Speaker Uzo Aduba
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A formidable talent to be reckoned with, Uzo Aduba is an award-winning actress whose work spans television, film and theatre.
Aduba stars in FX’s miniseries Mrs. America as Shirley Chisholm. Chisholm not only made history as the first African American Congresswoman, but also became the first African American candidate to run for President from a national political party when she launched her unprecedented 1972 campaign. The series launched on April 15th on FX on Hulu that will tell the story of the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), and the unexpected backlash led by a conservative woman named Phyllis Schlafly, played by Cate Blanchett. The series also stars Cate Blanchett, Sarah Paulson, Rose Byrne, Margo Martindale, Elizabeth Banks, Tracey Ullman, James Marsden, John Slattery and more.
Currently, Aduba is in pre-production for Americanah staring opposite Lupita Nyong’o on HBO Max. Americanah is a 10-episode limited series that is based on Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s best-selling novel of the same name.
Aduba recently finished her celebratory run as Suzanne “Crazy Eyes” Warren in the critically acclaimed Netflix Original Series Orange Is The New Black. For her role, Aduba won the 2015 and 2016 Screen Actors Guild Awards for “Outstanding Actress in a Comedy” and was a part of OINTB’s win for “Best Ensemble in a Comedy.”
Before starring on television, Aduba made her Broadway debut in Coram Boy in 2007 followed by the hit musical revival of Godspell in 2011. Aduba was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Play for her work in the Kennedy Center/Olney Theater production of Translations of Xhosa.
Speaking on: Master Class: Mrs America