Vanessa Williams | |
|---|---|
 Williams in 2019 | |
| Born | Vanessa Lynn Williams (1963-03-18)March 18, 1963 (age 62) Tarrytown, New York, U.S.[1] |
| Education | Syracuse University (BFA) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Title |
|
| Term | Miss America: September 17, 1983 – July 23, 1984 (resigned) |
| Predecessor | Debra Maffett |
| Successor | Suzette Charles |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 4, includingJillian Hervey |
| Relatives | Chris Williams (brother) |
| Awards | Full list |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Labels | |
Musical artist | |
| Website | vanessawilliams |
Vanessa Lynn Williams[1] (born March 18, 1963) is an American singer, actress, model, producer and dancer. She gained recognition as the first Black woman to win theMiss America title when she was crownedMiss America 1984. She would laterresign her title amid a media controversy surrounding nude photographs published inPenthouse magazine. 32 years later, Williams was offered a public apology during theMiss America 2016 pageant for the events.
Williams rebounded from the scandal with a successful career as a singer and actress. In 1988, she released her debut studio albumThe Right Stuff, whosetitle single saw moderate success as well as "Dreamin'", which peaked at number 8 on theBillboard Hot 100 in the United States in 1989. With her second and third studio albums,The Comfort Zone (1991) andThe Sweetest Days (1994), she saw continued commercial success and received multipleGrammy Award nominations, including her number-one single andsignature song, "Save the Best for Last", which she performed live at the 1993 Grammy Awards ceremonies. Her later studio albums includeEverlasting Love (2005),The Real Thing (2009), andSurvivor (2024).
As an actress, Williams enjoyed success on stage and screen. She made herBroadway debut in 1994 withKiss of the Spider Woman. In 2002, she starred as The Witch in the revival ofStephen Sondheim'sInto the Woods that earned her a nomination for theTony Award for Best Actress in a Musical at the56th Tony Awards. She starred in the revival ofHorton Foote'sThe Trip to Bountiful in 2013, and the ensemble political farcePOTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive in 2022. She is also known for her appearances in television with her best known roles beingWilhelmina Slater onUgly Betty (2006–2010) for which she was nominated three times for thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series; andRenee Perry onDesperate Housewives (2010–2012).
Since 2024, she has been starring in the musicalThe Devil Wears Prada at theDominion Theatre, London.
Vanessa Lynn Williams was born inTarrytown, New York with a birth announcement that read: "Here she is: Miss America".[2][3] She was raised inMillwood, New York.[1] A paternal great-great-grandfather wasWilliam Fields, an African-American legislator in theTennessee House of Representatives. Williams is also ofEnglish andWelsh descent.[4][5] Her mother Helen Tinch (1939–2024) met her father Milton Augustine Williams Jr. (1934–2006) while both weremusic education students atFredonia State Teachers College in the late 1950s.[6] They became elementary school music teachers in separate districts after marriage.[6] Milton also served as the assistant principal of his school for an extended period of time.[7]
Williams was raised Catholic, the religion of her father. Her mother, who had been raised Baptist, converted to Catholicism when she married. Williams was baptized at Our Lady of Grace Church inthe Bronx. Her mother played the organ at St. Theresa's Church inBriarcliff Manor for weddings and at Mass, and Williams used to assist her mother by turning the pages of sheet music.[2]
Williams and her younger brotherChris Williams, who later became an actor, grew up inWestchester County, a predominantly white middle to upper-class suburb of New York City.[3] Williams believes she may have been the first African-American student to go from the first grade to the 12th grade in theChappaqua Central School District.[5] She attended Robert E. Bell Middle School, as did her children years later. Williams revealed that the shop and home economics teachers, Mr. and Mrs. Fink, were still there when her children attended.[8]
