You may not recognize Marsha Stephanie Blake’s name, but you’ll almost certainly recognize her face from the Netflix miniseries, When They See Us. In the series, Marsha portrayed Linda McCray, the mother of Antron McCray who was one of the teens wrongfully imprisoned for the assault and rape of a jogger in Central Park. Immediately after its release, When They See Us became one of Netflix’s most talked about released. Many of the series’ cast members have gotten more attention since When They See Us first aired, and Marsha Stephanie Blake is one of them. Here are 10 things you didn’t know about Marsha Stephanie Blake.
1. She Is Also A Theater Actress
On top of appearing in films and TV shows, Marsha Stephanie Blake also has lots of experience acting in stage productions. In fact, she got her start in theater and has continued to take theater roles throughout her career. She’s starred as Lady Macbeth in a 2016 production of Shakespeare’s Macbeth at The Old Globe in San Diego.
2. She And A When They See Us Cast Member Worked Together On Another Show
Marsha Stephanie Blake was reuinted with her When They See Us co-star, Asante Blackk when the two joined the cast of This Is Us for season 4. This time, however, the two were cast as mother and son with Blake portraying Kelly Hodge, a tough mother who would do anything for her son, Malik (Blackk). Although her role in This Is Us was small during the most recent season, there’s a chance her character could play a bigger part down the line.
3. She Was Surprised By Her Emmy Nomination
Marsha Stephanie Blake earned an Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for her role in When They See Us. Although many thought the nomination was well deserved, Blake was still shocked when she heard the news. Blake told Gold Derby that she thought Ava Duvernay made a mistake when she informed her of the nomination. Blake joked, “I was like ‘oh no she made a mistake and she’s going to realize she made a mistake and it’s going to be so mortifying”.
4. She Planned On Becoming A Doctor
Unlike many successful stars, Marsha Stephanie Blake had no intentions of being an actress. She was a pre-med student at Dartmouth who was planning on a career in medicine. However, she “fell” into acting after a friend asked her to join the school’s production of “Blues for Mr. Charlie” because they needed more black people. Blake ultimately caught the acting bug and went on to become the head of the Black Underground Theater Association at Dartmouth.
5. When They See Us Wasn’t Her First Netflix Series
By the time Marsha appeared in When They See Us, she had already worked with Netflix. Blake landed a role on the third season of the popular Netflix series, Orange Is the New Black. On the show, Blake played Berdie Rogers, a counselor at Litchfield Penitentiary.
6. She’s Already Figured Out Her Dream Role
Marsha Stephanie Blake is grateful for every opportunity she’s been given throughout her career, but she has yet to land what she considers her dream role. Blake would love the chance to play her favorite on screen mom, Edina Monsoon, from The BBC series, Absolutely Fabulous. As a self proclaimed Anglophile, Blake has an extra special place in her heart for all things British.
7. She Continued Acting During Her Pregnancies
Being pregnant sometimes results in actresses choosing to take a break. However, that wasn’t the case for Marsha Stephanie Blake. She continued to act during both of her pregnancies. She worked up until 4 months into her first pregnancy and all the way up to the 8th month of her second pregnancy. Although working while pregnant can present some extra challenges, Marsha had a fun each time.
8. She Hates Making Dinner
Most people just assume that mothers enjoy making dinner for their family. But Marsha Stephanie Blake strongly dislikes this part of motherhood. When asked about her favorite meal to cook, Marsha said, “Preparing dinner is probably my second least favorite thing about being a mom. I haaaaaaaaaate it. You know, maybe it’s my first least favorite thing…I hate trying to guess what other people will eat, I hate making the food, I hate those same people deciding halfway through my making the food that it is suddenly the one thing they dislike most in the world. ”
9. She Still Gets Starstruck
If you thought being famous meant you were automatically immune to having fan moments around other stars, you were wrong. Despite having been in the business for nearly two decades, Marsha Stephanie Blake still gets starstruck when she sees people she has always looked up. However, she doesn’t let those moments last long and is quick to return to business once the initial shock wears off.
10. Tonya Pinkins Is Her Favorite Person To Work With
Marsha Stephanie Blake has had the pleasure of working with lots of talented people throughout her career. Out of everyone she’s worked with, she says that Tonya Pinkins is her favorite co-worker. The two worked together on the play, Hurt Village. Pinkins is best-known for her role as Livia Frye on the soap opera All My Children.
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