Grasan Kingsberry | Life After Juilliard

Postcards From Juilliard Alums

Since I graduated from Juilliard, my journey has been nothing short of exhilarating. Just two weeks before school ended, I embarked on a Broadway career, making my debut in Aida. This incredible journey continued as I went on to originate roles in Broadway productions including Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Color Purple (original Broadway cast), Finian’s Rainbow, Catch Me if You Can, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, Leap of Faith, Nice Work if You Can Get It, Motown: The Musical, Once on This Island, and the Tony-, Emmy-, and Grammy-winning revival of The Color Purple. Notably, I received a Daytime Emmy and a Grammy for The Color Purple.

Beyond Broadway, my career has taken me in diverse directions. I was in I Am Legend, performed with a 60-piece orchestra, portrayed Sam Cooke in Kemp Powers’ One Night in Miami, was featured in campaigns for Old Navy and Kay Jewelers, and directed and choreographed musicals for theater summer intensives. Presently, I live in Los Angeles, where I teach at USC’s Glorya Kaufman School of Dance and School of Dramatic Arts, all while continuing working as a commercial actor. You might have spotted me in a Volkswagen commercial during the 2022 Super Bowl or alongside J.K. Simmons in a national Farmers Insurance commercial.

Grasan Kingsberry (BFA '03, dance)

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