A child of music teachers, Williams grew up in a musical household, studying classical and jazz dance, French horn, piano, and violin.[1][2] She was offered the Presidential Scholarship for Drama to attendCarnegie Mellon University during the college application period, one of 12 students to receive it, but decided instead to attendSyracuse University[1] on a different scholarship.[9] In 1981, Williams joinedSyracuse's College of Visual and Performing Arts, Department of Drama as a musical theater major.[9][10] She stayed at Syracuse through her second year until she was crownedMiss America 1984 in September 1983.[10]
In May 2008, Syracuse granted Williams aBachelor of Fine Arts degree.[11] According toSyracuse News, "Williams earned the remaining credits for her degree through industry experience and her substantial performances on stage and screen."[10] Williams delivered the 2008 convocation address, telling Syracuse seniors to "treasure this moment. These days are irreplaceable and are the beginning of the rest of your life."[12]
Williams is most often publicly recognized simply as "Vanessa Williams." There is occasional confusion with the similarly named actressVanessa E. Williams. It has been reported that Vanessa L. became aware of Vanessa E. in the 1980s when theNew York University registrar told her that another, similarly aged student with the same name and from the same state had applied.[13][14] When Williams appeared as Miss America in aMacy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Vanessa E. accidentally received her check for the appearance, which she returned.[13]
In the area of acting, the two ran into name conflict whenScreen Actors Guild rules prohibited duplicate stage naming. Vanessa E. had registered the name "Vanessa Williams" first,[13] so as a compromise, Williams was occasionally credited as "Vanessa L. Williams" in acting credits. To compound the confusion, both actresses starred in versions of the dramaSoul Food, Williams in the film version, and Vanessa E. in itsTV series adaptation. The Screen Actors Guild eventually took the issue toarbitration, and decided both actresses could use the professional name "Vanessa Williams".[14]
Williams was the firstAfrican-American recipient of theMiss America title when she was crowned Miss America 1984 on September 17, 1983. Several weeks before the end of her reign, a scandal arose whenPenthouse magazine bought and published unauthorized nude photographs of her. Williams was pressured to relinquish her title and was succeeded by the first runner-up:Miss New Jersey 1983,Suzette Charles. Thirty-two years later in September 2015, when Williams served as head judge for theMiss America 2016 pageant, former Miss America CEO Sam Haskell made a public apology to her for the events of 1984.[15][16][17][18]
Williams first received public recognition for her musical abilities when she won the preliminary talent portion of the Miss America pageant with her rendition of "Happy Days Are Here Again" (Williams would later be crowned Miss America 1984).[15] Four years later in 1988, Williams released her debut album,The Right Stuff.[1] The first single, "The Right Stuff", found success on theR&B chart, while the second single, "He's Got the Look", found similar success on the same chart. The third single, "Dreamin'", was a pop hit, becoming Williams' first top 10 hit on the 1989Billboard Hot 100, peaking at No. 8, and her first number one single on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The album reached gold status in the U.S. and earned her anNAACP Image Award for Outstanding New Artist and threeGrammy Award nominations, including one forBest New Artist at the31st Grammy Awards.[1]
Her 1991 second albumThe Comfort Zone became the biggest success in her music career.[1] The lead single "Running Back to You" reached top twenty on the Hot 100, and the top position of Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart on October 5, 1991. Other singles included "The Comfort Zone" (#2 R&B), "Just for Tonight" (#26 Pop), a cover ofThe Isley Brothers' "Work to Do" (#3 R&B), and the club-only hit "Freedom Dance (Get Free!)".
