Nicco Annan | |
---|---|
Born |
Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
Education | State University of New York, Purchase ( BFA) |
Occupation(s) | Actor dancer choreographer |
Years active | 1998–present |
Known for | P-Valley |
Nicco Annan is an American actor, dancer, and choreographer. He is best known for his portrayal of Uncle Clifford on the Starz drama series P-Valley, an adaptation of the Katori Hall play Pussy Valley, in which Annan originated the role. [1]
Annan was raised on the Westside of Detroit, Michigan. [2] His mother is African American and was raised in the south, and his father is Ghanaian. [3] He wanted to pursue acting from a young age and studied improv and theater from youth. [4] When he was 17 he joined a dance troupe. [5] Annan received his diploma from Cass Technical High School [6] and studied theater at State University of New York-Purchase, where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. [3]
After college, Annan was hired as the choreographer in residence at the Yale School of Drama. [3] He also performed in theater productions on and off-Broadway. He moved to Los Angeles in 2014 to pursue television acting. [7] [3] Annan has appeared in Claws, Shameless, This is Us, and Snowfall. [8] [7] [3] He is also the choreographer for the series All American. [7]
In 2009, Annan's friend recommended him for a role in Pussy Valley, a play by Katori Hall centered on a strip club in the Mississippi Delta. Annan auditioned for and was cast as Uncle Clifford, the club's non-binary owner. [2] He developed a detailed backstory for the character and portrayed the role in several smaller runs as well as the full production at Mixed Blood Theatre in 2015. [2]
When the play was ordered for a television adaptation by Starz, Annan again auditioned for the role of Uncle Clifford and was re-cast. [2] The series, P-Valley, premiered in 2020 and Annan received critical acclaim for his season one performance. [5] He was named to THR's list of Best TV Performances of 2020 and received nominations from the NAACP Image Awards and the Independent Spirit Awards. [8]
Annan played a lead role in Hall's play The Hot Wing King, which premiered March 2020 off-Broadway. [9] [10]
He appeared as a guest judge on season 2 of Legendary. [11]
Annan is openly gay. [12]