LaChanze Sapp-Gooding, known professionally as LaChanze (; born December 16, 1961), is an American actress, singer, and dancer. She won a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical in

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

for her role as Celie Harris Johnson in '' The Color Purple''. LaChanze has subsequently received four more

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cere ...

for co-producing ''Kimberly Akimbo'', '' Topdog/Underdog'', '' The Outsiders'', and '' Purpose''.

Early life and education

Born in St. Augustine, Florida, to Walter and Rosalie Sapp, Rhonda Sapp's stage name "LaChanze" (Creole: the charmed one) is taken from her grandmother. After moving to

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, her childhood love of singing and dancing caused her mother to enroll her in the Bowen Peters Cultural Arts Center in

New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...

. There she discovered her love for performing. At Warren Harding High School in

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...

, LaChanze made her debut as Lola in the school production of ''

Damn Yankees ''Damn Yankees'' is a 1955 musical comedy with a book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop, music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story is a modern retelling of the Faust legend set during the 1950s in Washington, D.C., d ...

''. After high school, LaChanze studied drama at

Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a Public university, public historically black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically bla ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, before transferring to the University of the Arts in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, where she studied Theater and Dance.

Career

Her first summer job was as a tap dancer in the ensemble of '' Uptown... It's Hot!'' at the Tropicana Hotel in

Atlantic City Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of the Atlantic City- Hammonton metropolitan sta ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. The show opened on Broadway in January 1986, where LaChanze began her professional career in the theater. LaChanze played the role of Ti Moune in the Lynn Ahrens and

Stephen Flaherty Stephen Flaherty (born September 18, 1960) is an American composer of musical theatre and film. He works most often in collaboration with the lyricist/book writer Lynn Ahrens. They are best known for writing the Broadway musicals ''Ragtime'', wh ...

musical '' Once on This Island'' in 1990 and received nominations for the Tony Award as Best Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical at the 45th Tony Awards and the Drama Desk Award as Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical. In December 1998, she joined the cast of the Lynn Ahrens,

and

Terrence McNally Terrence McNally (November 3, 1938 – March 24, 2020) was an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Described as "the bard of American theater" and "one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced," M ...

Broadway musical ''

Ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that had its peak from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its Syncopation, syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers ...

'', replacing Audra McDonald in the role of Sarah. She played the role of Viveca in the

Playwrights Horizons Playwrights Horizons is a not-for-profit American Off-Broadway theater located in New York City dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and to the production of their new work. ...

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 ...

production of the musical ''The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin'', which opened in June 2000. She received a Drama Desk nomination for Outstanding Actress in a Musical, for her performance. LaChanze participated in an Actors Fund of America benefit concert of '' Funny Girl'', with many performers portraying the character of

Fanny Brice Fania Borach (October 29, 1891 – May 29, 1951), known professionally as Fanny Brice or Fannie Brice, was an American comedian, Illustrated Songs, illustrated song model, singer, and actress who made many stage, radio, and film appearances. Sh ...

, in September 2002. In 2005, LaChanze played Dessa Rose, a runaway slave in the Ahrens and Flaherty musical '' Dessa Rose''. The musical opened Off-Broadway at the Mitzi Newhouse Theatre at

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

in March 2005. LaChanze received an Obie Award for Distinguished Performance by an Actress for ''Dessa Rose''. LaChanze appeared as Celie Harris Johnson in the Broadway musical '' The Color Purple'', from its opening in 2005 to November 2006. She won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for this performance at the 60th Tony Awards. In September 2008, LaChanze participated in the

Boston Pops The Boston Pops is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symphony Orc ...

concert, ''Handel's Messiah Rocks'' at

Emerson College Emerson College is a private college in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It also maintains campuses in Los Angeles and Well, Limburg, Netherlands (Kasteel Well). Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a "school of Public Speaking, o ...

. The performance was filmed by

Public Broadcasting Service The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the ...

. She was in the Off-Broadway production of ''Inked Baby'', written by Christina Anderson, which opened in March 2009 at Playwrights Horizons Peter Jay Sharp Theater. In June and July 2009, she played the role of Glinda in 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 ...

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 ...

staged Summer Stars concert production of ''

The Wiz ''The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz"'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls (and others) and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' ...

''. LaChanze published her first picture book, ''Little Diva'', in 2010. She was in the Broadway production of ''

If/Then ''If/Then'' is a musical with a libretto by Brian Yorkey and a theatrical score by Tom Kitt, directed by Michael Greif. It tells the story of a 38-year-old woman named Elizabeth who moves back to New York City for a fresh start. ''If/Then ...

'' in 2014, starring as Kate. In 2018, she appeared in '' Summer: The Donna Summer Musical'' on Broadway, playing Diva Donna/Mary Gaines, for which she received a Tony Award nomination at the 72nd Tony Awards. In 2019, she appeared in ''

A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...

'' on Broadway, starring as the Ghost of Christmas Present. In January 2022, LaChanze took a star turn on Broadway in '' Trouble in Mind'', written by Alice Childress in 1955. She earned a nomination for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play nomination for her performance as Wiletta Mayer at the

75th Tony Awards The 75th Tony Awards were held on June 12, 2022, to recognize achievement in Broadway theatre, Broadway productions during the 2021–22 season. The ceremony was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, with Ariana DeBose serving as host ...