The most successful single from the album, as well as her biggest hit to date, is "Save the Best for Last".[1] It reached No. 1 in the United States, where it remained for five weeks, as well as No. 1 in Australia, the Netherlands, and Canada, and was in the top 5 in Japan, on theIrish Singles Chart and theUK Singles Chart. The album sold 2.2 million copies in the U.S. at its time of release and has since been certified triple platinum in the United States by theRIAA, gold in Canada by theCRIA, and platinum in the United Kingdom by theBPI. Williams performed the song live at the1993 Grammy Awards.The Comfort Zone earned Williams five Grammy Award nominations.[1]
The Sweetest Days, her third album, was released in 1994 to highly favorable reviews.[1] The album saw Williams branch out and sample other styles of music that includedjazz,hip hop,rock, andLatin-themed recordings such as "Betcha Never" and "You Can't Run", both written and produced byBabyface. Other singles from the album included the adult-contemporary and dance hit "The Way That You Love" and thetitle track. The album was certified platinum in the U.S. by the RIAA and earned her two Grammy Award nominations.[1]
Other releases include two Christmas albums,Star Bright in 1996, andSilver & Gold in 2004, as well asNext in 1997,Everlasting Love in 2005, andThe Real Thing in 2009, along withGreatest Hits: The First Ten Years, a greatest hits compilation released in 1998, and a number of other compilations released over the years.[1] Chart performances from subsequent albums, motion picture and television soundtracks have included the songs "Love Is", which was a duet withBrian McKnight, theGolden Globe- andAcademy Award-winning "Colors of the Wind", "Where Do We Go from Here?", and "Oh How the Years Go By".[1]
In 1996, Williams performed thenational anthem atSuper Bowl XXX.
In April 2018, she announced she was working on a new studio album due in the fall that would incorporate herR&B,pop, &Broadway influences.[19]
On April 26, 2024, Williams released a new single, "Legs (Keep Dancing)", the first from her ninth studio album,Survivor, which was released on August 23, 2024.[20] Williams launched her own record label, Mellian Music, for the release.[21] On May 13, 2024, the digital single "Legs (Keep Dancing)" debuted on the USDance/Electronic Digital Song Sales (Billboard) chart in the Number 3 position. The single's success marks Williams' first hit on the Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales chart.[22] In July 2024, Williams released the single "Bop!", a collaboration withTrixie Mattel andLion Babe.[23]
Vanessa Williams has surpassed 250 million total streams onSpotify across all credits. She averages nearly 190K daily listeners on the platform.[24]
Williams has had a successful career in television. Her first television appearance was on a 1984 episode ofThe Love Boat[25] followed by guest appearances in a number of popular shows. In 1995, Williams starred as Rose Alvarez in a television adaptation of the 1960 Broadway musicalBye Bye Birdie and portrayed the nymphCalypso in the 1997Hallmark Entertainment miniseriesThe Odyssey. In 2000, Williams starred in theLifetime film about the life ofHenriette DeLille,The Courage to Love and in 2003, Williams read the narrative of Tempie Herndon Durham from theWPA slave narratives in theHBO documentaryUnchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives.[1]
In 2006, Williams received considerable media attention for her comic/villainess role as former model/magazine creative director turned editor-in-chiefWilhelmina Slater in theABC comedy seriesUgly Betty.[1] Her performance on the series resulted in a nomination for thePrimetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series at the59th Primetime Emmy Awards[26] with additional nominations in2008 and2009.[1] Williams next joined the cast ofDesperate Housewives for itsseventh season, where she portrayedRenee Perry, an old college "frenemy" ofLynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman).[27] In 2016, she joined the cast ofThe Librarians, as recurring villainess General Cynthia Rockwell.[28] She starred as Maxine Robinson in theVH1 television seriesDaytime Divas during its one season in 2017.[29][30]
Williams has appeared in a number of feature films. She received anNAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture for her portrayal of Teri Joseph for the 1997 feature filmSoul Food. In 2007, she starred in the independent filmMy Brother,[31] for which she won Best Actress honors at theHarlem International Film Festival, the African-American Women in Cinema Film Festival, and at the Santa Barbara African Heritage Film Festival. She also notably co-starred withArnold Schwarzenegger in the 1996 filmEraser,[32]Samuel L. Jackson in the 2000 soft reboot ofShaft, the characters fromSesame Street in the 1999 filmThe Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, as the Queen of Trash, and withMiley Cyrus in the 2009 filmHannah Montana: The Movie.[33]
