SOUTH AFRICA'S TV WEBSITE
SIGN IN SEARCH MENU
SOUTH AFRICA'S TV WEBSITE


Anna Deavere Smith

Full / Real Name: Anna Young
Born: 18 September 1950 (74 years old)
Gender: Female

Rate:

8.0

Add to Actor Favourites

Bio

Anna Deavere Smith is an American actress best known for her starring role as hospital administrator Gloria Akalitus in the dark comedy television series Nurse Jackie.

Smith has performed in film and television as well as on stage. She is recognizable in popular culture as Nancy McNally, the National Security Advisor on The West Wing. However, it is Smith's work in the theatre that has been her intellectual focus.

Smith performed Twilight: Los Angeles around the U.S. and on Broadway. It received two Tony nominations, an Obie, a Drama Desk Award, a Special Citation from the New York Drama Critics and numerous other honours.

President and Mrs. Clinton and Vice President Al Gore attended her Washington, D.C. performance. She produced, wrote and performed the movie version of Twilight: Los Angeles for PBS.

Another of her plays, Fires In The Mirror, examined a race riot that occurred in Crown Heights, Brooklyn (1991) when age-old racial tensions between Black and Jewish neighbours exploded.

It received an Obie Award, numerous other awards and was a runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize. She performed the play around the U.S., in London and Australia. The film version of Fires In The Mirror was also broadcast on PBS.

Smith starred in the highly acclaimed On The Road series called Let Me Down Easy at the Second Stage Theater in New York. The subject is the resilience and vulnerability of the human body. This play was inspired by work she did at the Yale School of Medicine, where she was Visiting Professor.

Smith has been featured in several films including The American President, The Human Stain, Dave and Rent. She was a regular on the CBS series Presidio Med, and had a recurring role on The Practice. She also starred in the independent film Rachel Getting Married, starring Anne Hathaway.

In 2007, Americans for the Arts presented her with the Kitty Carlisle Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Arts. Smith also received the Mayor's Award for Art and Culture by the Mayor of New York City in 2007.

She was the recipient of the Alphonse Fletcher Fellowship in 2006. The fellowship recognizes work by scholars, writers and artists who address and carry out the broad social goals of the Brown v. Board Supreme Court decision of 1954.

She was twice nominated for the NAACP Image Award. She received the prestigious New York Women in Communication's Matrix Award for her achievements and outstanding leadership roles in her field in spring 2008.



LATEST ARTICLES

New on TV today: Friday 11 July 2025

Disney+ documents Jaws @ 50 and Discovery finds out how to go Faster with Finnegan.


Generations: The Legacy Teasers - August 2025

Tau and Nkaba's paths cross - and it's not a happy reunion.


Cacau Teasers - August 2025

Justino decides to authorise the publication of Cacau's abduction in the press.


New on TV today: Thursday 10 July 2025

London crime drama MobLand debuts on M-Net and BBC Earth uncovers the Wonders of Volcanoes.


Rugby player Ruan Smith up for grabs in Op My Eish! 4

Old and busted: actors and singers. New hottness: sportsmen. If you fancy some sporty spice, get in the casting queue.


New on TV today: Wednesday 9 July 2025

Phones and cameras get you Caught! on ID, as Netflix begins Building the Band with the late Liam Payne.


New on TV today: Tuesday 8 July 2025

Mzansi Magic invites you to Lose It or Lose Me and Netflix documents The Real Project X.


On Carte Blanche: drug dealer doctors and pharmacists thrive in Benoni

D.I.S.G.U.S.T.I.N.G They're peddling high risk, addictive medication illegally and no-one's stopping them.


New! 016 FM Teasers - July 2025

DJ wars erupt and shady business lurks. Mpho Sebeng goes ON AIR in his final role.


New on TV today: Monday 7 July 2025

Drama series 016 FM begins on Mzansi Magic and Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares returns to BBC Lifestyle.

LATEST SITE ACTIVITY


More activity at TVSA Central



LATEST SOAPIE TEASERS



LATEST SOAPIE TEASERS





×
×

You browser doesn't have Flash, Silverlight, Gears, BrowserPlus or HTML5 support.