. In 2022, LaChanze began her career as a Broadway producer. She produced '' Topdog/Underdog'' with David Stone, Rashad V. Chambers, Marc Platt, Debra Martin Chase, and the Shubert Organization. She also produced '' Kimberly Akimbo'' on Broadway with David Stone, Aaron Glick, Patrick Catullo and James L. Nederlander. She was nominated for the

Tony Award for Best Musical The Tony Award for Best Musical is given annually to the best new Broadway musical, as determined by Tony Award voters. The award is one of the ceremony's longest-standing awards, having been presented each year since 1949. The award goes to the ...

and the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play as a producer for ''Kimberly Akimbo'' and ''Topdog/Underdog'' on May 2, 2023. She was announced as a winner for both shows during the 76th Tony Awards telecast on June 11, 2023. In 2022, she launched Tima Productions with friend and former ''Ragtime'' castmate Marylee Fairbanks. Together they co-produced '' The Outsiders'', for which she won another Tony Award for Best Musical at the 77th Tony Awards. She also received a nomination for the

Tony Award for Best Play The Tony Award for Best Play (formally, an Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) is an annual award given to the best new (non-musical) play on Broadway, as determined by Tony Award voters. There was no award in the Tonys' first year ...

for ''Jaja's African Hair Brading'' at the same ceremony. In 2024 she launched a multimedia company called LC Productions.

Personal life

LaChanze married securities trader Calvin Gooding in August 1998, two years after they met. Together they had daughters Celia and Zaya, but when LaChanze was eight months pregnant with Zaya, Calvin was killed in the

September 11, 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

. He had been at work at Cantor Fitzgerald in Tower One of the World Trade Center. LaChanze remarried in 2005, to Derek Fordjour. They separated in 2013, and finalized their divorce on March 27, 2014, in Westchester County. On September 6, 2002, LaChanze sang the

National Anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...

at a joint meeting of Congress in

Federal Hall National Memorial Federal Hall was the first capitol building of the United States under the Constitution. Serving as the meeting place of the First United States Congress and the site of George Washington's first presidential inauguration, the building existe ...

, the first meeting of Congress in New York since 1790. On May 15, 2014, she performed "

Amazing Grace "Amazing Grace" is a Christian hymn written in 1772 and published in 1779 by English Anglican clergyman and poet John Newton (1725–1807). It is possibly the most sung and most recorded hymn in the world, and especially popular in the Unit ...

" at the dedication of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, in tribute to her late husband. In 2019, LaChanze and the elder of her two children, Celia Rose Gooding, simultaneously appeared on Broadway, with LaChanze starring in ''A Christmas Carol'' and Gooding starring in ''

Jagged Little Pill ''Jagged Little Pill'' is the third studio album by Canadian-American singer Alanis Morissette, released by Maverick (company), Maverick on June 13, 1995. Recorded in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood at Westlake Recording Studios, Westlake wit ...

''. The two repeated the rare event of mother and child starring in simultaneous Broadway shows, following

Debbie Reynolds Mary Frances "Debbie" Reynolds (April 1, 1932 – December 28, 2016) was an American actress, singer and entrepreneur. Her acting career spanned almost 70 years. Reynolds performed on stage and television and in films into her 80s. She was nom ...

and

Carrie Fisher Carrie Frances Fisher (October 21, 1956 – December 27, 2016) was an American actress and writer. She played Princess Leia in the Star Wars original trilogy, original ''Star Wars'' films (1977–1983) and reprised the role in'' Star Wars: The F ...

in 1983.

Acting credits

Sources: ''The New York Times''; TCMFilmography
tcm.com, accessed August 29, 2013

Film

Television

Theatre

Video games

Discography

*'' Once On This Island (Original Broadway Cast Recording)'', 1990 *'' Disney's Princess Favorites'', featured artist, 2002 *'' Dessa Rose (off-Broadway Cast Recording)'', 2005 *'' The Color Purple (Original Broadway Cast Recording)'', 2006 *''Disney Collection 1'', featured artist, 2006 *''The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin (Studio Cast Recording)'', 2007 *''Handel's Messiah Rocks: A Joyful Noise'', featured artist, 2009 *''Nice Fighting You: A 30th Anniversary Celebration Live at 54 Below'', featured on four songs, 2014 *''

(Original Broadway Cast Recording)'', 2014 *'' Summer: The Donna Summer Musical (Original Broadway Cast Recording)'', 2018

Concerts

*September 6, 2002 -

*2008 - ''Handel's Messiah Rocks'',

*Dec 1 & 2, 2008 - Joe's Pub *December 5, 2010 - Playhouse Square Center *December 16, 2012 - Birdland *May 15, 2014 - National September 11 Memorial and Museum *February 13, 2015 -

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...

*2016/17 - Feeling Good Tour

Accolades

References

External links

* * *
LaChanze
- ''Downstage Center'' interview at American Theatre Wing.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Lachanze 1961 births 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century American actresses 21st-century African-American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Connecticut Actresses from Florida 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers American women singers American musical theatre actresses Living people Morgan State University alumni People from St. Augustine, Florida Theatre World Award winners Tony Award winners University of the Arts (Philadelphia) alumni 21st-century African-American people