Williams began her career on stage in the 1985 production,One Man Band, as one of "the women".[34] She followed it in 1989 as Laura inRon Milner'sCheckmates.[35]
In 1994, she broadened her ascendant music career into a theatrical role when she replacedChita Rivera as Aurora in the Broadway production ofKiss of the Spider Woman.[36] In 1998, she portrayed Della Green in the revival ofSt. Louis Woman,[37] and Carmen Jones in the 2002Kennedy Center Special Performance ofCarmen Jones.[38] In the same year, she was also featured in theTony andDrama Desk Award-winning revival production ofStephen Sondheim'sInto the Woods, for which she was nominated for aTony Award for Best Actress in a Musical at the 56th Tony Awards and aDrama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical for her performance as the Witch. This production included songs revised for her.[39]
In 2010, Vanessa starred in a new Broadway musical revue entitledSondheim on Sondheim, a look at Stephen Sondheim through his music, film and videotaped interviews.Sondheim ran from March 19 to June 13 atStudio 54 in New York City.[40] In 2013, she starred as Jessie Mae Watts in theHorton Foote playThe Trip to Bountiful, which was later turned into a2014 television film.[41] In 2014, she starred in the Broadway musical,After Midnight[42] and in 2015, she appeared in aPBS production ofShow Boat asJulie La Verne.[43] Williams starred as Margaret inPOTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive on Broadway, with performances that began on April 14, 2022, at theShubert Theatre.[44]
Williams served as the host of the 1994Essence Awards,[45] co-host ofCarnegie Hall Salutes the Jazz Masters:Verve Records at 50,[46] host of the 1998NAACP Image Awards,[47] host of the 2002 documentary,It's Black Entertainment, host of The 6th AnnualTV Land Awards in 2007,[48] host of the36th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards in 2009,[49] and host of the documentaryDreams Come True: A Celebration ofDisney Animation in 2009.
Williams is a spokesmodel forProactiv Solution,[50] and was the first African-American spokesmodel forL'Oréal cosmetics in the 1990s.[51] In 2018, Williams returned as a spokesmodel for L'Oréal as part of their "Age Perfect" campaign alongside fellow ambassadorsHelen Mirren,Julianne Moore, andJane Fonda.[52]In 2000, she appeared onWho Wants to Be a Millionaire as a contestant, and again in August 2009, as a celebrity guest during the show's tenth anniversary prime-time special editions, winning $50,000 for her charity.[53][54]
In a commercial that began running duringSuper Bowl XLVI in 2012, Williams voiced the new character Ms. Brown, a brownM&M.[55]
In 2020, Williams was the winner ofseason 1, episode 2 ofRuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race, and donated her prize of $20,000 to the LGBTQ charityThe Trevor Project.
In March 2016, Williams launched her own clothing line,V. by Vanessa Williams, forEVINE Live.[56]
Williams and her mother Helen co-authored a memoir titledYou Have No Idea, published in April 2012. In the book, Williams discusses her childhood, rise to fame, and personal struggles, including life withtype 1 diabetes and the fact that she was sexually molested by a woman when she was ten years old.[57][58] She spoke candidly about having anabortion while she was in high school.[59]
Williams is a practicingCatholic, something she spoke about on theABC News programFocus on Faith withFr. Edward L. Beck.[2]
Williams has been married three times. She married Ramon Hervey II[60][61] atSt. Francis Xavier Catholic Church[62] in 1987[62][63] just a few years after giving up her Miss America crown and gave birth to her first child at that time. Hervey was a public relations specialist who was hired to resuscitate her career after her resignation.[62][64][65] They had three children, Melanie,Jillian, and Devin.[66] They divorced in 1997.[67][68]
She marriedNBA basketball playerRick Fox in 1999. They had one daughter, Sasha Gabriella Fox.[66][69] They divorced in 2004.[1][70][71] In 2015, she married Jim Skrip, a businessman fromBuffalo, New York atSt. Stanislaus Catholic Church, after receiving a Churchannulment of her first marriage.[72][73][74] The couple quietly divorced in 2021.[75]
Her daughter, Jillian Hervey, is an American singer, dancer, and member of the groupLion Babe.
Williams is a grandmother.
