WHO I AM

Dwayne A. Washington is a Juilliard-trained artist whose commanding voice, heartfelt storytelling, and genre-spanning range have made him a sought-after presence on both U.S. and international stages. A proud graduate of The Juilliard School and Baltimore School for the Arts (BSA), his early artistic excellence was nationally recognized when he won the NAACP ACT-SO National Gold Medal in Classical Voice during high school. He honed his talents in Baltimore’s youth theater scene, performing with The Arena Players and Chesapeake Creative Arts Center.

Recently, Dwayne appeared Off-Broadway in the premiere of "That Parenting Musical" as Dad and originated the title role in the world premiere of Mad Hatter: The Musical. Additional premieres include his celebrated turn as Pepper LaBeija in Dorian’s Closet at Rep Stage (dir. Joseph Ritsch), and as Shane Stant in the NYMF production of Tonya & Nancy: The Rock Opera (dir. David Alpert). Other regional highlights include Mitch Mahoney in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at Peterborough Players (dir. Jen Wineman), and Richard Greatham in Hay Fever (dir. Brendon Fox).He brought depth and soul to Sam Cooke in One Night in Miami at City Theater and received a New York Innovative Theatre Award nomination for his performance as Tom Collins in RENT at Gallery Players. Internationally, Dwayne studied in London under Leontyne Hass, performing in Ezra Axelrod’s Songs from the American Motel, Paul Taylor Mills’ One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest as Chief Bromden, and La Bohème at Soho Theatre under Robin Norton-Hale’s Olivier Award-winning direction.

His regional credits include Anselmo in Man of La Mancha (opposite Robert Newman) and roles in the nine-time Barrymore Award-nominated Ragtime at Bristol Riverside Theatre. At Weathervane Playhouse, he showcased extraordinary range in repertory, earning a New Hampshire Theatre Award nomination for Lead Actor in a Musical(Scarecrow, The Wiz) and winning Best Supporting Actor in a Musical (Lun Tha, The King and I).At The John W. Engeman Theater, Dwayne was featured as Jamal in Escape to Margaritaville, Drifter in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Beast in Beauty and the Beast, and Barry Belson in Jersey Boys. He also toured nationally as lead singer and narrator with the WWII-era revue In the Mood, celebrating American big band classics.

Off-Broadway, he lit up the stage as Lil B-Man in Figaro 90210 at The Duke on 42nd Street, earning glowing praise from The New York Times’ Anthony Tommasini, who wrote, “The next time I see a mezzo-soprano singing Cherubino in Mozart’s Figaro, it’s going to be hard to forget the sassy way the light tenor Dwayne A. Washington turned this character into Li’l B-Man, who stole the show.”

In addition to his performance career, Dwayne is emerging as a bold new voice in writing. His first original work, “Influenced,” explores identity, culture, and creative power in the digital age, and is currently entering its development phase. As a multidisciplinary storyteller, he brings the same emotional clarity and precision to the page that he does to the stage.

With four BroadwayWorld Award nominations, a New Hampshire Theatre Award win, and representation by MMV Talent for Film, Commercial, and Stage, Dwayne A. Washington is a boundary-breaking artist charting his own course as both a performer and creator.

Grateful to have the opportunity to pursue this thing called performance and education the the arts, he looks forward to expanding his repertoire and the stage and screens that he will grace. Grateful for all who have poured into his career family, friends, his loving parents, dogs Coltrane and Hemingway all his scene partners and ensemble members the years and his loving partner.

Dwayne as Chris in World premiere of R. Eric Thomas'  Crying on Television photo ©Teresa Castracane Photography

Cast of Songs From Songs from the American Motel