In celebration of Black History Month, LaDuca is honored to spotlight eight inspiring performers who not only exude Black Excellence on Broadway, but who are also an integral part of modern Black History themselves.
“Being Black on Broadway is firstly about showing up as myself. It’s about using my voice to add to what are often limited ideas around blackness and black performers. It’s about me sharing access to opportunities, resources (casting, creatives, agents, workshops), and information with my peers and aspiring performers. It’s about continuing to lean into uncomfortable conversations about what equity looks like and about which barriers make equity difficult to achieve in our business. I’ve had amazing experiences on Broadway (and hope to continue to) and I know that our community, our work, and our reach, will be made better by creating more equity.”
~ Erin Moore
Erin Moore is a versatile artist, performing across mediums and genres. She earned her BFA at Fordham/Ailey, joined Philadanco and toured the U.S. and abroad, performing modern and contemporary ballet repertory.
After Philadanco, she returned to New York, was cast for Target, by Ryan Heffington, and entered the commercial dance world. Some credits include-a recurring role in HBO’s Boardwalk Empire, Netflix’s A Very Murray Christmas, and several appearances on The Tonight Show and Saturday Night Live, including with Kanye West. Erin also portrayed Michelle of Destiny’s Child in Ang Lee’s feature, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk.
Theatrically, Erin was in the original Broadway casts of: the revival of Follies, starring Bernadette Peters, the Tony award-winning After Midnight, and Shuffle Along choreographed by Savion Glover. In the classical realm, Erin was in the company of Rigoletto at The Metropolitan Opera, and was featured with the San Francisco symphony in a role conceived for her by choreographer Pat Birch in collaboration with maestro Michael Tilson Thomas.
Most recently, she can be seen in the finale of Fosse/Verdon on FX:“In the episode I did, we did ‘Big Spender’ from ‘Sweet Charity.’ I was getting to learn choreography from Mary Ann Lamb (who worked directly with Gwen Verdon on Fosse) and Mimi Quillin (who served as dance captain and assistant to choreographer, Bob Fosse for the 1986 Sweet Charity revival).” Erin can also be seen in season 3 of the Emmy Award-winning Amazon Prime show The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
What Black History Month means to me:
Black History Month is a moment to highlight an integral part of American history and culture: the vast contributions, complex stories, and achievements of Black Americans. Because these stories often get abbreviated or omitted, I appreciate the moment to focus on them!
How I’ve stayed inspired this year:
There are a few things I’ve done to stay inspired this year. First, I focused on being appreciative of what is in front of me. I quickly adjusted to all of my work being cancelled at the beginning of the year and put my energy into the things I could control; I cut my overhead, I stayed active, and I started to create. Secondly, I spent time with friends and family virtually, which kept me centered. Lastly, I started working again in the late fall, in TV/film projects, which was a welcomed gift because work is alway a big motivator for me!
You can follow Erin at @mooregranola.
Life in LaDucas 