie in The Color Purple
, the Broadway musical adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning
1982 novel of the same name
, from November 2005 to mid-January 2006. On June 16, 2008, Goldsberry was the last actress to play the role of Mimi Marquez in the Broadway musical Rent
. Rents last performance was filmed and made into a DVD, Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway
.
In 2011 Goldsberry was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award
for her portrayal of Kate in David Lindsay-Abaire
's play Good People
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress, singer and songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
.
Goldsberry was born in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
and raised in both Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
and Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. After graduating from Cranbrook Kingswood School in Bloomfield Hills she went to Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
where she graduated with a bachelors degree in theater. She went on to attend graduate school at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
, where she received her masters degree in vocal jazz performance. In 2002, she married New York attorney Alexis Johnson. Goldsberry gave birth to the couple's first child, a son named Benjamin, in May 2009.
Career
In 2001 Goldsberry starred in the movie All About YouAll About You (film)
All About You is a 2001 African American romantic comedy film written and directed by Christine Swanson, Produced by Michael Swanson and starring Renee Goldsberry and Terron Brooks....
as Nicole, and co-wrote more than half of the soundtrack, including the title song. She is also a grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest
John Lennon Songwriting Contest
The John Lennon Songwriting Contest, named for the former member of The Beatles, is a songwriting competition for songwriters, open to amateurs and professionals. The contest accepts instrumental pieces as well as songs with a vocal component. Though all entries must include a CD, cassette, or...
.
She has made past appearances on the FOX series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal
Ally McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia...
in which she played one of the back-up singers who frequently accompanied Vonda Shepard
Vonda Shepard
Vonda Shepard is an American pop/rock singer. She appeared as a regular in the television show Ally McBeal from seasons 1-5 in which she played a resident performer at the bar where the show's characters drank after work. She plays piano, guitar, and bass.-Biography:Vonda Shepard was born in New...
's performances, and as Nala in the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
production of The Lion King
The Lion King (musical)
The Lion King is a musical based on the 1994 Disney animated film of the same name with music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice along with the musical score created by Hans Zimmer with choral arrangements by Lebo M. Directed by Julie Taymor, the musical features actors in animal costumes as well...
.
Goldsberry portrayed attorney Evangeline Williamson
Evangeline Williamson
Evangeline Williamson is a fictional character on the ABC soap opera, One Life to Live. The role was originated on February 25, 2003 by Renee Elise Goldsberry, who left the series on May 18, 2007.-Storylines:...
on the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, One Life to Live
One Life to Live
One Life to Live is an American soap opera which debuted on July 15, 1968 and has been broadcast on the ABC television network. Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature racially and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social...
from 2003 until 2007. She was nominated for an NAACP Image Award
NAACP Image Award
An NAACP Image Award is an accolade presented by the American National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to honor outstanding people of color in film, television, music, and literature....
in 2004 for "Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series" and won a Soap Opera Digest Award in 2005 for Favorite Triangle, with co-stars Michael Easton
Michael Easton
Michael Easton is an American television actor, poet, author and photographer.-Career:Easton has made appearances on television shows such as Ally McBeal and The Practice. He had a recurring role on the science fiction television series Mutant X...
and Melissa Archer
Melissa Archer
Melissa Jean Archer is an American actress.-Career:Archer first appeared as "bad girl" Natalie Balsom on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live on July 16, 2001...
. Goldsberry was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award
Daytime Emmy Award
The Daytime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American daytime television programming...
for "Outstanding Supporting Actress
Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
The Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series has been given every year at the Daytime Emmys since the 6th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards ceremony in 1979....
" in both 2006 and 2007 for the role.
Goldsberry was nominated for a Drama League Award
Drama League Award
The Drama League Awards, created in 1935, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing...
for "Distinguished Performance" and won a New York magazine
New York (magazine)
New York is a weekly magazine principally concerned with the life, culture, politics, and style of New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to The New Yorker, it was brasher and less polite than that magazine, and established itself as a cradle of New...
Best of 2005 Award for her performance as Silvia in the 2005 New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
Shakespeare in the Park
Shakespeare in the Park
Shakespeare in the Park is a concept used across the world, as a form of free public presentation of William Shakespeare's works. Such performances exist in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America....
revival of Two Gentlemen of Verona
Two Gentlemen of Verona (musical)
Two Gentlemen of Verona is a rock musical, with a book by John Guare and Mel Shapiro, lyrics by Guare and music by Galt MacDermot, based on the Shakespeare comedy of the same name....
. She later originated the role of Nettie in The Color Purple
The Color Purple (musical)
The Color Purple is a Broadway musical based upon the novel The Color Purple by Alice Walker. It features music and lyrics written by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray, with a book by Marsha Norman. It ran on Broadway in 2005 and has been touring throughout the US...
, the Broadway musical adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction has been awarded for distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life. It originated as the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel, which was awarded between 1918 and 1947.-1910s:...
1982 novel of the same name
The Color Purple
The Color Purple is an acclaimed 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker. It received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction...
, from November 2005 to mid-January 2006. On June 16, 2008, Goldsberry was the last actress to play the role of Mimi Marquez in the Broadway musical Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
. Rents last performance was filmed and made into a DVD, Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway
Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway
Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway is a 2008 film of the final performance of the original Broadway production of the musical Rent on September 7, 2008, with some footage of the closing night celebration. The film had a limited theatrical release between September 24 and 28, 2008, in more than 500...
.
In 2011 Goldsberry was nominated for an Outer Critics Circle Award
Outer Critics Circle Award
The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on and Off-Broadway and were begun during the 1949-1950 theater season. The awards are decided upon by theater critics who review for out-of-town newspapers, national publications, and other media outlets...
for her portrayal of Kate in David Lindsay-Abaire
David Lindsay-Abaire
David Lindsay-Abaire is an American playwright and lyricist. He received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2007 for his play Rabbit Hole, which also earned several Tony Award nominations.-Early life and education:...
's play Good People
Good People (play)
Good People is a 2011 play by David Lindsay-Abaire. The world premiere was staged by the Manhattan Theatre Club in New York City. The production was nominated for two 2011 Tony Awards – Best Play and Best Leading Actress in a Play , with the latter winning.- Synopsis :Margie Walsh, a resident of...
.