On Monday, August 19, 2019, Baltimore native André De Shields will be presented with a Key to the City, two months after receiving his first Tony Award for “Best Featured Actor in a Musical” for his turn as Hermes in Anais Mitchell’s Hadestown, currently playing to sold-out houses at the Walter Kerr Theatre.
Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young will present De Shields with the Key to the City and a mayoral salute in the Rotunda at Baltimore City Hall at 11:00 A.M. in an event open to the pubic. It will be streamed live on FLive on CharmTVBaltimore.
De Shields acknowledged his Baltimore roots during his acceptance speech at the Tony Awards.
“Baltimore, Maryland are you in the house?” he asked. “I hope you are watching at home because I am making good on my promise that I would come to New York and become someone you’d be proud to call your native son.”
De Shields is a graduate of Baltimore City College, a proud member of the class of 1964 and a member of the City College Hall of Fame.
In a career spanning fifty years, André De Shields has distinguished himself as an unparalleled actor, director and educator. Mr. De Shields is the triple crown winner of the 2019 Awards Season, having won the prestigious Outer Critics Circle, Drama Desk and Tony Awards in the category of Best Actor in a Featured Role for his performance as Hermes, Messenger To the Gods in Hadestown, which won as Best Musical. His other numerous accolades include the 2019 Actors’ Equity Foundation’s Richard Seff Award, honoring best performances by a veteran male and female actor, the 2019 Harlem Pride 50 Award, the 2018 Off Broadway Alliance Legend Award, the 2009 National Black Theatre Festival’s Living Legend Award, the 2007 Village Voice OBIE Award for Sustained Excellence of Performance, and eight AUDELCO Awards for Outstanding Performance, Direction and Choreography. He continues to be consistently acclaimed for his show stopping performances in four legendary Broadway musicals: The Full Monty (Tony Nomination), Play On! (Tony Nomination), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Emmy Award) and The Wiz (Title Role). Mr. De Shields is proud a member of AEA, SAG-AFTRA and SDC. www.andredeshields.com
Lia Chang is an actor, a multi-media content producer and co-founder of Bev’s Girl Films, making films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. Bev’s Girl Films’ debut short film, Hide and Seek was a top ten film in the Asian American Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Filmmaking Competition, and she received a Best Actress nomination. BGF collaborates with and produces multi-media content for artists, actors, designers, theatrical productions, composers, musicians and corporations. Lia has appeared in the films Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, The Last Dragon, Taxman and Hide and Seek. She is profiled in Jade Magazine and Playbill.com.
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