Audra Mc Donald

Audra Mcdonald is a standout in her breadth of talent and her versatility as a singer and actor. She was the recipient of a record breaking 6 Tony Awards as well as two Grammy Awards and Emmy Awards. She was also named by Time magazine among the 100 most influential people and was given the National Medal of Arts - the top honor for artistic achievement in America in recognition of artistic excellence - from the president Barack Obama. She has a home in film, television as well as Broadway. The luminous tone of her voice makes her a natural on the stage. In addition to her work in the theatre, she is also a prominent performer as a concert and recording performer who regularly appears at top venues around the globe. McDonald is a native of California, born in Fresno California to a music family, received her classical voice training at the New York's Juilliard School. Following her graduation, she was awarded the first Tony Award as Best Performance by a Featured Actor in an Musical in the Lincoln Center Theater for Carousel (1994). In the following four years, she won two more Tony Awards for the category of featured actress. She performed in Broadway premier productions of Terrence McNally's musical Ragtime and Terrence McNally's production of Master Class in 1996. The result was an astonishing total of three Tony Awards by the time she turned 30. She won her 4th Tony by starring on stage in A Raisin in the Sun along with Sean Diddy Combs. Then in 2013, she brought her fifth Tony in addition to her first award in the Leading actress category. She created Broadway historical records in 2014 when she became the world's most decorated Tony Award performer. Her portrayal as Billie Holiday at Emerson's Bar & Grill in the show, that also helped launch her Olivier Award nominated debut on the London's West End in 2017, was the reason she received six awards. The first actor to be given awards in four distinct acting categories, McDonald broke the record for the total number of awards that an actor has won. Her credits in the theatre include The Secret Garden (1993) Marie Christine (993) Henry IV (2004) and 110 in the Shade (707). Twelfth, Night was McDonald's Public Theater Shakespeare in the Park debut. Shuffle Along is The Making of the Musical Seduction of 1921-and All That Followed. Frankie Johnny in the Clair de Lune. and Ohio State Murders. McDonald was first seen on TV as a character actor in The Peabody Award winner CBS series Having Our Say - The Delany Sisters' First 100 years. The year 1999 saw her co-starred with Kathy Bates in ABC's acclaimed remake of Annie. She also had a recurring part in NBC's Law & Order Special Victims Unit in the year 2000. McDonald's Emmy-nominated performance of Emma Thompson on Mike Nichols' HBO film adaptation of Pulitzer Prize winner Wit was produced by Mike Nichols. McDonald's return to television networks began in 2003 when she starred with Josh Brolin in Mister Sterling. Then, in the year 2006, McDonald appeared on WB's The Bedford Diaries. The next year she was a recurring actor on NBC's Kidnapped. McDonald was nominated for a Fourth Emmy in 2016 for her part in HBO's movie called Lady Day, at Emerson's Bar and Grill. She also appeared in 2021 when she was a co-star with Taylor Schilling and Steven Pasquale as part of The Bite, a pandemic film produced by Spectrum Originals and CBS Studios. The actress first appeared as U.S. attorney Liz Lawrence in 2009 on CBS's legal comedy The Good Wife in 2018 McDonald took on the role (now called Liz Reddick) as a season-long regular on The Good Fight on Paramount+ getting the three Critics Choice Award nominations for her role. Presently, she is acting as a guest in Julian Fellowes' historical drama The Gilded Age, which airs on HBO.