In 2013, she was in an episode ofWho Do You Think You Are? to learn about her background. According to the DNA test results, she is 23% Ghanaian, 17% British, 15% Cameroonian, 12% Finnish, 11% Southern-European, 7% Togolese, 6% Beninese, 5% Senegalese and 4% Portuguese.[76]
Williams is involved with a number of humanitarian causes. in 2011 participated in thehuman rights campaign New Yorkers for Marriage Equality.[77] She currently sits on the board of The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture a creative arts space run by the Catholic Archdiocese. She is partnered withDress For Success, an organization that provides professional attire for low-income women seeking employment.[30][78] Williams is also involved with The San Miquel Academy of Newburgh, a school for boys at risk.[79]
Williams is the recipient of many awards and nominations including elevenGrammy nominations for hits such as "The Right Stuff", "Save the Best for Last", and "Colors of the Wind". In addition, she has earned threeEmmy nominations, a Tony Award nomination, seven NAACP Image Awards, and fourSatellite Awards.
She received a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame on March 19, 2007.[80]
In December 2017, Vanessa L. Williams participated atCOAF Gala fundraising event, delivering a special performance of her Golden Globe and Academy Award-winning song "Colors of the Wind" and paid tribute toPatricia Field, with whom she worked on the set of the TV seriesUgly Betty.[81]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | The Pick-up Artist | Rae | |
| 1988 | Under the Gun | Samantha Richards | |
| 1989 | Full Exposure: The Sex Tapes Scandal | Valentine Hayward | Television film |
| 1990 | Perry Mason: The Case of the Silenced Singer | Terri Knight | |
| Seriously...Phil Collins | Rachel | ||
| The Kid Who Loved Christmas | Lynette Parks | ||
| 1991 | Another You | Gloria | |
| Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man | Lulu Daniels | ||
| 1992 | Stompin' at the Savoy | Pauline | Television film |
| 1995 | Nothing Lasts Forever | Dr. Kathy "Kat" Hunter | |
| Bye Bye Birdie | Rose Alvarez | ||
| 1996 | Eraser | Dr. Lee Cullen | |
| 1997 | Soul Food | Teri Joseph | |
| Hoodlum | Francine Hughes | ||
| 1998 | Dance with Me | Ruby Sinclair | |
| Futuresport | Alejandra 'Alex' Torres | Television film | |
| 1999 | The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland | Queen of Trash | |
| Light It Up | Detective Audrey McDonald | ||
| 2000 | The Courage to Love | MotherHenriette DeLille | Television film |
| Don Quixote | Dulcinea del Toboso/Aldonza Lorenzo | ||
| Shaft | Carmen Vasquez | ||
| A Diva's Christmas Carol | Ebony Scrooge | Television film | |
| 2001 | WW3 | M.J. Blake | |
| Santa, Baby! | Alicia | Voice, television film | |
| 2002 | Keep the Faith, Baby | Hazel Scott | Television film |
| 2004 | Johnson Family Vacation | Dorothy Johnson | |
| Beck and Call | Zoe | Short film | |
| 2006 | Rehearsing a Dream | Herself | |
| My Brother | L'Tisha Morton | ||
| 2007 | And Then Came Love | Julie Davidson | Also executive producer |
| 2009 | Hannah Montana: The Movie | Vita | |
| 2011 | Delhi Safari | Beggum | Voice |
| 2013 | He's Way More Famous Than You | Herself | |
| Temptation: Confessions of a Marriage Counselor | Janice | ||
| 2014 | The Trip to Bountiful | Jessie Mae Watts | Television film |
| When Marnie Was There | Hisako | Voice | |
| 2017 | The Man from Earth: Holocene | Carolyn | |
| 2018 | Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay | Amanda Waller | Voice |
| The Legend of Hallowaiian | Fire Goddess | ||
| False Profits | Suzanne | Television film | |
| 2019 | Batman: Hush | Amanda Waller | Voice |
