Okieriete Onaodowan

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Okieriete Onaodowan
Born (1987-08-16) August 16, 1987 (age 34)
Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Other namesOak Onaodowan
OccupationActor, singer
Years active2010–present
Known forHamilton and Station 19

Okieriete "Oak" Onaodowan[1] (/oʊˌkɛdiˈɛteɪ oʊˈnaʊdəwɑːn/ oh-KED-ee-ET-ay oh-NOW-də-wahn;[2] born August 16, 1987)[3] is an American actor and singer known for originating the dual roles of Hercules Mulligan and James Madison in the 2015 musical Hamilton and the role of Dean Miller in the ABC drama and Grey's Anatomy spin-off series Station 19.

Early life[]

Onaodowan was born in Newark, New Jersey, to Nigerian parents.[4] He and his five sisters[5] were raised in West Orange, New Jersey,[6] He attended Gregory Elementary School and Roosevelt Middle School and West Orange High School, graduating in 2005.[5] Onaodowan briefly played football for his high school, but he stopped after an injury during practice. As a result of the injury, Onaodowan started to explore acting as an alternative extracurricular activity.[7] While attending high school, he began performing with the New Jersey Youth Theatre. After high school, Onaodowan auditioned for and was accepted to the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. He attended for one year.[8]

Career[]

Onaodowan had roles in Rocky the Musical and Cyrano de Bergerac on Broadway and was in the ensemble of the first national tour of American Idiot.[9] He had the leading role in Young Jean Lee's 2009 play, The Shipment,[10] and played the title role in J.C. Lee's Luce.[11][12]

By 2015, Onaodowan was an experienced stage actor.[13] He also had several screen credits, including Lou in the feature film Thanks for Sharing and roles in the TV series Gravity and Blue Bloods.[14] He originated the roles of James Madison and Hercules Mulligan in the musical Hamilton on Broadway.[15][16][17] He won a Grammy Award as part of the cast album of Hamilton.[18]

On July 11, 2017, he took on the role of Pierre in the musical Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812, replacing the outgoing Josh Groban.[19][20][21] He took his final bow in this musical on August 13, 2017.

In 2018, he began playing the role of firefighter Dean Miller in the Grey's Anatomy spin-off Station 19.

Credits[]

Theatre[]

Filmography[]

Film[]

Year Title Role Notes
2012 Thanks for Sharing Lou
2017 Person to Person Lester
2017 The Super Cal
2020 Hamilton Hercules Mulligan / James Madison
2021 A Quiet Place Part II Ronnie
Generation Wreck Brandon

Television[]

Year Title Role Notes
2010 Gravity Sam Episode: "Old People Creep Me Out"
2012 NYC 22 Anton Barke Episode: "Turf War"
2014 Blue Bloods Damon Williams Episode: "Forgive and Forget"
2016 Ballers Anthony 2 episodes
2016 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Cash Lewis Episode: "Broken Rhymes"
2017 Girls Raneed Episode: "Painful Evacuation"
2017 The Get Down Afrika Bambaataa 3 episodes
2017 She's Gotta Have It Slick Willie Episode: "#DaJumpoff (DOCTRINE)"
2018–2020 Grey's Anatomy Dean Miller 4 episodes
2018–present Station 19 59 episodes
2019 BoJack Horseman Mike Episode: "The Kidney Stays in the Picture"
2020 Robot Chicken Abraham Lincoln / Veloci-Rapper Episode: "Petless M in: Cars Are Couches of the Road"
2020 Social Distance Reggie Episode: "Delete All Future Events"

Stage[]

Year Show Role Notes
2010 Neighbors Sambo Off-Broadway
Langston in Harlem Cuban Balladeer
2011 American Idiot Rock & Roll Boyfriend/Ensemble US National Tour
2012 Cyrano de Bergerac Pastry Cook/Cadet/Sentry Broadway
2013 Luce Luce Off-Broadway
2014 Rocky the Musical Dipper Riley/Apollo's Cornerman Broadway
2015 Hamilton Hercules Mulligan/James Madison Off-Broadway
2015-2016 Broadway
2017 Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 Pierre Bezukhov Broadway (Replacement)

