Sarah Jones (stage actress) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sarah Jones
|
|
|---|---|
Jones in 2012
|
|
| Born | 1974 |
| Occupation | Playwright, actress, poet |
Sarah Jones is a talented American playwright, actress, and poet. She is known for her amazing ability to play many different characters in her solo shows. The New York Times newspaper even called her "a master of the genre."
One of her most famous shows is Bridge & Tunnel. It was produced Off-Broadway in 2004 by the famous actress Meryl Streep. Later, it moved to Broadway in 2006 and won a special Special Tony Award.
Contents
Sarah Jones's Life Story
Sarah Jones was born in Baltimore, Maryland. Her father was African American, and her mother had a mixed background from Europe and the Caribbean. Growing up, Sarah lived in many different places like Boston, Washington, D.C., and Queens, New York. This helped her learn about many cultures. The New Yorker magazine said she could perfectly imitate people from different backgrounds.
She went to The United Nations International School and then Bryn Mawr College. Sarah first thought about becoming a lawyer. But she left college early and found her way to the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in New York. There, she started competing in poetry slams, which are contests where poets perform their work.
Her Creative Career
Sarah's first solo show was called Surface Transit. It started at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in 1998. In this show, she performed poems as different characters. A famous feminist, Gloria Steinem, and the human rights group Equality Now noticed her work. They asked Sarah to create her next project, Women Can't Wait!, to talk about unfair laws against women.
She was also asked by the National Immigration Forum to create a show about immigrant rights. This led to Waking the American Dream. This show later became the basis for Bridge & Tunnel. That show was very popular and sold out for six months in New York in 2004.
Standing Up for Artistic Freedom
In 2001, Sarah Jones released a song called "Your Revolution". This song was about artistic expression. Some people did not like it, and a government group tried to fine her. Sarah decided to fight this fine. After two years, in 2003, groups like the NYCLU and ACLU helped her. They won the case, which was a big victory for artists' freedom of speech.
More Important Projects
In 2005, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation asked Sarah to create a show about health differences among different groups of people in the U.S. This show was called A Right to Care. It premiered in 2005 at a special event where President Jimmy Carter also spoke.
Sarah has received many awards and grants for her work. These include the Brendan Gill Prize in 2007. She also got support from the Ford Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts.
Awards and TV Appearances
Sarah has won a Helen Hayes Award and was nominated for two Drama Desk Awards. She also won the Best One Person Show Award at HBO's US Comedy Arts Festival. The New York Civil Liberties Union gave her a Calloway Award. This was because she was the first artist to ever sue the Federal Communications Commission for censorship.
You might have seen Sarah on TV! She has been a guest on shows like Charlie Rose, The Today Show, and CBS Sunday Morning. She even appeared on Sesame Street as Mr. Noodle's Other Sister, Ms. Noodle, on Elmo's World. In 2021, Sarah also starred as Yasmin in the Netflix series On the Verge.
Recent Creative Work
In 2022, Sarah Jones directed, wrote, produced, and starred in a film called Sell/Buy/Date. This movie was a mix of a documentary and a comedy. It first showed at the South by Southwest festival in March 2022. The film was released in theaters on October 14, 2022, and later became available to stream on Amazon on November 8, 2022.