| Miss Virginia | Sally Ray | ||
| 2020 | Bad Hair | Zora Choice | |
| 2023 | Tripped Up | Patty |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Live from Lincoln Center | Graduates/Off Stage Voices | Episode: "New York City Opera: Street Scene" |
| 1984 | Partners in Crime | Roselle Robins | Episode: "Celebrity" |
| The Love Boat | Miss America | Episode: "Ace's Valet/Mother Comes First/Hit or Miss America" | |
| 1986 | He's the Mayor | Herself | Episode: "An Officer and the Mayor" |
| The Redd Foxx Show | Jessica | Episode: "The Prodigal Son" | |
| T.J. Hooker | Officer Pat Williamson | Episode: "Partners in Death" | |
| The Love Boat | Pearl | Episode: "My Stepmother, Myself/Almost Roommates/Cornerback Sneak" | |
| 1992 | The Jacksons: An American Dream | Suzanne de Passe | Episode: "Part I & II" |
| The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air | Danny Mitchell | Episode: "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way Home from the Forum" | |
| 1992–1998 | Saturday Night Live | Herself | 2 episodes |
| 1994 | Great Performances | Herself/Host | Episode: "Carnegie Hall Salutes the Jazz Masters:Verve Records at 50" |
| 1995 | Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child | Beauty | Voice, episode: "Beauty and the Beast" |
| 1996 | Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | Arandis | Episode: "Let He Who Is Without Sin..." |
| 1997 | The Odyssey | Calypso | Episode: "Part I & II" |
| 1999 | I'll Make Me a World | Herself/Narrator | |
| L.A. Doctors | Dr. Leanne Barrows | Recurring role | |
| 2000 | Sesame Street | Herself | Episode: "Dancing on Sesame Street" |
| 2002 | Ally McBeal | Sheila Hunt | Episode: "Another One Bites the Dust" |
| The Proud Family | Debra Williams | Voice, episode: "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thingy, Baby" | |
| 2003 | Boomtown | Detective Katherine Pierce | Recurring role (6 episodes) |
| 2004 | Mad TV | Herself | Episode: "Episode #9.20" |
| 2006 | South Beach | Elizabeth Bauer | Main cast (8 episodes) |
| 2006–2010 | Ugly Betty | Wilhelmina Slater | Main cast (85 episodes) |
| 2007 | Shear Genius | Herself/Celebrity Judge | 2 episodes |
| 2007–2008 | Mama Mirabelle's Home Movies | Mama Mirabelle | Voice, main role (33 episodes) |
| 2010 | The A-List: New York | Herself | Episode: "To the Sky" |
| 2010–2012 | Desperate Housewives | Renee Perry | Main role (46 episodes) |
| 2011–2023 | RuPaul's Drag Race | Herself/Guest Judge | 2 episodes |
| 2012 | Kitchen Cousins | Herself | Episode: "Vanessa Williams Kitchen Surprise" |
| Phineas and Ferb | Flight Attendant | Voice, episode: "Where's Perry? Part I" | |
| 2012–2013 | 666 Park Avenue | Olivia Doran | Main role (13 episodes) |
| 2014 | The Haunting Of... | Herself | Episode: "Vanessa Williams" |
| 2015 | The Mindy Project | Dr. Philips | Episode: "Danny Castellano Is My Nutritionist" |
| Royal Pains | Olympia Houston | 2 episodes | |
| The Good Wife | Courtney Paige | 4 episodes | |
| Live from Lincoln Center | Julie La Verne | Episode: "Kern andHammerstein'sShow Boat" | |
| 2016 | Broad City | Elizabeth Carlton | Episode: "Game Over" |
| 2016–2017 | The Librarians | General Cynthia Rockwell | 4 episodes |
| 2016–2018 | Milo Murphy's Law | Dr. Eileen Underwood | Voice, 4 episodes |
| 2017 | Daytime Divas | Maxine Robinson | Main role (10 episodes) |
| Difficult People | Trish | Episode: "Strike Rat" | |
| Modern Family | Rhonda | Episode: "The Long Goodbye" | |
| 2018 | RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars | Herself/Guest Judge | Episode: "Divas Lip Sync Live" |
| Me, Myself & I | Kelly Frasier | 3 episodes | |
| 2019 | Project Runway All Stars | Herself/Guest Judge | Episode: "Penneys From Heaven" |
