Darryl Stephens is an American
actor
An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
and author. He is best known for playing Noah Nicholson on the television
dramedy
Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
''
Noah's Arc''.
Early life
Stephens grew up in
Altadena
Altadena () is an unincorporated area, and census-designated place in the San Gabriel Valley and the Verdugos regions of Los Angeles County, California. Directly north of Pasadena, it is located approximately from Downtown Los Angeles. Its po ...
and
Pasadena
Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
and after college moved to the city of Los Angeles.
Film career
Back in L.A., Stephens appeared on the sexy late-night serial ''
MTV's Undressed'', the short-lived series ''
That's Life'', and
VH1
VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...
's ''Red Eye''. During the same period, he was also appearing in various commercials for products such as
Dockers and performing in small theater venues and scene study classes. He also played a "future funked" Greta in a Hollywood revival of the well-known play ''
Bent''.
Stephens had supporting roles in the films ''Seamless'' (with
Shannon Elizabeth
Shannon Elizabeth Fadal (born September 7, 1973) is an American actress and poker player. Her film roles solidified her status as a sex symbol of the 1990s and 2000s.
In film, Elizabeth is best known for her role as Nadia in the ''American Pie ...
), ''Not Quite Right'', and ''
Circuit''. However, his breakout role came in 2004, when independent filmmaker
Patrik-Ian Polk
Patrik-Ian Polk (born July 29, 1973 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi) is an American director, screenwriter, and producer. Polk, who is gay, is noted for his films and theatre work that explore the experiences and stories of African Americans, Africa ...
cast him as the lead character for the new series ''
Noah's Arc''. The original intention was for the show to be released direct-to-DVD after it had received rave reviews at various film festivals. However, in the fall of 2005,
LOGO
A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name that it represents, as in ...
picked up ''
Noah's Arc'', which debuted on October 19.
In August 2006 the second season of ''Noah's Arc'' was televised. By the end of 2006, Stephens had completed roles in the comedy ''
Another Gay Movie'' and the drama ''
Boy Culture'', the latter alongside newcomer
Derek Magyar.
In October 2008, a feature film version was release. ''
Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom'' picks up where the show's second season left off and tells the story of the marriage between Stephens' character and
Jensen Atwood's.
In 2010, he guest starred in an episode of ''
Private Practice'', playing a transgender woman. His next film, released in 2011, was ''
Bolden!'', a bio film about jazz great
Buddy Bolden
Charles Joseph "Buddy" Bolden (September 6, 1877 – November 4, 1931) was an American cornetist who was regarded by contemporaries and later jazz scholars as a key figure in the development of a New Orleans style of ragtime music, or "jass ...
starring
Anthony Mackie
Anthony Dwane Mackie (born September 23, 1978) is an American actor. He gained wide recognition for portraying Sam Wilson / Falcon / Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, beginning with the film '' Captain America: The Winter Soldier ...
as ''Bolden''. Stephens' role is of cornet player Frank Lewis.
Stephens played the recurring role Gideon on
B Positive on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
.
Other
Stephens released a self-published novel in 2011, entitled ''Shortcomings'', which weaves together short stories he had written previously.
Personal life
Although Stephens is reluctant to discuss his personal life, he is
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...
and his roles address issues of classism and sexuality. In August 2020, he became a father to a daughter with a surrogate.
Filmography
Film
Television
Awards and nominations
Ovation Awards
The Ovation Awards were a Southern California award for excellence in theatre, established in 1989. They were given out by the non-profit arts service organization LA Stage Alliance and are the only peer-judged theatre awards in Los Angeles. Win ...
*
2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
: Nominated for Featured Actor in a Play for the role of Victoria in the Bootleg Theatre production of "The Interlopers"
Notes
http://www.thebody.com/content/80676/making-black-gay-lives-matter-a-conversation-with-.html
http://www.thebody.com/content/80679/untying-tongues-a-conversation-with-darryl-stephen.html
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Darryl
1974 births
20th-century African-American male actors
20th-century American male actors
21st-century African-American male actors
21st-century American male actors
American male television actors
American gay actors
African-American LGBTQ people
Living people
Male actors from Pasadena, California
LGBTQ people from California
20th-century African-American people
21st-century African-American people
21st-century American LGBTQ people