# André De Shields

André Robin De Shields (born January 12, 1946) is an American actor, singer, dancer, director, and choreographer. He has received numerous accolades including an Emmy Award, Grammy Award, and Tony Award.
De Shields has appeared in the original Broadway casts of multiple stage productions, including The Full Monty, Warp!, and The Wiz, and most recently and notably originating the role of Hermes on Broadway in the musical Hadestown, winning the 2019 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical and the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album for his performance. He has also appeared on television, and won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for his performance in the 1982 NBC broadcast of Ain't Misbehavin'.

## Early life and education

André Robin De Shields was born on January 12, 1946, in Dundalk, Maryland, to Mary Gunther and John De Shields. He was raised in Baltimore, Maryland, the ninth of eleven children; his father died at the age of 50, when André was 17. De Shields obtained his high school diploma at Baltimore City College in 1964, then attended Wilmington College, where he starred in a production of Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun. He then transferred colleges and earned his B.A. in English literature from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1970. In 1991, De Shields received his M.A. in African-American studies from the Gallatin School of Individualized Study of New York University.
He is an adjunct professor at Gallatin.

## Career

De Shields began his professional career in the 1969 Chicago production of Hair, which led to a role in The Me Nobody Knows and participation in Chicago's Organic Theater Company. He performed in a number of Off-Off-Broadway productions at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in the East Village of Manhattan during the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s. These included Ken Rubenstein's Sacred Guard (1973), Lamar Alford's Thoughts (1974), and the Cotton Club Gala with music by Aaron Bell and directed by Ellen Stewart (1985). He co-wrote (with Judith Cohen) and directed an evening of songs called Judith and the Cohen Sisters in Midnight in Manhattan at La MaMa in September/October 1984. He directed a production of Chico Kasinoir's The Adventures of Rhubarb: The Rock and Roll Rabbit in 1985 and a production of his own work, Saint Tous, to celebrate Black History Month at La MaMa in February 1991.
He made his Broadway debut as Xander in Stuart Gordon's 1973 Warp! and next appeared in Paul Jabara's 1973 Rachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don't You Ever Forget It), which closed during previews. He then appeared in the title role of The Wiz, Charlie Smalls and William F. Brown's 1975 musical directed by Geoffrey Holder.
After choreographing two Bette Midler musicals, De Shields returned to Broadway to perform in the musical revue Ain't Misbehavin' in 1978. The original production ran for over 1,600 shows and De Shields earned a 1978 Drama Desk nomination for his performance. Three years later, he returned to Broadway to perform in Stardust: The Mitchell Parrish Musical, a musical revue featuring the lyricist's work with Hoagy Carmichael, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, and Leroy Anderson.
In 1984, De Shields wrote, choreographed, directed, and starred in André De Shields' Haarlem Nocturne, a Broadway musical revue featuring standards from the American songbook, pop hits from the early 1960s, and De Shields' own songs. The revue was produced at the Latin Quarter and at La MaMa (with music by Marc Shaiman). He appeared in a revival of Ain't Misbehavin' in 1988, and next appeared on Broadway in 1997 as the Jester in Play On!, a musical based on Ellington's songs. De Shields earned Tony and Drama Desk nominations for his performance.
In 2000, De Shields originated the role of Noah "Horse" T. Simmons in the Terrence McNally / David Yazbek musical adaptation of the film The Full Monty. As with Play On!, De Shields earned both Tony and Drama Desk nominations for this performance. In 2004, he appeared in the Broadway production of Mark Medoff's Prymate at the Longacre Theatre. In 2008, he received a Drama Desk nomination for his performance in an off-Broadway production of Langston Hughes' Black Nativity. In 2009, he appeared on Broadway opposite Joan Allen and Jeremy Irons in Impressionism. The play ran through May 2009 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater.
