Darlesia Cearcy to Replace Renée Elise Goldsberry in The Color Purple

Darlesia Cearcy will soon join the cast of The Color Purple. She will replace Renée Elise Goldsberry in the role of Nettie starting on January 17.

Cearcy, who studied for 10 years at the Houston Ballet Academy, previously appeared on the Great White Way in The Goodbye Girl, Ragtime, Smokey Joe's Café and The Who's Tommy. Her other theatrical credits include national tours of Jesus Christ Superstar and Ragtime.

Goldsberry, best known for playing Evangeline Williamson in the soap opera One Life to Live, will play her final performance in The Color Purple on January 15. The tuner will continue to star LaChanze as Celie, Elisabeth Withers-Mendes as Shug Avery, Felicia P. Fields as Sofia, Brandon Victor Dixon as Harpo, Krisha Marcano as Squeak and Kingsley Leggs as Mister.