| Krystal Joy Brown | |
| Birth Date: | December 22[1] |
| Birth Place: | Alexandria, Virginia, U.S. |
| Occupation: | Actress |
| Years Active: | 2005–present |
Krystal Joy Brown (born in Alexandria, Virginia) is an American actress. She made her Broadway debut playing various roles in the musical revival of Hair (2009). She has since played Ornella Sturdevant in the musical Leap of Faith (2012), Josephine Bloom in Big Fish (2013), and Diana Ross in the jukebox musical (2014). She gained prominence and acclaim in a replacement role portraying Eliza Hamilton in the Lin-Manuel Miranda musical Hamilton, and as Gussie Carnegie in the Stephen Sondheim revival Merrily We Roll Along (2022–2024).
Brown is also known for her roles on television including Renee Timmons on the Starz series, (2022). She also took recurring roles voicing Netossa in the Netflix animated series She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018–2020) and Barbara Gordon in the Amazon Prime animated series (2024–present).
Brown made her acting debut in the national tour of the hit Broadway musical Rent (2007), where she was cast as Mimi. Brown's theatrical productions outside of Broadway include the regional productions of Little Shop of Horrors (2008),[2] High School Musical (2008) and Calvin Berger (2010).[3] She also appeared in the Off-Broadway show Falling for Eve (2010).[4] Brown made her Broadway debut as a replacement for various characters in the musical revival Hair (2009).
She originated the role of Ornella Sturdevant on stage in the Broadway musical Leap of Faith (2012), adaptation of the 1992 film comedy of the same name starring Steve Martin. David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Brown bring powerhouse pipes and get to test them often".[5] The following year she originated the role of Josephine Bloom in the Broadway musical Big Fish (2013), an adaptation of the 2004 film of the same name. Theatre critic Elizabeth Vincentelli of The New York Post, opined that "Sadly...Krystal Joy Brown [is] given little to do beside stand steadfastly by [her] spouse".[6] On January 24, 2014, Brown returned to Broadway taking over the role of Diana Ross for Valisia LeKae in the Broadway jukebox musical .[7]
During this time Brown made her first television appearance in the series Castle, as a character named Sasha, in the 2011 episode titled "Pretty Dead". During this time Brown has taken roles on television acting in guest parts on the Hulu original TV series Deadbeat (2016) for the episode "AbraCadaver" and in the NBC legal series (2016). Brown was the voice of Netossa in animated Netflix series She-Ra and the Princesses of Power from 2018 to 2020.[8]
In 2019, Brown guest starred in the Sydney to the Max episode "How the Syd Stole Christmas" portraying Sydney Reynolds' late mother Dr. Alisha Reynolds in a flashback to four years ago.[9] In 2020-2022, Brown began a recurring role in the CBS series The Equalizer (2021) opposite Queen Latifah. Brown recurs on season two of (2022). On December 10, 2019, she joined the cast of Lin Manuel Miranda's Broadway musical Hamilton portraying Eliza Hamilton.[10] Kyle Smith of National Review praised her performance writing, "The Schuyler sisters provide the most beautiful voices in the production, with Krystal Joy Brown offering a poignant Eliza".[11]
In 2022, she played Gussie Carnegie, a Broadway diva married to self-centered writer Frank Shepard, played by Jonathan Groff in the off-Broadway revival of the Stephen Sondheim musical Merrily We Roll Along at the New York Theatre Workshop. For her performance she was nominated for a Lucille Lortel Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical.[12] She reprised the role on Broadway in 2023. Jesse Green of The New York Times described Brown as giving a "fetching performance, charming if not credible".[13] She said of the role, "This opportunity to represent and be the first Black Gussie is huge and it feels powerful". To get into Gussie’s character, she was inspired by Eartha Kitt, Diahann Carroll, Dorothy Dandridge and Diana Ross.[14]
Brown provides the voice of Barbara Gordon in the animated series .[15]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Victor Crowley | Sabrina | ||
| 2020 | Magic Camp | Lena Lambert |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Castle | Sasha | Episode: "Pretty Dead" |
| 2016 | Deadbeat | Minnie | Episode: "Abracadaver" |
| Charise McCabe | Episode: "Intersecting Lives" | ||
| 2018–2020 | She-Ra and the Princesses of Power | Netossa (voice) | 8 episodes |
| 2019 | Sydney to the Max | Dr. Alisha Reynolds | Episode: "How the Syd Stole Christmas" |
| 2020 | One Royal Holiday | Sara | TV movie |
| 2021 | Final Space | Avery Ergon (voice) | Episode: "All the Moments Lost" |
| The Equalizer | Kelly | 2 episodes | |
| Writing Around The Christmas Tree | Mikeala | TV movie | |
| 2022 | Renée Timmons | Recurring cast: season 2[16] | |
| 2024 | Barbara Gordon | Recurring role; 6 episodes | |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Rent | Mimi | National Tour |
| 2008 | Little Shop of Horrors | Crystal | Regional |
| High School Musical | Taylor McKessie | Regional | |
| 2009 | Hair | Various roles | Broadway |
| 2010 | Calvin Berger | Rosanna | Regional |
| Falling for Eve | Eve | Off-Broadway | |
| 2012 | Leap of Faith | Ornella Sturdevant | Broadway |
| 2013 | Big Fish | Josephine Bloom | Broadway |
| 2014 | Diana Ross | Broadway | |
| 2019 | Hamilton | Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton | Broadway |
| 2022–2023 | Merrily We Roll Along | Gussie Carnegie | Off-Broadway |
| 2023–2024 | Broadway |
| Year | Association | Category | Project | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Outstanding Female Dancer in a Broadway Show | Leap of Faith | |||
| 2014 | Outstanding Female Dancer in a Broadway Show | Big Fish | |||
| 2023 | Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical | Merrily We Roll Along | [17] | ||