Golden Globe-winning actress Taraji P. Henson shares her musical chops with the world by portraying performer Shug Avery in the musical adaptation of The Color Purple, directed by Blitz Bazawule. The role has earned her a SAG Award nomination in the category of Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. Her range as an actress is vast, as evidenced by her starring turn as matriarch Cookie Lyon in the hip-hop family drama series Empire (for which she won the Golden Globe in 2016). She also received acclaim for her role as real-life mathematician Katerine Johnson in the 2016 film Hidden Figures, 2005’s Hustle and Flow, and 2008’s The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (to name a few).
Henson tells The Treatment about avoiding musical theater prior to making The Color Purple, despite years of training in the craft. She also talks about why having a Black director at the helm of the newest version of Purple was so meaningful and speaks on the transformative power of fear in her work.