Awards, nominations and recognition[]

Year Award Category Work Result
2016 Grammy Award Best Musical Theater Album Hamilton Won
Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards Favorite Breakthrough Performance Nominated

Onaodowan was included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment list in 2016 for his acting in Hamilton.[22]

References[]

  1. ^ Sally, Henry (July 26, 2015). "HAMILTON Meets Disney Meets WICKED in New #Ham4Ham Lottery Performance, Featuring Okieriete Onaodowan". Broadway World. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
  2. ^ "Meet The Cast of Ruined: Okieriete Onaodowan". La Jolla Playhouse. December 2, 2010. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  3. ^ Diggs, Daveed. "Tales from Backstage: Daveed Diggs in "Hamilton"".
  4. ^ Canty, Erin (February 25, 2016). "How a second-generation immigrant conquered Broadway as one of America's Founding Fathers". Upworthy.com. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Herzog, Laura (May 2, 2016). "Broadway baby: 'Hamilton' star returns to N.J. alma mater". NJ.com. NJ Advance Media. Retrieved June 13, 2016. Onaodowan grew up in West Orange with his parents and five sisters, and attended Gregory Elementary School, Roosevelt Middle School, and West Orange High School, graduating in 2005, school officials said.
  6. ^ Kletnoy, Sergio (July 13, 2015). "Founding Father Alexander Hamilton's Life Is Now a Hip-Hop Musical". Cosmopolitan.com. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  7. ^ Kyman, Vicki (June 12, 2016). "The gentle giant of 'Hamilton': Meet N.J.'s Okieriete Onaodowan". NJ.com. NJ Advance Media.
  8. ^ "The gentle giant of 'Hamilton': Meet N.J.'s Okieriete Onaodowan". NJ.com. NJ.com. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
  9. ^ "Okieriete Onaodowan". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
  10. ^ Scheck, Frank (January 27, 2009). "Lods of Quality Material". New York Post. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  11. ^ Scheck, Frank (October 22, 2013). "'Luce' fizzles out despite performances". New York Post.
  12. ^ Isherwood, Charles (October 21, 2013). "Once Their Son, Now a Riddle J C Lee's 'Luce' at Claire Tow Theater". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  13. ^ Hebert, James (December 3, 2015). "The breathtaking 'Hamilton,' and its bloodlines with 'Allegiance'". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  14. ^ "Meet the Cast of The Public Theater's HAMILTON". BroadwayWorld.com. January 31, 2015. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  15. ^ Kennedy, Mark (July 17, 2015). "3 presidents in 'Hamilton' put 'blood into the statues'". limaohio.com. Lima, Ohio: AIM Media Midwest Operating, LLC. AP. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
  16. ^ Lee, Ashley (July 28, 2015). "'Hamilton': Lin-Manuel Miranda Repeatedly Rewards Lottery Hopefuls With Unique Pre-Shows". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
  17. ^ "Q&As with Your Favorite Broadway Stars- HAMILTON's Okieriete Onaodowan". BroadwayWorld.com. October 2, 2015. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  18. ^ "2016 Grammy Award Nominations". cbs.com. CBS News. December 7, 2015. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  19. ^ @GreatCometBway (February 15, 2017). "We're thrilled to announce one of the original stars of @HamiltonMusical joins @GreatCometBway as Pierre starting July 3! #WhatAboutPierre" (Tweet). Retrieved February 15, 2017 – via Twitter.
  20. ^ Paulson, Michael (February 15, 2017). "A 'Hamilton' Star Is to Replace Josh Groban in 'Great Comet'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
  21. ^ Sblendorio, Marissa (June 30, 2017). "HAMILTON's Okieriete Onaodowan Will Make His GREAT COMET Debut on July 11". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved July 1, 2017.
  22. ^ Viagas, Robert (January 5, 2016). "Hamilton Actors on Forbes' "30 Under 30" Power List". Playbill. Retrieved January 23, 2018.

External links[]

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