Glenn Davis (American actor)

Glenn Davis is an American actor and producer, and the Artistic Director of Steppenwolf Theatre Company — the first person of color in the company's history to assume this position. Davis is a partner at Cast Iron Entertainment with Sterling K. Brown, Brian Tyree Henry, Jon Michael Hill, Andre Holland, and Tarell Alvin McCraney, and the collective is in residence at Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles.^[1] He is also an artistic associate at the Young Vic Theatre in London and the Vineyard Theatre in New York.^[1]

Education[]

Born in Oceanside, California, Davis grew up in the Chatham neighborhood on Chicago's South Side. He attended the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools, where he currently sits on the Alumni Association Executive Board, and Thornwood High School. ^[2] Davis earned a BFA in Acting at The Theatre School at DePaul University.^[3][4]

He is a graduate of the Birmingham Conservatory of Classical Theatre at the Stratford Festival in Ontario, Canada, and is the first African American to do so.^[5]

Career[]

Davis was named to this leadership role in July 2021, serving alongside Audrey Francis.^[5] In an unprecedented move, the pair put themselves up as a team and were elected to the top leadership position by ensemble members.^[6] This is the first time in ensemble history that the job of leading the iconic theater will be helmed by an artist pair.^[5]

His body of work at Steppenwolf includes The Brother/Sister Plays and Downstate.^[6][5][7]

The American actor and producer's TV work includes the Showtime series Billions,^[7] The Good Wife,^[1] Jericho (2008), The Unit (2006) and 24 (2009), according to Steppenwolf Theatre and Rolling Out magazine.^{[8][9][10][1]}

In 2019, Davis appeared as Gio in Steppenwolf ensemble member Bruce Norris' "Downstate," which was staged in Chicago and at the National Theatre in London. The production, set in a group home on downstate Illinois, was hailed for its "visceral power," according to Michael Billington, writing for The Guardian.^[11][1]

In May 2017, Steppenwolf Theatre announced Davis as a new ensemble member.^[12] The veteran actor's credits include Steppenwolf plays, such as Lucas Hnath's The Christians, directed by K. Todd Freeman, and The Brother/Sister Plays, written by ensemble member Tarell Alvin McCraney, who also wrote the Oscar-winning Moonlight. He is a featured Steppenwolf player in King James, which will be part of the company's 2019–20 season.^{[needs update]} The play based on LeBron James and his impact on the city of Cleveland during his run with the Cavaliers was written by Rajiv Joseph and will eventually be featured at Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles.^{[13][needs update]}

In summer 2017, Davis was cast as Solyony, a Russian soldier, in Halley Feiffer's Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow at the Williamstown Theatre Festival.^[14] The play was an adaptation of Anton Chekhov's classic Three Sisters, a tale of rural angst and boredom, according to WBUR (90.9). He was selected as cast member for Clare Barron's You Got Older, at Steppenwolf from January 25 to March 11, 2018.^[15] Davis will join other ensemble members Audrey Francis, Caroline Neff, Francis Guinan, Emjoy Gavino, David Lind and Gabriel Ruiz in the play directed by Jonathan Berry.^{[needs update]}

Davis previously appeared onstage in Rajiv Joseph's play Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles.^[16] In 2011, Davis reprised his role, which also starred award-winning actor Robin Williams in his Broadway debut in the spring.^[17] Davis plays Tom, a soldier whose hand was bitten off by an angry tiger, played by Williams.

Davis' other regional credits include Caligula, Polaroid Stories, Vassa Zheleznova (Williamstown Theatre Festival); and work at Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Congo Square Theatre Company. International credits include Edward II, The Winter's Tale and As You Like It (Stratford Shakespeare Festival), as well as Othello at the Shakespeare Company.^[18]

He also appeared off-Broadway in the Vineyard Theatre production of McCraney's Wig Out! A play on the KIDZ.^[19]

References[]

External links[]

• Member Profiles Glenn Davis