Condola Phylea Rashad (born December 11, 1986), also known professionally as Dola Rashad, is an American actress best known for her work in the theatre. She first broke out with a critically acclaimed performance in

Lynn Nottage Lynn Nottage (born November 2, 1964) is an American playwright whose work often focuses on the experience of working-class people, particularly working-class people who are black. She has received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice: in 2009 for he ...

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 ...

play '' Ruined'' (2009), which won a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

. Rashad has since received four

Tony Award 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 ce ...

nominations for her work on Broadway in the plays ''Stick Fly'', ''

The Trip to Bountiful ''The Trip to Bountiful'' is a 1985 American road drama film directed by Peter Masterson and starring Geraldine Page, John Heard, Carlin Glynn, Richard Bradford and Rebecca De Mornay. It was adapted by Horton Foote from his 1953 play. Th ...

'', '' A Doll's House, Part 2'', and '' Saint Joan''. She is the youngest performer to have received that many nominations. In addition to these roles, she also received praise for playing Juliet in ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'' opposite

Orlando Bloom Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Copeland Bloom (born 13 January 1977) is an English actor. He made his breakthrough as the character Legolas in The Lord of the Rings (film series), ''The Lord of the Rings'' film series (2001–03). He reprised his r ...

on Broadway. She plays Kate Sacker on the Showtime drama series ''Billions''. She appeared opposite Chiwetel Ejiofor in '' Come Sunday'' (2018). She played

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc ( ; ; – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the Coronation of the French monarch, coronation of Charles VII o ...

in the 2018 Broadway revival of

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

's play '' Saint Joan''.

Early life

Rashad was born in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

on December 11, 1986, to actress Phylicia Rashad and sportscaster

Ahmad Rashad Ahmad Rashad ( ; born Robert Earl Moore; November 19, 1949) is an American sportscaster and former professional football wide receiver. He was the fourth overall selection of the 1972 NFL draft, taken by the St. Louis Cardinals. He was known ...

, a former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player. She graduated from the

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a Private university, private art school in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for ...

in 2008.

Career

In 2009, Rashad received the Theatre World Award for Best Debut Performance in the Off-Broadway production '' Ruined'' and was nominated for a

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...

. In 2012, Rashad was nominated for

Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play The Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actresses for quality supporting roles in a Broadway theatre, ...

for her performance in '' Stick Fly''.Tony Awards (official site)
Rashad starred as Shelby, the daughter of

Queen Latifah Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally by her stage name Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, singer, and actress. She has received various accolades, including a Grammy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe ...

's character, in the 2012 ''

Steel Magnolias ''Steel Magnolias'' is a 1989 American comedy drama film directed by Herbert Ross and starring Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis, and Julia Roberts. The screenplay by Robert Harling is based on hi ...

'' remake with the same title. (This role had been played by

Julia Roberts Julia Fiona Roberts (born October 28, 1967) is an American actress. Known for her leading roles across various genres, she has received multiple accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and three Golden Globe Award ...

in the original film.) In 2012, she appeared in a recurring role on the NBC series '' Smash'',Condola Rashad – Biography
,

American Theatre Wing The American Theatre Wing (the Wing for short) is a New York City–based non-profit organization "dedicated to supporting excellence and education in theatre", according to its mission statement. Originally known as the Stage Women's War Relief ...

, March 2012 and previously guest starred on ''

The Good Wife ''The Good Wife'' is an American legal political drama television series that aired on CBS from September 22, 2009, to May 8, 2016. It focuses on Alicia Florrick, the wife of the Cook County State's Attorney, who returns to her career in law ...

'', '' Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' and ''

Submissions Only ''Submissions Only'' is a comedy web series about the casting and audition process for Broadway theater. It centers around aspiring actress Penny Reilly ( Kate Wetherhead) and her friend, casting agency director Tim Trull ( Colin Hanlon), and the ...

''. Her film credits include ''

Sex and the City 2 ''Sex and the City 2'' is a 2010 American romantic comedy film written, co-produced, and directed by Michael Patrick King. It is the sequel to the 2008 film ''Sex and the City','' which was based on the 1998–2004 HBO television series of ...

'' and '' 30 Beats''. In April 2013, she appeared on Broadway as Thelma in the revival of ''

'' starring

Cicely Tyson Cecily Louise "Cicely" Tyson (; December 19, 1924January 28, 2021) was an American actress. In a career that spanned more than seven decades, she is known for her portrayals of complex and strong-willed African American women. She received sev ...

; for this performance, she received her second Featured Actress Tony nomination. In May 2013, she was cast as

Juliet Juliet Capulet () is the female protagonist in William Shakespeare's romantic tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. A 13-year-old girl, Juliet is the only daughter of the patriarch of the House of Capulet. She falls in love with the male protagonist Ro ...

in the new Broadway production of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's ''

''. In 2016, Rashad began starring in the Showtime drama series '' Billions'', and appeared in the film ''

Money Monster ''Money Monster'' is a 2016 American crime thriller film directed by Jodie Foster, from a screenplay by Jamie Linden, Alan Di Fiore, and Jim Kouf. It stars George Clooney as financial television host Lee Gates and Julia Roberts as his produce ...

'' directed by

Jodie Foster Alicia Christian "Jodie" Foster (born November 19, 1962) is an American actress and filmmaker. Foster started her career as a child actor before establishing herself as leading actress in film. She has received List of awards and nominations re ...

. In 2018, she starred in the Netflix-produced biographical film '' Come Sunday'', opposite Chiwetel Ejiofor, who played a Pentecostal minister whose thoughts have changed.

Filmography

Stage

Awards and nominations

** 2012:

—''Stick Fly'' (Nominated) ** 2013:

—''The Trip to Bountiful'' (Nominated) ** 2017:

—''A Doll's House, Part 2'' (Nominated) ** 2018:

Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play The Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play is an honor presented at the Tony Awards, a ceremony established in 1947 as the Antoinette Perry Awards for Excellence in Theatre, to actresses for quality leading roles in a Broad ...

—''Saint Joan'' (Nominated) * Theatre World Award ** 2009: Theatre World Award for Best Debut Performance—'' Ruined'' *

** 2009: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play—'' Ruined'' (Nominated) ** 2013: Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play—''The Trip to Bountiful'' (Nominated) *

Drama League Award The Drama League Awards, created in 1922, honor distinguished productions and performances both on Broadway and Off-Broadway, in addition to recognizing exemplary career achievements in theatre, musical theatre, and directing. Each May, the awards ...

** 2009: Drama League Award For Distinguished Performance—'' Ruined'' (Nominated) ** 2013: Drama League Award For Distinguished Performance—''Stick Fly'' (Nominated) ** 2018: Drama League Award For Distinguished Performance—'' Saint Joan'' (Nominated)

Achievements

Rashad was placed on BET's "Future 40" list, which is a list of "40 of the most inspiring and innovative vanguards who are redefining what it means to be unapologetically young, gifted & black".

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rashad, Condola 1986 births Living people American film actresses American stage actresses American television actresses Actresses from New York City Theatre World Award winners California Institute of the Arts alumni 21st-century American actresses 21st-century African-American actresses 20th-century African-American actresses 20th-century American actresses