Orange is the New Black star Danielle Brooks is making her Broadway debut in The Color Purple.
Brooks is taking on the role of Miss Sophia, a character made famous by Oprah Winfrey in Steven Spielberg’s 1985 adaptation of the film.
“I’m honored. It’s so humbling to step into this role that Oprah originated and made so iconic,” Brooks said in an interview with theGrio. “I do not take that lightly, and I’m so grateful, because as a producer, I know that she had to sign off on it. [Oprah] stepped into the role so boldly, and I want to do the same thing every night. As impactful as she was in her film debut and I want to do the same in my Broadway debut.”
Brooks says she didn’t receive any advice from Oprah on playing Miss Sophia and is grateful for that.
“I feel like it’s her way of saying, ‘this is your time. You do what you need to do. We’ll talk at some point, but this is your time to do what you need to do,’…I appreciate that.”
“I went to school. I went to Juilliard, so I trained for this,” Brooks said. “This is what I do, so I can be confident in that, and just pray that she likes it.”
Cynthia Erivo, who stars as Celie, says Oprah simply told her to be present and to be sure to take in every night on the stage.
“[Oprah] said just to be in the moment. Experience the moment and live in the moment. Make sure I take the time to experience what is happening and to enjoy it.”
Brooks later opened up about the challenge of filming season 4 of Orange is the New Black at the same time as performing on Broadway.
The Color Purple premieres at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre in New York City on December 10.