Kecia Lewis

Kecia Lewis, also credited as Kecia Lewis-Evans^[1] is an American singer and actress.^[2] Lewis made her Broadway debut as a replacement in the musical Big River (1985), followed by roles in Once on This Island (1990), Leap of Faith (2012), and Hell's Kitchen (2024), the latter of which earned her the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.^[3][4][5][6]

Kecia Lewis
Lewis in 2025
Born	Bronx, NY
Education	High School of Performing Arts
Occupation(s)	Actress, singer
Years active	1980–present

Early life

Lewis was born and raised in New York City and is a graduate of the High School of Performing Arts.^[7]

Career

She served as an understudy for Nell Carter in the revival of Ain't Misbehavin'. In 1990, she originated the role of Asaka in Once on This Island.^{[citation needed]} In 2006, she originated the role of Trix the Aviatrix in The Drowsy Chaperone.^{[citation needed]} In 2006, she was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for her performance as Dorcas in Dessa Rose.^{[citation needed]}

In 2017, her performance as Sister Rosetta Tharpe in Marie and Rosetta earned her an Obie Award and a nomination for the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play.^{[citation needed]} In 2018, she starred as Mrs. Norman in a revival of Children of a Lesser God at the Studio 54.^[8] In 2019, Lewis played the recurring role of Tonya on the 2019 follow-up of NBC television series Mad About You.^[9] In 2022, she was cast in the Peacock thriller film The Independent.^[10]

In 2023, she appeared off-Broadway in the show Hell's Kitchen, originating the role of music educator Miss Liza Jane, and reprised the role on Broadway in 2024, receiving a Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, and Lucille Lortel Award along with a Drama League Award nomination.^[11] Lewis also teaches stage and drama acting at the Atlantic Acting School.^{[citation needed]} During her career Lewis also starred in films and television series, including recurring roles in Mad About You, The Passage, The Blacklist, and Law & Order.^{[citation needed]}

Acting credits

Film

Years	Title	Role	Notes
2014	Shelter	Shelter Worker
2020	Shirley	Nurse
2022	The Independent	Tonya

Television

Years	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
1992	Law & Order	Langstrom	Episode: "The Fertile Fields"
2000	The Hughleys	Donna	Episode: "Love or Money"
2002	Crossing Jordan	Intake Nurse	Episode: "Secrets & Lies: Part 1"
2013–2020	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Judge Constance Copeland	4 episodes
2013	Royal Pains	Nurse	Episode: "Game of Phones"
2015	Limitless	Chrystal	Episode: "This Is Your Brian on Drugs"
2016	Blue Bloods	Sandi Harper	Episode: "Town Without Pity"
	Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt	Stephanie	Episode: "Kimmy Gives Up!"
	Conviction	Judge Melissa Hinds	Episode: "A Simple Man"
2017	Madam Secretary	Ms. Morales	Episode: "Revelation"
2019	SMILF	Aunt Renee	Episode: "Smile More if Lying Fails"
	Wu-Tang: An American Saga	Aunt Goldie	3 episodes
	Mad About You	Tonya	12 episodes
	The Passage	Lacey Antoine	7 episodes
2020–2021	The Blacklist	Esi Jackson	10 episodes
2021	With Love	Mia	Episode: "Independence Day"
	And Just Like That...	Laura	Episode: "Tragically Hip"
2022	The Good Fight	Angela Allen-Hellman	Episode: "The End of STR Laurie"

Theatre

Years	Title	Role	Venue	Ref.
1985–1987	Big River	Ensemble / Alice (replacement)	Eugene O'Neill Theatre, Broadway	[12]
1988–1989	Ain't Misbehavin'	Standby	Ambassador Theatre, Broadway	[13]
1990–1991	Once on This Island	Asaka	Playwrights Horizons, Off-Broadway
			Booth Theatre, Broadway	[14]
2005	Dessa Rose	Janet / Gemina / Field Hand / Dorcas	Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, Off-Broadway	[15]
2006–2007	The Drowsy Chaperone	Trix	Marquis Theatre, Broadway	[16]
2008	Shrek the Musical	Dragon	5th Avenue Theatre	[15]
2008–2010	Chicago	Matron "Mama" Morton (replacement)	Shubert Theatre, Broadway	[17]
2010	Hairspray	Motormouth Maybelle	Benedum Center	[15]
2011–2012	Chicago	Matron "Mama" Morton (replacement)	US National Tour	[15]
2012	Leap of Faith	Ida Mae Robinson	St. James Theatre, Broadway	[18]
2014	The Little Mermaid	Ursula	North Shore Music Theatre	[15]
2014–2015	Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella	Marie	US National Tour	[15]
2016	Mother Courage and Her Children	Mother Courage (replacement)	Classic Stage Company, Off-Broadway
	Marie and Rosetta	Sister Rosetta Tharpe	Atlantic Theater Company, Off-Broadway
2017	Children of a Lesser God	Mrs. Norman	Berkshire Theatre Festival
2018			Studio 54, Broadway	[19]
2023–2024	Hell's Kitchen	Miss Liza Jane	The Public Theater, Off-Broadway	[20]
2024–2025			Shubert Theatre, Broadway	[21]

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Category	Nominee(s)	Result	Ref.
2024	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical	Hell's Kitchen	Won	[22]
	Drama League Awards	Distinguished Performance		Nominated	[23][24]
	Lucille Lortel Awards	Outstanding Featured Performer in a Musical		Won	[25]
	Outer Critics Circle Awards	Outstanding Featured Performer in a Broadway Musical		Won	[26]
	Tony Awards	Best Featured Actress in a Musical		Won	[27]
	Grammy Awards	Best Musical Theater Album		Won	[28]