LaChanze, best known for her Tony Award-winning role as “Celie” in The Color Purple was recently featured in “Broadway Legacy,” a photographic and “online historical catalogue of art and information, celebrating African American theatre.” Broadway Legacy is the brainchild of actor Christian Dante White and celebrity photographer Brent Dundore.
LaChanze! made her Broadway debut as part of the ensemble in Uptown…It’s Hot! in 1986. She’s also appeared in the musical Once on This Island in 1990 in which she played the role of “Ti Moune.” She received nominations for the Tony Award as Best Featured Actress in a Musical and Drama Desk Award as Outstanding Actress in a Musical. Her other Broadway credits include the 1987 revival of Dreamgirls, Ragtime, and 2014’s If/Then.
As part of her feature on Broadway Legacy, LaChanze also lists her inspirations, “Cicely Tyson for her vulnerability. Alfre Woodard for her honesty. Lola Falana for her confidence. Diana Ross for her business savvy.”
Every other week, Broadway Legacy focuses on a different individual’s accomplishments and inspirations. The series features Broadway veterans such as Chuck Cooper who won a Tony for The Life, Tony nominee Charl Brown, Derrick Baskin, best known for his role of “Comfort Counselor Mitch Mahoney” in the popular Broadway show, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and Ben Harney, who won the 1982 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for his role as “Curtis Taylor, Jr.” Dreamgirls.
White, who made his Broadway debut in the original production of The Scottsboro Boys created Broadway Legacy to feature men who not only are fiercely talented but also inspiring to each other and others. His goal was to not only show appreciation for their remarkable contributions to entertainment but for these men to be recognized in a high fashion setting and to be presented by an outlet that reaches masses so they can be enlightened and educated. White recently added Broadway Legacy 2.0 and LaChanze! is the first woman to be featured in the section.
Check out all the photos and more info on BroadwayLegacy.com
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