Exclusive! She’s Beautiful & She’s Here: The Color Purple's Danielle Brooks on Her 18-Story Times Square Billboard
Times Square Billboard photo by Caitlin McNaney
Not only can you catch Danielle Brooks giving a powerhouse performance as Sofia in The Color Purple at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre through November 13; you also can’t miss her on a gorgeous, gigantic billboard in Times Square for Lane Bryant’s #ThisBody campaign. We recently caught up with Brooks on how it feels to shine at 18 stories tall.
“It’s incredible. It’s the first time I’ve had a poster by myself that’s not me in character,” Brooks told Broadway.com. “I look forward to sharing it with my family. They’re coming to my last performance of The Color Purple, and they’ll get to see it. I’m really thrilled about it.”
Prior to making her Tony-nominated Broadway debut in The Color Purple, the Juilliard alum turned heads as Taystee on Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black. Leave it to Danni B. to use her platform for empowering others. Brooks has partnered up with Lane Bryant and Refinery29 for the 67 Percent Project.
“67 percent of women in America are plus size, which means size 14 and above,” Brooks said. “But plus size women make up less than two percent of images in mainstream media. This is an initiative to show the variety of women in media at the same rate that we exist in reality.”
Brooks hopes to use her influence to serve as a role model for young people, especially young girls. Having role models that she could identify with is what equipped her with the confidence to pursue acting.
“When I sign autographs at the stagedoor every night, I have young girls that say ‘Thank you’ or ‘I see myself in you,”’ revealed Brooks. “The Color Purple was the first show I ever saw. Seeing Felicia Fields as Sofia and all the different sizes of those women that were onstage was confirmation for me that I could do it.”
This cause is too beautiful for words, as is the bodacious Brooks’ Times Square billboard.
“We’re really striving to live in a world of inclusivity where everyone is represented and everyone can love themselves for who they are,” the Tony nominee continued. “We’re not ashamed of our bodies. We want to be seen. We are here.”
