Tonya Pinkins
| Tonya Pinkins | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 30, 1962 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1980–present |
Tonya Pinkins (born May 30, 1962) is an American actress and author known for her portrayal of Livia Frye on the soap opera All My Children and for her roles on Broadway, for which she won a Tony Award.
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[edit] Biography
Pinkins was born in 1962 in Chicago, Illinois. Her father was a police officer and insurance salesman and her mother is a former postal worker and current CTA driver. She has two brothers, Eric Swoope and Thomas Swoope and a sister Tamera Swoope. Pinkins also has three nephews Angelo Swoope 23, Jeremy Swoope 24 and Varnell Turner 27 and one niece, Marquita Swoope 26. She was interested in the arts from a young age. In high school, she studied acting at the Goodman Theatre Young People's Program. Aged 18, she briefly attended college but decided to drop out in order to pursue her acting career. She later returned to college, earning an undergraduate degree from Columbia College in Chicago, followed by graduate work at Carnegie Mellon's music theater program, and a year of law school in California.[citation needed]
Pinkins is probably most admired for her stage work. She won a Tony Award for her performance as Sweet Anita in Jelly's Last Jam and was nominated for her role in Play On. Her additional Broadway credits include Merrily We Roll Along, Chronicle of a Death Foretold, The Wild Party, House of Flowers, and most recently playing the title role in Caroline, or Change, for which she was again nominated for a Best Leading Actress in a Musical Tony.[1]
She has performed in several Off Broadway productions, including the comic role of Mopsa, the Shepherdess, in The Winter's Tale produced by the Riverside Shakespeare Company at The Shakespeare Center in 1983.[2] She has also had a prolific television career making guest appearances on such television shows as Law & Order, The Cosby Show, Cold Case, Criminal Minds, and The Guardian among others.[3]
During the mid 1980s Pinkins created the role of Heather Dalton on the CBS soap, As the World Turns. In 1991 she was cast as Livia Frye in All My Children. Pinkins left All My Children in 1995 but returned to her role in 2003. She was later put on contract with the show from March 2004 until June 2006, when she was downgraded to recurring status. She has played Amala Motobo on the popular television show 24. She has appeared in several films in supporting roles, including Enchanted, Premium, Romance & Cigarettes, and Above the Rim among others.[3]
In 2004, Pinkin's first solo recording My Shining Hour: the Music of Harold Arlen was released on CD. Pinkins has also performed this series of songs by Harold Arlen in a one-woman cabaret show numerous times.[citation needed]
In 2006, her self-help book Get Over Yourself!: How To Drop The Drama And Claim the Life You Deserve was released by Hyperion Publishers.[citation needed]
[edit] Family
She has six children.[citation needed]
[edit] References
- ^ Playbill News: Her Shining Hour: Tonya Pinkins Sings Arlen
- ^ For a photo of Tonya Pinkins in the role of Mopsa in The Winter's Tale, see Riverside Shakespeare Company
- ^ a b Tonya Pinkins at the Internet Movie Database
[edit] External links
- Tonya Pinkins at the Internet Broadway Database
- Tonya Pinkins at the Internet Movie Database
- Tonya Pinkins at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
- Tonya Pinkins' Official website
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