LaChanze

Multi-hyphenate performer LaChanze’s stage name is Creole for “the charmed one.” If her 2023 is any indication, the sobriquet is speaking truth to power. The Florida native, who started her acting, dancing and singing career in the 1980s, became a two-time Tony Award-winning producer in June, taking home statues for Best Musical winner “Kimberly Akimbo” and Best Revival of a Play winner “Topdog/Underdog.” They mark Tony wins two and three for LaChanze – she won Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical in 2006 for her performance as Celie in “The Color Purple.” Since 2022, she has served as president of Black Theatre United, a nonprofit designed to create opportunities and support for Black students and professionals in the theater industry. Her legacy of performance has passed on to her child, Celia Rose Gooding, who plays Uhura in the Paramount+ series “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.”