Rodney Hicks

Rodney Hicks, born March 28, 1974, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter whose Broadway career spans from 1996 to 2017. Raised in Philadelphia, he graduated from Roxborough High School in 1992 and enrolled at Mansfield University that same year before leaving in 1994 to pursue acting professionally. Early in his career, he performed alongside Lauryn Hill of the hip-hop group The Fugees in the musical Bring in the Morning - A Wake up Call, and subsequently appeared in the John Adams and June Jordan pop opera I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, directed by Peter Sellars.

Hicks made his Broadway debut in 1996 as a member of the original cast of Rent, originating the role of Paul and serving as understudy for the role of Benjamin Coffin III, which had been originated by Taye Diggs. He returned to the production in 2007 as the principal performer of Benjamin Coffin III, becoming the final actor to hold the role before the show closed that year. The closing performance was captured in Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway. In 2000, Hicks appeared on Broadway in two productions: a revival of Jesus Christ Superstar, in which he played Peter during a six-month run at the Lyric Theatre, and a revival of Charles Strouse's Golden Boy, in which he starred as Joe Bonaparte. Off-Broadway, he co-starred with Robert Cuccioli in the 2006 revival of Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, and his performance is preserved on the cast recording of that production.

Hicks first played Clarence Norris in The Scottsboro Boys at Off-Broadway's Vineyard Theatre in 2010, in a production directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Susan Stroman that ran from March 10 to April 18. The production received nine Drama Desk nominations including Best New Musical, six Outer Critics Circle awards including Best New Musical, and two Lucille Lortel Awards including Outstanding New Musical and Outstanding Choreography. The show subsequently transferred to Broadway, beginning previews on October 6, 2010, opening on October 31, and closing on December 12 of that year. In a 2012 Philadelphia Theatre Company production of the same musical, Hicks took on the lead role of Haywood Patterson, earning the 2012 Barrymore Award for Outstanding Leading Male in a Musical. At the Village Theatre in Seattle, he played the role of Jim in the production, receiving a Seattle Times Footlight Award and a Broadway World Seattle Critics Choice Award for Outstanding Leading Actor.

In 2011, Hicks played Curly in the first all-African American cast of Oklahoma! at Portland Center Stage in Portland, Oregon, a production directed by Chris Coleman. It was through the audition process for that production that Hicks met Coleman, whom he would later marry. Coleman currently serves as artistic director at the Denver Theatre Center for Performing Arts. In 2014, Hicks participated in a lab production of Come from Away, the musical that would open on Broadway on March 12, 2017, with Hicks originating the role of Bob. He departed the cast on June 14, 2017, following a diagnosis of spasmodic dysphonia, a neurological condition that causes involuntary spasming of the voice. As a result, he was unable to participate in the live stage recording of Come from Away, released on Apple TV+ in 2021. After undergoing treatment, Hicks recovered his ability to speak and sing. In 2018, he relocated to Denver with Coleman, and in 2023 he played Walter in Chess at The Muny.

Beyond his Broadway work, Hicks has performed extensively in regional theatre, appearing in productions ranging from King Lear and Lobby Hero to Ain't Misbehavin' and Two Gentlemen of Verona. His television credits include the role of Delray Williams on NYPD Blue, a guest lead appearance as Jerome Davis on Law & Order: Criminal Intent opposite Faith Ford and Johnny Galecki, and the recurring role of Perry on the final season of ABC's Hope and Faith. While living in the Pacific Northwest, he also guest-starred on NBC's Grimm and TNT's Leverage.

As a playwright, Hicks has developed several works, including Ms. Pearl's Cabaret, a semi-finalist for the 2019 Eugene O'Neill Playwriting Conference; Just Press Save, a semi-finalist for the 2018 Eugene O'Neill Playwriting Conference and a featured selection at the 2020 Pride Plays Festival in a virtual reading directed by Michael Greif; and FLAME BROILED. or the ugly play, which received its world premiere at Local Theatre Company in Boulder, Colorado, in fall 2019. Hicks is also developing a writing project titled 1 9 6 8.