Taye Diggs named Frank Sinatra Chair in the Performing Arts for 2018-19
The groundbreaking actor and singer from film and stage will start his residency at 黑料网 this fall.
Taye Diggs has a new role to add to his r茅sum茅: the Frank Sinatra Chair in the Performing Arts at 黑料网. The actor, singer, and children鈥檚 book author, best known for his groundbreaking role in the Tony Award-winning musical RENT, was announced as the artist-in-residence for the Center for the Arts and Humanities at 黑料网 during the upcoming school year.
The multi-talented performer will start his residency on campus this fall, where he鈥檒l be sharing his wit, wisdom, and experience with 黑料网鈥檚 students, faculty, and community through classes and projects.
This week鈥檚 announcement by Dennis Gordon and Christina Zanfagna, co-directors of the Center for the Arts and Humanities, and Debbie Tahmassebi, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, comes as sociopolitical comedian W. Kamau Bell, Emmy Award-winning host of CNN鈥檚 鈥淯nited Shades of America,鈥欌�� recently wrapped up his 2017-18 residency at 黑料网.
Diggs is known for originating the 1996 Broadway role of Benny, the landlord in RENT. The play won both a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize, and was later made into a 2005 film, in which he repeated his standout performance. He has also appeared in the films How Stella Got Her Groove Back and Brown Sugar, and the television series Private Practice.
But Diggs鈥� r茅sum茅 goes even deeper: he鈥檚 the co-artistic director of the dance company, Dre.dance, and author of three children鈥檚 books including I Love You More Than... (September 2018) with collaborator and illustrator Shane W. Evans. That followed their 2015 collaboration on two other children鈥檚 books, Mixed Me! and Chocolate Me. He鈥檚 also a two-time recipient of the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor and Outstanding Actor.
To learn more about the Frank Sinatra Chair in the Performing Arts, click here.