Biography
Cynthia Erivo is an English actress and singer. Born on 8 January 1987 in Stockwell, London, she trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
She made her West End debut in The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (2011) and her Broadway debut as Celie in the 2015 revival of The Color Purple, for which she won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. On screen, her roles include Belle in Widows (2018), Darlene Sweet in Bad Times at the El Royale (2018) and Holly Gibney in the miniseries The Outsider (2020). She received an Academy Award nomination for portraying Harriet Tubman in Harriet (2019).
Erivo is known for playing Elphaba in Wicked (2024) and its sequel Wicked: For Good (2025). She has also appeared as Aretha Franklin in the series Genius: Aretha (2021) and voiced characters in animated projects. She was appointed MBE for services to music and drama.