De Shields' regional theatre credits include Play On!, The Full Monty, Waiting for Godot, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Death of a Salesman, Dusyanta: A Tale of Kalidasa, The Gospel According to James, Camino Real and King Lear. In 2013, he portrayed Akela and King Louie in the world premiere of Mary Zimmerman's adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, a co-production of the Goodman Theatre and Huntington Theatre Company. De Shields received his 3rd Jeff Award (Outstanding Achievement in the category of Actor in a Supporting Role – Musical) for his role as King Louie, and garnered an Elliot Norton Awards nomination for Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor as well as an IRNE Awards nomination for Best Supporting Actor – Musical.
De Shields has portrayed Barrett Rude Sr. in The Fortress of Solitude, the musical based on Jonathan Lethem's novel The Fortress of Solitude, since its inception in 2012 at Vassar College. The Fortress of Solitude premiered at the Dallas Theater Center in spring 2014, and the off-Broadway production of The Fortress of Solitude, co-produced with The Public Theater, ran through November 2014. De Shields, Lillias White, Stefanie Powers, and Georgia Engel starred in the new musical Gotta Dance, directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell. The musical began performances on December 13, 2015, at Chicago's Bank of America Theatre and ran through January 17, 2016.
He played Hermes in the Broadway musical Hadestown, which began previews on March 22, 2019, at the Walter Kerr Theatre. He received the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for Hadestown on his third nomination. He played his final performance on May 29, 2022. On January 26, 2021, it was announced that De Shields would reprise his role as Hermes in Live From Mount Olympus, a narrative podcast for tweens directed by Rachel Chavkin and Zhailon Levingston. The series was produced by The Onassis Foundation and TRAX from PRX. De Shields' co-stars include fellow Hadestown cast member Amber Gray, Divine Garland, Vinie Burrows, Kristen Sieh, and more.
De Shields has appeared on television on Another World, Cosby, Sex and the City, Great Performances, Lipstick Jungle, Law & Order, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. He won an Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for his performance in the 1982 NBC broadcast of Ain't Misbehavin', and played Tweedledum in a 1983 televised production of Alice in Wonderland that also featured Eve Arden, Richard Burton, Colleen Dewhurst, James Coco, Kaye Ballard, and Nathan Lane. More recently, De Shields appeared in John Mulaney's John Mulaney & the Sack Lunch Bunch in which he sang "Algebra Song!" The comedy/musical/variety special was released on Netflix on December 24, 2019. In 2020, he played the role of Chubby, a recurring character, in the television series Katy Keene on The CW.
On December 28, 2020, it was announced that De Shields would star as Anton Ego in a benefit concert presentation of Ratatouille the Musical, an internet meme that originated on TikTok, inspired by the 2007 Disney/Pixar film. The concert streamed exclusively on TodayTix on January 1, 2021. De Shields appeared in Lin-Manuel Miranda's directorial debut film, tick, tick... BOOM!, released on Netflix on November 12, 2021, as a patron of the Moondance Diner in the musical scene for "Sunday", as well as other Broadway actors such as Chita Rivera, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Phillipa Soo, among others. He also plays the significant supporting role of Jack in the Netflix comedy Uncoupled, released in July 2022.
In September 2022, De Shields began performances as Uncle Ben in Death of a Salesman on Broadway at the Hudson Theatre. In March 2024, De Shields was announced to be portraying Old Deuteronomy in Cats at the Perelman Performing Arts Center in the summer of that year. He is currently reprising his role as Hermes in the West End production of Hadestown opposite original Broadway cast stars Reeve Carney, Eva Noblezada, Amber Gray, and Patrick Page (who was later replaced by Phillip Boykin for non-filming performances due to injury) for a limited engagement from February to March 2025, where during that time the show will be professionally filmed starring De Shields and his original Broadway co-stars, where Page was able to perform.

