Amber Riley Wins Best Actress In A Musical at Olivier Awards, First African-American Since 1992

Congratulations are in order for Amber Riley, who won Best Actress in a Musical for her role as Effie White in “Dreamgirls,” the character Jennifer Holliday made famous. 

The Olivier Awards, are presented by the Society of London Theatre at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known as the Society of West End Theatre Awards, but they were renamed in honor of the British actor Laurence Olivier in 1984.

“Dreamgirls” originated on Broadway and opened in December 1981 at the Imperial Theatre.The production (starring Sheryl Lee Ralph, Loretta Devine, and Holliday)  won six Tony Awards from 13 nominations, and Holliday won the 1982 Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical.

Riley’s part in “Dreamgirls”Riley’s part in “Dreamgirls” began in November 2016 and will wrap in October 2017 at The Savoy Theatre in London. Effie White is the same role that earned Jennifer Hudson her Oscar in 2006.

Riley is the first African-American to win in this category since 1992, the first was Wilhelmenia Fernandez, who is from Philadelphia. Fernandez won for her role as Carmen Jones in ‘Carmen.”

You can see the video of Riley after winning her award below, as well as hear her belt out the iconic “And I Am Telling You.”