Rosalyn Coleman Williams

Early life

Rosalyn Coleman-Williams was born July 20 to educators Don and Madeleine Coleman in Ann Arbor Michigan. There she attended the Black Panther Day Care Program, where field trips and group projects with the program sparked her interest in acting.

Rosalyn relocated to Washington DC with her family at the age of ten, and attended Duke Ellington School of the Arts. Rosalyn auditioned and was accepted to the theatre program, but year after year found herself working as an usher rather than performing roles onstage. She was not deterred from acting, however and found outlets for acting in venues like the Arts Recognition and Talent Search (ARTS), a scholarship program for artistic high school students which she attended with Tony Award winning actress and Oscar Nominee Viola Davis.

Rosalyn attended Howard University for college, where she majored in Drama and also participated in DIVA, the society for Divine Intelligent Versatile Artist. Rosalyn still remains close personal friends with Actress Harriet D Foy who created the organization. Rosalyn went on to graduate Cum Laude with a BFA in Theatre.

After Howard, Rosalyn studied with Michael Khan. It was during this time that she applied to and was accepted into the Yale School of Drama Acting Program. While at Yale Rosalyn performed in The Piano Lesson by playwright-in-residence August Wilson, starring alongside actor Samuel L. Jackson. Lloyd Richards was director and chair of the acting program. Rosalyn originated the role of RUBY in Seven Guitars, also written by August Wilson and directed by Lloyd Richards (by August Wilson). Upon graduating with her MFA from Yale Drama, she received the prestigious Carol Dye Award, the only award given for acting.

Stage

Rosalyn's Broadway stage credits include Radio Golf, Seven Guitars, The Piano Lesson, Mule Bone, and The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant. Off-Broadway she starred in the world premieres of Whose Family Values and Carson McCullers (Historically Inaccurate) by Sarah Schulman at Playwright's Horizons/The Women's Project. Other notable New York stage credits include the critically acclaimed Breath, Boom directed by Marion McClinton at Playwright's Horizons, The Old Settler at Primary Stages, Zooman and the Sign at the Signature Theater. She is a lifetime member of the Actors Studio. Rosalyn has written and performed one-person shows at Manhattan Class Company, Shooting Gallery and Baby Jupiter among others.

Film and television

Rosalyn has appeared in a number of feature films including Vanilla Sky, Brown Sugar (2002 film) and Music of the Heart. More recent credits include Brooklyn’s Finest starring Ethan Hawke and Don Cheadle, Frankie and Alice starring Halle Berry, and It's Kind of a Funny Story starring Emma Roberts and Viola Davis. Rosalyn is the lead in the independent film Indelible, which is currently in production slated for a 2012 release. Among Rosalyn’s many television credits are recurring/guest roles on Kidnapped (NBC), D.C. (WB), Oz (TV series) (HBO), Mercy (NBC), Nurse Jackie (Showtime), New Amsterdam (Fox), and several appearances on Law & Order: SVU and Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

Red Wall Productions

In 2001 Rosalyn Coleman married writer/director/producer Craig T Williams. In 2002 Rosalyn and Craig formed Red Wall Productions, a film production company. Through Red Wall they have created and directed award-winning short films, industrial videos, music concerts, promotional videos, educational videos and actor demo reels. At Red Wall Productions, Rosalyn directed the award winning short film Allergic to Nuts, which written by her husband and partner Craig T. Williams. Allergic to Nuts has been nationally aired for television and screened in over 50 film festivals in the US and around the world. She was named “Emerging Filmmaker 2008” at the Cine Noir Film Festival in Wilmington, North Carolina. Her latest directorial projects, the short films BFF (Best Friends Forever), Hurts Like Love (2010), and The Truth About Beauty and Blogs (2010), are currently on the festival circuit. Red Wall Productions created and directed the re-enactment portion of the groundbreaking documentary Black Sorority Project. August Wilson’s 20th Century, another Red Wall Productions documentary, is currently in post-production.

Teaching

Under the umbrella of Red Wall Productions, Rosalyn developed Roz Acting Coach and established herself as one of the most sought after audition coaches in New York City. In 2011 Rosalyn received Backstage's Reader's Choice Award for Favorite On-Camera Teacher. She was selected by Margie Haber to be the East Coast Representative of Margie Haber’s studios. Rosalyn has taught at The Actors Center, American Conservatory Theatre MFA Acting Program, Actors Connection, Howard University and Duke Ellington School of the Arts, and conducted acting workshops at film festivals around the country. Rosalyn also served as on-set acting coach for the second season of HBO’s In Treatment.

Personal life

Rosalyn and husband Craig Williams reside in Manhattan with their son.