| Doc McStuffins | Delilah | Voice, episode: "Adventures in Baby Land" | |
| First Wives Club | Nancy | Episode: "Something Blue" | |
| 2019–2022 | T.O.T.S. | Captain Candace Beakman | Voice, main role (64 episodes) |
| 2020 | RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race | Herself/Vanqueisha De House | Contestant (season 1) |
| 2020–2021 | Twenties | Angela | 3 episodes |
| 2021 | Kenan | Tasha Noble | Episode: "Hair Show" |
| Marvel's Wastelanders: Star-Lord | Emma Frost | Voice, main role (10 episodes) | |
| 2021–2024 | Girls5eva | Nance Trace | 3 episodes |
| 2021–2023 | Queen of the Universe | Herself/Judge | Main role (14 episodes) |
| 2022 | Carpool Karaoke | Herself | Episode: "Hillary Clinton,Chelsea Clinton &Amber Ruffin" |
| A Black Lady Sketch Show | Delilah | Episode: "It’s a New Day, Africa America!" | |
| 2023 | American Experience | Herself/Narrator | Episode: "Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space" |
| RuPaul's Drag Race | Herself | Episode: "Grand Finale"[82] | |
| Great Performances | Episode: "Celebrating 50 Years of Broadway's Best" | ||
| 2024 | Velma | Dr. Perdue (voice) | 6 episodes |
| Elsbeth | Rosalyn Bridwell | Episode: "Diamonds are for Elsbeth" |
| Year | Title | Role | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | One Man Band[83] | The Women | South Street Theatre,Off-Broadway |
| 1988 | Checkmates | Laura McClellan-Williams | Westwood Playhouse |
| 1994 | The Jazz Masters, Live from Carnegie Hall | Host/Performer | Carnegie Hall |
| 1994 | Kiss of the Spider Woman | Spider Woman/AuroraReplacement | Broadhurst Theatre,Broadway debut |
| 1998 | St. Louis Woman[84] | Della Green | New York City Center, Off-Broadway |
| 2001 | Broadway Bash[85] | Performer | |
| 2002 | Into the Woods | The Witch | Ahmanson Theatre |
| Broadhurst Theatre, Broadway | |||
| Carmen Jones[86] | Carmen Jones | Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts | |
| 2004 | Silver & Gold[87] | Herself/Performer | Palace Theatre, Broadway |
| 2010 | Sondheim on Sondheim | Performer | Studio 54, Broadway |
| 2013 | The Trip to Bountiful | Jessie Mae Watts | Stephen Sondheim Theatre, Broadway |
| After Midnight | Special Guest Star | Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway | |
| 2014 | Show Boat[88] | Julie La Verne | New York Philharmonic,Avery Fisher Hall |
| 2018 | Hey Look Me Over[89] | Performer | New York City Center, Off-Broadway |
| 2020 | City of Angels[90] | Carla Haywood/Alaura Kingsley | Garrick Theatre,West End |
| 2022 | SethRudetsky'sBroadway Concert Series[91] | Herself/Performer | Town Hall, Broadway |
| Anyone Can Whistle | Cora Hoover Hooper | Carnegie Hall | |
| POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive | Margaret | Shubert Theatre, Broadway | |
| 50 Years of Broadway at the Kennedy Center[92] | Performer | Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts | |
| 2023 | Gutenberg! The Musical! | Producer | James Earl Jones Theatre, Broadway |
| 2024 | KRISTIN: An Evening with Friends for Todd[93] | Performer | Stephen Sondheim Theatre, Broadway |
| 2024–25 | The Devil Wears Prada | Miranda Priestly | Theatre Royal, Plymouth (July–August 2024) andDominion Theatre, West End (from Oct 24)[94] |
| A Wonderful World[95] | (Producer only) | Studio 54, Broadway |
| Year | Title | Voice |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | You Don't Know Jack Volume 2 | Herself |
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Miss America 1984 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Eileen Clark | Miss New York 1983 | Succeeded by Melissa Manning |
| Studio albums | |
|---|---|
| Compilations | |
| Singles |
|
| Relatives | |
| Related topics | |
