Billy Porter (entertainer)

Billy Porter (born September 21, 1969, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is a Broadway performer, pop singer, film and television actor and vocal coach. He graduated from the Musical Theatre Program at Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School's^[1] School of Drama and achieved fame performing on Broadway before starting a solo career as a singer.

Porter won the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his role as Lola in Kinky Boots at the 67th Tony Awards. For the role, Porter also won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical and Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical.

Career

He is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts with a B.F.A in Drama as well as a certification from The Professional Program In Screenwriting^[2] at UCLA. During the summers of 1985, 1986 and 1987, Porter was a member of an entertainment group called "Flash" which performed daily at Kennywood Park in West Mifflin, Pa.^[3]

He played the Teen Angel in the 1994 revival of Grease!. Other shows he has been in include Topdog/Underdog at City Theatre (2004),^[4] Jesus Christ Superstar and Dreamgirls at Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera (2004)^[5] and the song cycles "Myths and Hymns" and "Songs for a New World" (Off-Broadway, 1995).^[6]

Porter wrote and performed in his one-man autobiographical show, Ghetto Superstar (The Man That I Am) at Joe's Pub in New York City in February and March 2005.^[7][8] Porter was nominated for "Outstanding New York Theater: Broadway & Off Broadway Award" at the 17th GLAAD Media Awards.^[9]

In September 2010, Porter appeared as Belize in Signature Theatre Company's 20th Anniversary production of Tony Kushner's Angels in America.^[10]

Porter originated the role of "Lola" in Kinky Boots on Broadway in 2013, with songs by Cyndi Lauper, book by Harvey Fierstein and directed/choreographed by Jerry Mitchell. Porter won both the 2013 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical and Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for this role.^[11][12]

Porter has also appeared in a number of films. He played a major role as Shiniqua, a drag queen who befriends Angel (David Norona) and Lee (Keivyn McNeill Graves) in Seth Michael Donsky's Twisted (1997), an adaptation of Oliver Twist.^[13] He has also appeared on an episode of The RuPaul Show.

He has had a musical career with three solo albums released, Billy Porter on DV8/A&M Records in 1997, At the Corner of Broadway + Soul in 2005 on Sh-K-Boom Records and Billy's Back on Broadway (Concord Music Group) in 2014. He as featured in a number of songs in the tribute album It's Only Life: The Songs of John Bucchino in 2006 released on PS Classics.^[14] He sings on Adam Guettel's 1999 album Myths and Hymns studio cast album on Nonesuch Records.^[15] He also covered "Only One Road" that was included on the Human Rights Campaign compilation album Love Rocks.

Porter wrote the play While I Yet Live, which premiered Off-Broadway at Primary Stages on September 24, 2014 in previews, officially on October 12. In addition to Porter, the cast included Lillias White and S. Epatha Merkerson.^[16]

Discography

Albums

• 1997: Billy Porter (DV8/A&M Records)^[17]
• 2005: At the Corner of Broadway + Soul (Sh-K-Boom Records)^[17][18]
• 2014: Billy's Back on Broadway (Concord Music Group)^[17]

Singles

• 1997: "Show Me"/"What Iz Time"
• 2005: "Awaiting You"/"Time" (Live) (Sh-K-Boom Records)

Other songs

• "Only One Road" on Love Rocks compilation album
• "Love Is On The Way" on The First Wives Club album
• "Destiny" with Jordan Hill on Jim Brickman's Greatest Hits album
• "Where is Love?" with Liz Callaway

Appears in

• Featured on a number of songs on tribute album It's Only Life: The Songs of John Bucchino^[14]
• Adam Guettel's album Myths and Hymns in 1999^[19]
• He is featured with Alan Cumming, David Raleigh and Ari Gold in a cover of "That's What Friends Are For", of 'The Friends Project' in support of the Ali Forney Center, a NYC shelter for homeless LGBT youth. The song was arranged and produced by Nathan Leigh Jones and directed by Michael Akers.^[20]

Concerts

Porter has performed at various venues in New York City, including Lincoln Center, which was broadcast on PBS in 2015 ^[21] and Joe's Pub in New York City.^[22]

Television

• Another World, Billy Rush, 1 episode (1998)
• Shake, Rattle and Roll: An American Love Story, Little Richard, TV movie, 1999
• Law & Order, Greg Ellison, 1 episode, 2004
• The Big C, Eric, 1 episode, 2012
• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Jackie Walker, 1 episode, 2013
• Land of Lola: Backstage at Kinky Boots with Billy Porter, Host, 8 episodes, 2013
• So You Think You Can Dance, Performer, 4 episodes, 2007-12 ^[23]
• Christmas at Rockefeller Plaza, Performer, NBC, December 2014^[24]
• Billy Porter: Broadway & Soul, Self, TV concert special, Live from Lincoln Center, 2015
• Sinatra: Voice for a Century, Performer, TV concert special, Live from Lincoln Center, December 2015^[25]

Film

• Twisted, Shiniqua (1997)^[26]
• The First Wives Club, singer (1996)
• Anastasia, Ensemble (1997)
• Intern, Sebastian Niederfarb, (2000)^[27]
• Fabulous! The Story of Queer Cinema, composer, documentary (2006)^[28]
• The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy, Taylor, 2000^[29]
• Noel, Randy, 2004^[30]
• The Humbling, Prince, 2014^[31]

Theatre

Sources:Playbill Vault;^[32] Off-Broadway Database^[33]

• Miss Saigon, Ensemble/John (u/s), Broadway (1991)
• Grease, Teen Angel, Broadway (1994)
• The Merchant of Venice, Solanio, off-Broadway (1995)
• Songs for a New World, Performer, off-Broadway (1995)
• Smokey Joe's Cafe, Performer, Broadway (1995–97)
• Miss Saigon, John (replacement), Broadway (1998–99)
• Jesus Christ Superstar, Jesus of Nazareth, Helen Hayes Performing Arts Center, Nyack, NY (1998)^[34]
• Dreamgirls, James Thunder Early, New York Actors Fund concert (September 2001)^[35]
• Radiant Baby, Various, off-Broadway (2003)
• Topdog/Underdog, City Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA (2004)^[36]
• Little Shop of Horrors, Audrey ll (replacement), Broadway (2004)
• Chef's Theater: A Musical Feast, Performer, off-Broadway (2004)
• Ghetto Superstar, Performer, off-Broadway (2005) - also playwright
• Birdie Blue, Bam/Little Pimp/Sook/Minerva, off-Broadway (2005)
• Putting It Together, Performer, New York (2009)
• Angels in America, Belize, off-Broadway (2010)
• Kinky Boots, Lola, Broadway (2013-2015)
• Kinky Boots, Lola (replacement), Tour (2014)
• HAM: A Musical Memoir, off-Broadway (2015) - director
• Shuffle Along, or the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed, Aubrey Lyles, Broadway (2016)

Awards and nominations

• 2013 Broadway.com Audience Choice Award for Favorite Actor in a Musical for Kinky Boots (won)^[37]
• 2013 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for Kinky Boots (won)^[38]
• 2013 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for Kinky Boots (won)^[39]
• 2013 Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical for Kinky Boots (won)^[40]
• 2013 Fred and Adele Astaire Awards for Outstanding Male Dancer in a Broadway Show Kinky Boots (nominated)^[32]
• 2013 Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance for Kinky Boots (nominated)
• 2014 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album for Kinky Boots (won)

References

External links

• Billy Porter MySpace
• Billy Porter at AllMovie
• Billy Porter at AllMusic
• Billy Porter at the Internet Movie Database
• Billy Porter on LastFM