Matthew Dickens
Born
Matthew Dickens

(1961-10-19)October 19, 1961
France
DiedJanuary 8, 2013(2013-01-08) (aged 51)
WebsitePosthope website

Matthew Dickens (October 19, 1961 – January 8, 2013) was a writer, producer and director.[1]

Early life

Matthew Dickens was born in an ambulance on a highway on the outskirts of Nancy, France. Matthew's early training as an actor began at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in DC, mentored by the late founder, director/choreographer/educator Mike Malone, who he later joined as a company member of the Equity Theater Company at Karamu House in Cleveland, Ohio.[2] Other notable teachers were Kenneth Daugherty (acting), Glenda Dickerson (acting), Donal Leace (theater history), Tony Booker (voice), and Quay Barnes Truitt (costumes and make-up)

Matthew's early training as a dancer included classes at The School of the Cleveland Ballet. In New York, he had a short stay at The Ailey School and studied with David Howard, Finis Jhung, and Frank Hatchett. While performing in New York, he met Debbie Allen. The two went on to work together on numerous projects, including A Different World, Fame, Polly, Carrie, and The Academy Awards.

Films

Year Title Role Notes
1990 Polly Dancer Television Film[2]
1990 Polly: Comin’ Home! Onlooker #1 Television Film[2]
2005 Confessions of an Action Star Agent #2 Released January 20, 2009[2]
2005 Their Eyes Were Watching God Principal Dancer Released March 5, 2005[2]
2005 Rent Bohemian [2]
2006 Dreamgirls Jimmy's Band [2]
Year Title Position Notes
2004 The Aviator Choreographer [2]
2005 Sailing for Madagascar Choreographer [2]
2011 Leave It On The Floor Dance Production Supervisor [3]
2011 The War Zone 3D Writer, Producer, Director

Television

TV appearances include "Fame," guest starring roles on "A Different World", "Quantum Leap," and several commercials.[4] In 1991 Matthew performed in the ABC special “American Dance Honors”, which received an American Emmy Award nomination for the choreography.[5] Matthew appeared on The Debbie Allen Special in 1989 which was nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys and co-starred in the opening number of the 63rd Academy Awards with Jasmine Guy and Steve LaChance.[6]

Year Title Role Notes
1990 In Living Color Himself [2]
1991 63rd Academy Awards Performer [2]
1992 Fame Television series[2]
1992 A Different World Guest Star [2]
1993 The Arsenio Hall Show Himself [2]
2000 The West Wing Man #3 [2]
2003 The Wayne Brady Show Himself [2]
Year Title Position Notes
2000 Euro 2000 Choreographer
2002 Het Nationale Huwelijksfeest Choreographer The Wedding Event for Prins Willem and Maxima of Argentina Amsterdam Arena
2004 NFL Kickoff Assistant Choreographer
2004 NFL Thanksgiving Day Assistant Choreographer
2005 ESPY Awards Assistant Choreographer
2008 The Mole [2]
2009 I Am... Yours Writer Aired November 26, 2009 on ABC[2]

Stage

Matthew was in the original Broadway cast of Sunset Boulevard starring Glenn Close (and later with Betty Buckley and Elaine Paige) having initially appeared in the original Los Angeles production. Matthew returned to the Broadway company of Miss Saigon directly from the Netherlands production, where he played the role of John entirely in Dutch.[7] Other Broadway credits include playing both Chris and John (at different times) in Miss Saigon, C.C. White in Dreamgirls and Stephen King's Carrie. He also co-starred in the original Australian cast of Smokey Joe's Cafe.[4]

Broadway

Year Title Role Notes
1987 Dreamgirls Understudy CC White Ambassador Theatre[8]
1988 Carrie Matthew, Tommy Virginia Theatre[8]
1991-2001 Miss Saigon Chris, John Broadway Theatre[8]
1994-1997 Sunset Boulevard Artie Green, Understudy Joe Gillis Minskoff Theatre[8]

Other Theater

Year Title Role/Position Notes
1991 & 1992 Phylicia Rashad & Co Featured Performer Opening Act for Bill Cosby Las Vegas Hilton
1996 Smokey Joe's Café (Australia)
1997 nl:Miss Saigon (Netherlands) John Fortis Circustheater
1999 The Royal Netherlands Air Force Orchestra Director, Choreographer, Performer
2002 Pearl Ringmaster/Dr. Drewdy Geffen Playhouse[9] Kennedy Center[10] NAACP Image Award Nomination
2003 A Merry Mancini Christmas Associate Director Walt Disney Concert Hall December 23, 2003
2005 Stephen Sondheim's 75th Ensemble Hollywood Bowl July 8, 2005

Death

Matthew died of prostate cancer on January 8, 2013.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Matthew Dickens loses his battle with cancer". Nohoartsdistrict.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-15. Retrieved 2013-02-23.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 "Internet Movie Database". IMDb. Retrieved 2011-06-15.
  3. ↑ Matthew Dickens at IMDb
  4. 1 2 "Broadway Review".
  5. ↑ Lester Wilson Archived 2012-09-10 at archive.today
  6. ↑ Debbie Allen Special
  7. ↑ Miss Saigon (Dutch)
  8. 1 2 3 4 Matthew Dickens at the Internet Broadway Database
  9. ↑ Geffen Playhouse Press Release
  10. ↑ Variety Reviews
  11. ↑ PostHope - Matthew Dickens
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