Get to Know History Making Actor Kara Young
Harlem native Kara Young did not always want to be an actor.
Having won back-to-back Tony Awards one might think that Kara Young has wanted to be on stage all her life. According to an interview with The Cut, Young shared that she wasn’t interested in acting but took to it after following her brother who was taking a miming class at the 92nd Street Y. She went on to be a theatre kid in high school and study at Gettysburg College. Since then she has been in several productions on and off stage.
As an actor she has been described in the Huffington Post as an "artist who sees herself as a 'Black vessel' for words, ideas and traditions that stretch through generations but who studiously, self-consciously avoids any air of pretension."
Here are some of the roles that highlight why this award-winning, history-making actress is just getting started on making her mark.
Clyde’s, 2021
Kara Young made her Broadway debut in Clyde’s --playwright Lynn Nottage’s depiction of workers at a truck stop sandwich shop who are seeking a second chance at life after incarceration. She earned a Tony award nomination for her role.
Cost of Living, 2023
In 2023, Young played Jess in Martyna Majok’s Cost of Living. Exploring the relationship between differently abled and able-bodied people, Young’s role earned her another Tony nomination. According to Young when talking about her work, “You feel like you’re changing the world when people come to see that,” she said. “The work feels so important.”
I’m A Virgo, 2023
Heading to the small screen for a scripted series, Young played the role of Jones, a community organizer in Boots Riley’s absurdist yet refreshing series “I’m A Virgo.”
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Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch, 2024
In 2024, Young won her first Tony, for her role in Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch.
Purpose, 2025
At the recent 2025 Tony Awards, Young won her second Tony Award for best actress in a featured role in a play for the show Purpose. Young's win marked the first time that a Black performer has won a Tony Award two years in a row.
