Angela Robinson is an American actress and singer. Best known for playing the role of Veronica Harrington in the OWN primetime soap opera '' The Haves and the Have Nots'', winning the Gracie Award for Outstanding Female Actress. During her career she acted on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

and

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

productions, working under the direction of

Sheldon Epps Sheldon Epps (born November 15, 1952) is an American television and theatre director. Career Sheldon Epps was born in Los Angeles, California. He moved to Teaneck, New Jersey, when he was 11 years old, where he attended the local public schools, ...

Tina Landau Tina Landau (born May 21, 1962) is an American playwright and theatre director. Known for her large-scale, musical, and ensemble-driven work, Landau's productions have appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and regionally, most extensively at the ...

, Kathleen Marshall, Gary Griffin. Notable Robinson stage roles were as Shug Avery on ''The Color Purple'''s U.S. National Tour and as Deena Jones on ''

Dreamgirls ''Dreamgirls'' is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and book by Tom Eyen. It is based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others, and p ...

''' U.S. National Tour.

Life and career

Robinson was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. She graduated from William M. Raines High School in Jacksonville and

Florida A&M University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. ...

in Tallahassee, Florida. While in college, she won the crown of Miss Florida A&M University. She moved to New York City in 1992 and began acting career on the stages.Angela Robinson
/ref> In 1995 she appeared on ''

'' as Deena Jones at the

Paper Mill Playhouse Paper Mill Playhouse is a regional theater containing approximately 1,200 seats located in Millburn, within Essex County, New Jersey, United States, on the banks of the Rahway River. Due to its relative proximity to Manhattan, the theater draw ...

Millburn, New Jersey Millburn is a suburban Township (New Jersey), township in southwestern Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey, and part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's ...

. In 1997 she was cast in the original Broadway production of '' Play On!'' directed by

. Between 1998 and 1999 Robinson was cast in ''

The Wizard of Oz ''The Wizard of Oz'' is a 1939 American Musical film, musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Based on the 1900 novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' by L. Frank Baum, it was primarily directed by Victor Fleming, who left pro ...

'' U.S. National Tour acting with

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Ninnian Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nearly nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last survivi ...

and

Eartha Kitt Eartha Mae Kitt (née Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress. She was known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Baby" ...

. During the same years, she performed at TheatreFest at

Montclair State University Montclair State University (MSU) is a public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Clifton and into Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, the second largest public un ...

with

Ruth Brown Ruth Alston Brown (; January 12, 1928 – November 17, 2006) was an American singer-songwriter and actress, sometimes referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of R&B". She was noted for bringing a popular music, pop music ...

and Carol Woods. In 2001 Robinson starred as Gwynne on ''Bells Are Ringing'' Broadway revival, with the direction of

and choreographed by Jeff Calhoun. The same year she also made her film acting debout on ''Another Bed.'' In 2002 she performed in ''Golden Boy'' at the

New York City Center New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama, and the New York City Center 55th Street Theater) is a performing arts center at 131 West 55th Street (Manhattan), 55th Street between Sixth Avenue, Six ...

's musical concert series

Encores! Encores! is a Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, Tony-honored concert series dedicated to reviving United States, American Musical theatre, musicals, usually with their original orchestrations. Presented by New York City Center since 1994, E ...

. Between 2003 and 2004 she starred as member of the cast on

The Public Theater The Public Theater is an arts organization in New York City. Founded by Joseph Papp, The Public Theater was originally the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954; its mission was to support emerging playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: ...

's Off-Broadway production of ''

Radiant Baby ''Radiant Baby'' is a musical about Keith Haring, who was an artist and social activist in New York City. The music was composed by Debra Barsha, with lyrics by Ira Gasman, Stuart Ross, and Debra Barsha. It was based on ''Keith Haring: The Auth ...

'', on ''Ain't Misbehavin at the

, and on Kathleen Marshall's ''

Wonderful Town ''Wonderful Town'' is a 1953 musical theatre, musical with book written by Joseph A. Fields and Jerome Chodorov, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, and music by Leonard Bernstein. The musical tells the story of two sisters who aspire to be ...

'' Broadway revival. In 2024 Robinson reprised her role of Deena Jones on ''Dreamgirls'''s U.S. National Tour, starring with

Frenchie Davis Franchell "Frenchie" Davis (born May 7, 1979) is an American Broadway performer and a soul, dance/electronica, and pop singer. She came to public attention in 2003 as a contestant on the singing competition show ''American Idol''. Davis began per ...