## Personal life

De Shields is gay, but prefers to be described as "a Black man who is queer" or "a Black man who loves other men". He is also a "long-term survivor" of HIV, living with HIV for over 40 years, having been diagnosed during the early AIDS epidemic after noticing his lymph nodes were swollen when shaving before a Los Angeles performance on Ain't Misbehavin's 1980 national tour and being formally diagnosed in 1991. His partner of 17 years, Chico Kasinoir, died in June 1992 of AIDS-related lymphoma. Another partner of De Shields, a man named John whom he was with for two years, died of AIDS-related meningitis in 1995.

## Theatre credits

Source:
| Year | Production | Role | Notes |
| 1969–1970 | Hair | Hud | CIBC Theatre |
| 1973 | Warp! | Desi Arnez / Chaos | Ambassador Theatre, Broadway |
| 1973 | Rachael Lily Rosenbloom (And Don't You Ever Forget It) | Performer | Broadhurst Theatre, Broadway |
| 1974 | The Wiz | The Wiz | Fisher Theatre / Forrest Theatre |
| 1974–1976 | The Wiz | The Wiz | Majestic Theatre, Broadway |
| 1976–1977 | The Wiz | The Wiz | US Tour |
| 1978 | Ain't Misbehavin | Performer | Longacre Theatre, Broadway |
| 1979 | Ain't Misbehavin | Performer | US Tour |
| 1982 | Ain't Misbehavin | Performer | Longacre Theatre, Broadway |
| 1984 | André De Shields' Haarlem Nocturne | Performer | Latin Quarter, Broadway |
| 1985 | Just So | Eldest Magician | Audrey Wood Theater |
| 1987 | Stardust: The Mitchell Parrish Musical | Performer | Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, Broadway |
| 1988–1989 | Ain't Misbehavin | Performer | Ambassador Theatre, Broadway |
| 1992–1993 | The Wiz | The Wiz | US Tour |
| 1997 | Play On! | Jester | Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway |
| 1998 | Play On! | Jester | Goodman Theatre |
| 1998–1999 | Waiting for Godot | Vladimir | Goodman Theatre |
| 2000–2001 | The Full Monty | Noah T. "Horse" Simmons | Eugene O'Neill Theatre, Broadway |
| 2002 | The Full Monty | Noah T. "Horse" Simmons | Prince of Wales Theatre, West End |
| 2003 | Ghosts | Jacob Strand | Harman Center for the Arts |
| 2004 | Prymate | Graham | Longacre Theatre, Broadway |
| 2006 | Our Town | Stage Manager | Overture Center for the Arts |
| 2006–2007 | King Lear | Lear | Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts / Folger Shakespeare Library |
| 2009 | Impressionism | Chiambuane | Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, Broadway |
| 2009 | A Life in the Theatre | Robert | Alliance Theatre |
| 2010 | Damn Yankees | Mr. Applegate | Northport |
| 2011 | The Witch of Edmonton | Old Banks | Red Bull Theatre |
| 2013 | The Jungle Book | King Louie | Goodman Theatre |
| 2013 | The Jungle Book | King Louie | Huntington Theatre Company |
| 2014 | The Fortress of Solitude | Barrett Rude, Sr. | The Public Theater |
| 2015 | King Hedley II | Stool Pigeon | Arena Stage |
| 2016 | 1776 | Stephen Hopkins | New York City Center, Encores! |
| 2016 | The Taming of the Shrew | Gremio / Vincentio / Curtis | Sidney Harman Hall |
| 2017 | The Tempest | Prospero | Potter Rose Performance Hall |
| 2017 | As You Like It | Touchstone | Classic Stage Company |
| 2018–2019 | Hadestown | Hermes | Royal National Theatre |
| 2019–2020 | Hadestown | Hermes | Walter Kerr Theatre, Broadway |
| 2021 | King Lear | Lear | St. Louis Shakespeare Festival |
| 2021–2022 | Hadestown | Hermes | Walter Kerr Theatre, Broadway |
| 2022–2023 | Death of a Salesman | Uncle Ben Loman | Hudson Theatre, Broadway |
| 2024 | Cats | Old Deuteronomy | Perelman Performing Arts Center |
| 2025 | Hadestown | Hermes | Lyric Theatre, West End |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Production | Result |
| 1978 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Ain't Misbehavin' | Nominated |
| 1982 | Primetime Emmy Award | Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program | Ain't Misbehavin' | Won |
| 1984 | AUDELCO Recognition Award | Outstanding Direction of a Musical | Blackberries | Won |
| 1984 | AUDELCO Recognition Award | Outstanding Choreography of a Musical | Blackberries | Won |
| 1991 | AUDELCO Recognition Award | Excellence in Black Theatre | Saint Tous | Won |
| 1992 | AUDELCO Recognition Award | Excellence in Black Theatre | Haarlem Nocturne | Won |
| 1997 | Tony Award | Best Featured Actor in a Musical | Play On! | Nominated |
| 1997 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | Play On! | Nominated |
| 2001 | Tony Award | Best Featured Actor in a Musical | The Full Monty | Nominated |
| 2001 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | The Full Monty | Nominated |
| 2001 | Outer Critics Circle Award | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | The Full Monty | Won |
| 2004 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play | Prymate | Nominated |
| 2004 | AUDELCO Recognition Award | Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actor in a Play | Dream on Monkey Mountain | Won |
| 2007 | Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, University of Wisconsin–Madison | Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, University of Wisconsin–Madison | Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, University of Wisconsin–Madison | Won |
| 2007 | Obie Award | Sustained Excellence of Performance | Sustained Excellence of Performance | Won |
| 2008 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Black Nativity | Nominated |
| 2009 | AUDELCO Recognition Award | Outstanding Performance in a Musical [Male] | Archbishop Supreme Tartuffe | Won |
| 2009 | National Black Theatre Festival | Living Legend Award | Living Legend Award | Won |
| 2013 | Jeff Award | Outstanding Achievement in the category of Actor in a Supporting Role – Musical | The Jungle Book | Won |
| 2013 | IRNE Award | Best Supporting Actor - Musical | The Jungle Book | Nominated |
| 2013 | Elliot Norton Award | Outstanding Musical Performance by an Actor | The Jungle Book | Nominated |
| 2013 | Fox Foundation Fellowship Grant for Distinguished Achievement ($25,000 to support his work at the Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago) | Fox Foundation Fellowship Grant for Distinguished Achievement ($25,000 to support his work at the Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago) | Fox Foundation Fellowship Grant for Distinguished Achievement ($25,000 to support his work at the Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago) | Won |
| 2014 | AUDELCO Recognition Award | Special Achievement Award | Special Achievement Award | Won |
| 2018 | Bistro Awards | Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award | Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award | Won |
| 2019 | Tony Award | Best Featured Actor in a Musical | Hadestown | Won |
| 2019 | Drama Desk Award | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | Hadestown | Won |
| 2019 | Drama League Award | Distinguished Performance | Hadestown | Nominated |
| 2019 | Outer Critics Circle Award | Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical | Hadestown | Won |
| 2020 | Grammy Award | Best Musical Theater Album | Hadestown | Won |
| 2023 | Drama League Award | Distinguished Achievement In Musical Theater | Distinguished Achievement In Musical Theater | Honoree |