Eisa Davis (born May 5, 1971) is an American playwright, actress and singer-songwriter. She is known for her work as the co-creator of the Warriors concept album with Lin-Manuel Miranda. The work is set to premiere on Broadway in March 2027 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.Gans, Andrew Lin-Manuel Miranda and Eisa Davis' Warriors Musical Will Open on Broadway in 2027 Playbill, June 23, 2026 Her previous works include the plays Bulrusher and Angela's Mixtape. For her stage acting in New York, she won an Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Performance. She resides in Brooklyn.
Early life and education Davis was born and spent her childhood in Berkeley, California. As a child, she attended dance classes and studied voice and classical piano at the Young Musicians Program at UC Berkeley. She is the niece of political activist Angela Davis. Davis' autobiographical play Angela's Mixtape tells the story of her upbringing in the Bay Area and the impact of her family's politics on her childhood. After graduating from Berkeley High School, she earned a bachelor's degree from Harvard University. Davis earned her Master of Fine Arts from the Actors Studio at the New School for Social Research, where she double majored in playwriting and acting. Her dance skills are notable as well, with the dean of her program saying she could have been admitted to Alvin Ailey.
Career
Davis began working as a professional actress at the age of 10 with appearances on a local television show, then acted in plays, industrials and films throughout high school and college. Davis moved to Los Angeles after college and worked with Anna Deavere Smith on her piece about that city's uprising, Twilight, LA, 1992.
After graduate school, Davis continued to work as an actor in television and film, with roles in The Wire and Soul Food. She became a lifetime member of the Actors Studio, as well as a resident playwright at New Dramatists. Drawing from her work as a hip hop journalist for Rap Sheet and The Source, Davis advocated for the hybrid art form that brings together theatre and hip hop by writing essays and participating in the Hip-Hop Theater Festival. She also became a poetry fellow at Cave Canem, the esteemed organization for black poets.
In 2006, Davis' play Bulrusher premiered at Urban Stages and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. In 2007, Davis won an Obie Award with the ensemble of Passing Strange. The show premiered at Berkeley Rep, but then moved on to Broadway and Davis went with the show, only later to have the whole production filmed by Spike Lee. In 2009, she wrote and starred in Angela's Mixtape. The show was autobiographical and went on to make it into The New Yorkers list of best plays from that year.
Davis starred as Addie Pickett, nurse and receptionist at Bluebell, Alabama's local medical practice in The CW's series Hart of Dixie, a fish-out-of-water story about a New York City doctor (Rachel Bilson) adjusting to life in a small Southern town after she inherits a local medical practice.
In 2012 and 2013 Davis was Symphony Space's artist-in-residence. She taught at Williams College as an Arthur Levitt Fellow for the 2013-14 season. While continuing to write and act in plays, Davis also acted roles in House of Cards, Mare of Easttown, and Kindred. She also wrote for television for Spike Lee's Netflix series She's Gotta Have It, as well as on Justified: City Primeval.
In the summer of 2015, she starred in Dave Malloy's musical Preludes at Lincoln Center. In the summer of 2017, she starred in Julius Caesar at the Delacorte Theater."Eisa Davis Theatre Credits", AboutTheArtists
Davis has two albums of her own music, Something Else and Tinctures. Some of her songs have been featured on the Showtime series Soul Food. Davis also narrated the role of Celestial Davenport Hamilton in the audiobook version of An American Marriage by Tayari Jones. Mushroom, a bilingual play Davis wrote about mushroom pickers around Kennett Square, PA earned several Barrymore nominations after its premiere in 2022. Her play Bulrusher was produced at Berkeley Repertory Theatre from October 27 until – December 3, 2023.
In 2024, Bulrusher was adapted into an opera by West Edge Opera in Berkeley, California. The production was part of the company's summer festival.
In 2026, Davis's play ||:Girls:||:Chance:||:Music:|| was performed by the two theaters that commissioned it, American Conservatory Theater and Vineyard Theater.
Artistic philosophy Davis believes in the Ghanaian principle of Sankofa. The literal translation of the word is "return and collect it" or "go back and get it". This refers to her use of digging through her own lineage and history to find action and themes that can be used in her plays. She also uses her art to answer questions that "haunt" her or ideas that she is grappling with herself. Much of her artistic philosophy can be summed up in her quote: "Theatre is one of the few public spaces we have for active contemplation." She explores ideas such as blackness and family through the poetry of her language.
Filmography
Film +YearTitleRoleNotes1997Box SuiteDavis2001Mourning GloryVictim2003Robot StoriesHelen2004Brass TacksTamara2005ConfessGlyness Bennet2006The ArchitectLinda Freeman2008Pretty BirdCorporate Hotshot #32010Welcome to the RileysVivian2011In the FamilyAnne Carter2012The LetterTherapist2013The VolunteerKaren2014Jack Ryan: Shadow RecruitFBI Explosives Expert2018First MatchBianca2019After the WeddingTanya2021Tick, Tick... Boom!Aspiring Composer and Lyricist2023Ex-HusbandsEileen Link 2024 Relay Wash 2026 Lucy Schulman Post-production
Television YearTitleRoleNotes1999Now and AgainReporterEpisode: "Over Easy"2000–2009, 2024–2026Law & OrderVarious roles6 episodes2001–2003Soul FoodRose / Tinctures / Eisa Davis4 episodes2002–2008The WireBubbles' Sister2003Law & Order: Special Victims UnitVera GaleanoEpisode: "Soulless"2009Great PerformancesMotherEpisode: "Passing Strange"2009DamagesCarla StensonEpisode: "London. Of Course"2010MercyProducerEpisode: "There Is No Room for You on My Ass"2011–2012Hart of DixieAddy Pickett10 episodes2012SmashAbigail2 episodes2014The BlacklistND AgentEpisode: "The Good Samaritan (No. 106)"2014The Good WifeDr. Allison SugarEpisode: "Dramatics, Your Honor"2015GothamJudith BarthelEpisode: "The Scarecrow"2015American OdysseySheila LinderbyEpisode: "Bug Out"2015Madam SecretaryJane SmithEpisode: "The Long Shot"2015–2016House of CardsCynthia Driscoll8 episodes2016The FamilyJulia BeckettEpisode: "Of Puppies and Monsters"2016BlindspotAlexandra4 episodes2016Falling WaterSarah HenryEpisode: "Circular Time"2018The Looming TowerCondoleezza Rice3 episodes2018RiseEva Thorne5 episodes2018SuccessionJoyce Miller2 episodes2018God Friended MeLena2019Bluff City LawGeneral Virginia HoweEpisode: "Need to Know"2020–2021BettyJeanne5 episodes2021PoseAngieEpisode: "Intervention"2021Mare of EasttownGayle Graham4 episodes2023AhsokaCaptain GirardEpisode: "Part Five: Shadow Warrior"
Awards YearAwardShowResult2006Obie AwardPassing Strange2007Pulitzer PrizeBulrusher2009Obie AwardSustained Excellence2011Ruby PrizeRamp2012Herb Alpert Theatre AwardN/ABarrymore AwardThe History of Light2013Lucille Lortel AwardLuck of the IrishN/AWhitfield Cook AwardN/AN/AHelen Merrill AwardN/A 2016 Lucille Lortel Award Preludes2018Drama League AwardKings2019AUDELCO AwardThe Secret Life Of Bees2020Creative Capital AwardN/A2020Lucille Lortel AwardThe Secret Life of Bees2023Barrymore AwardMushroom2023USA Artists FellowN/A
References
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