. In 2005 she appeared on television in the episode "Contagious" of '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit''. Between 2005 and 2008 Robinson was selected as cast member of Gary Griffin's ''

The Color Purple ''The Color Purple'' is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker that won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction.Broadway Theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, American and British English spelling differences), many of the List of ...

. She continued to be a cast member on the first U.S. National Tour, in which she also served as understudy actress for the role of Shug Avery, played by former

Destiny's Child Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final lineup comprised Beyoncé, Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams (singer), Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Hou ...

member

Michelle Williams Michelle Williams or Michele Williams may refer to: * Michelle Ann Williams (born circa 1965), American public health scholar * Michelle Williams (singer) (born 1979), American singer, previously a member of Destiny's Child * Michelle Williams (actr ...

. During the final part of the tour Robinson played as Shug Avery, acting with

Fantasia Barrino Fantasia Monique Barrino-Taylor (born June 30, 1984), known professionally by her mononym Fantasia, is an American singer and actress. She rose to prominence in 2004 for her performance of the ''Porgy and Bess'' standard " Summertime" during th ...

, Felicia P. Fields and

LaToya London LaToya Renee London (born December 29, 1978) is an American R&B and soul singer and stage actress who was fourth-place finalist on the third season of ''American Idol.'' Her debut album, '' Love & Life'', was released in September 2005 and spa ...

. From May 2013 to July 2021, Robinson starred as Veronica Harrington, with albeit a high-end and classy presentation, a no-holds-barred prominent villainess on the

Oprah Winfrey Network The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN, also known as the OWN Network) is an American multinational basic cable television network which launched on January 1, 2011, effectively replacing the Discovery Health Channel, which one month later merged with ...

primetime soap opera, '' The Haves and the Have Nots,'' produced by

Tyler Perry Tyler Perry (born Emmitt Perry Jr., September 13, 1969) is an American actor, filmmaker, and playwright. He is the creator and performer of Madea, Mabel "Madea" Simmons, a tough elderly woman, and also portrays her brother Joe Simmons and her ...

. For her performance on ''The Haves and the Have Nots'', Robinson received a

Gracie Award The Gracie Awards are awards presented by the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation (AWM) in the United States, to celebrate and honor programming created for women, by women, and about women, as well as individuals who have made exemplary contr ...

for "Outstanding Female Actor - One to Watch," in 2015. In 2021, Robinson starred as

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday made significant contributions to jazz music and pop ...

in the

North Carolina Theatre North Carolina Theatre is a professional theatre located in Raleigh, North Carolina. They perform four mainstage shows each year at Raleigh Memorial Auditorium and the A.J. Fletcher Opera Theatre in the Martin Marrietta Center for the Performin ...

production of ''

Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill ''Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill'' is a play with music featuring several of Billie Holiday's most famous songs. The play was written by Lanie Robertson and recounts some events in the life of Holiday. It premiered in 1986 at the Alliance T ...

''. In 2024 she acted on

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

film ''Mea Culpa'' alongside

Kelly Rowland Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling gir ...

and

Trevante Rhodes Trevante Nemour Rhodes (born February 10, 1990) is an American actor. He won several accolades and achieved recognition in 2016 for his performance as "Black" (Adult Chiron) in the Academy Award-winning film ''Moonlight''. He has since starred ...

, and return to television with the miniseries ''

Lady in the Lake ''Lady in the Lake'' is a 1947 American film noir starring Robert Montgomery, Audrey Totter, Lloyd Nolan, Tom Tully, Leon Ames and Jayne Meadows. An adaptation of the 1943 Raymond Chandler murder mystery '' The Lady in the Lake'', the pictu ...

'' for

Apple TV+ Apple TV+ is an American subscription over-the-top streaming service owned by Apple. The service launched on November 1, 2019, and it offers a selection of original production film and television series called Apple Originals. The service w ...

Personal life

In 1996, Robinson married stage actor Scott Whitehurst. In June 2018, they adopted a son named Robinson Scott.

Acting credits

Film and television

Stage

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Angela 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Jacksonville, Florida American stage actresses American soap opera actresses Florida A&M University alumni Living people William M. Raines High School alumni 1963 births 20th-century African-American actresses 21st-century African-American actresses