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Thank You to Anthony Ramos and Jo Anne Worley for Speaking at AMDA's 2016 Spring Commencements!

May 23, 2016 - Alumni, Announcements, Educational Advice

AMDA Would Like To Thank Anthony Ramos and Jo Anne Worley for Speaking at AMDA's 2016 Spring Commencements! 


(Originally published May 23rd, 2016)

As the spring term draws to a close, AMDA would like to congratulate our soon-to-be graduates entering the professional world! To honor our students’ accomplishments and time at AMDA, we are pleased to announce the keynote speakers for AMDA’s 2016 Spring Graduation Ceremonies:

Grammy-winning actor Anthony Ramos (John Laurens/Philip Hamilton in Broadway’s Hamilton) will speak at AMDA New York’s commencement on Saturday, May 28. Meanwhile, acclaimed actor Jo Anne Worley (Billy Barnes People, Hello Dolly!, “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In”) will address graduates at AMDA Los Angeles on Saturday, June 4.

These incredible alumni were selected for the dedication, passion, and humility they bring to their professional careers, qualities which AMDA aims to instill in every student stepping foot onto our campuses. We look forward to the wisdom and insight they will offer this semester’s dedicated group of aspiring performers!

Spring 2016 AMDA Commencement Speakers

Anthony Ramos is currently making his Broadway debut in the smash hit musical Hamilton, originating the dual roles of John Laurens and Philip Hamilton. He has been with the show since the first workshop, performing before countless luminaries including President Barack Obama. Anthony won a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, and was honored in March with a Proclamation from the City Council at New York's City Hall. Hamilton has become a cultural and artistic phenomenon around the world and recently made history garnering 16 Tony Award nominations.

Anthony plays a lead role in the Killer Films feature White Girl, which premiered at Sundance and will be in theatres this fall. His television appearances include NBC's “Law & Order: SVU” and the TV Land series “Younger.” He was featured in Lin-Manuel Miranda's 21 Chump Street, a short musical for public radio's This American Life which was performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

He has had the honor of performing the national anthem at Citi Field for the Mets, the Barclays Center for the Brooklyn Nets, and Yankee Stadium for the New York City Soccer League. Currently, Anthony is shooting the feature film Patti Cake$ as well as writing and recording original music while continuing his work in Hamilton. He hails from Bushwick, Brooklyn and is a proud graduate of the American Musical and Dramatic Academy.

CLASSY, SASSY AND UNDENIABLY BRASSY: From television and the silver screen to the boards of Broadway, JoAnne Worley is instantly recognized for her raucous laugh, trademark twirl of pearls or pointed digit embedded in her cheek.

Her first major break was the musical revue Billy Barnes People in Los Angeles, then on Broadway. The New York Times presciently wrote: “Worley has an earthy style that suggests she could be a rowdy comedienne.”

Worley was soon cast as Carol Channing’s standby in the original Broadway production of Hello, Dolly!, then in The MAD Show, a revue based on the satire magazine. TV producer and host Merv Griffin discovered her Greenwich Village nightclub act and made her a primary guest star on his show. These appearances led to her casting in the famous original lineup of “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In.”

After “Laugh-In,” Worley continued working in movies, theatre, and as a frequent guest on TV comedies, dramas, variety and game shows. She also gained notoriety for her work as a voice actor in cartoons, video games and animated features, including her role as the Wardrobe in Disney’s Academy Award-winning Beauty and the Beast.

Worley’s regional theatre credits include Gypsy, Annie Get Your Gun, Hello Dolly!, Anything Goes, and Once Upon A Mattress. She returned to Broadway to appear in revivals of On the Twentieth Century, Grease and Follies as well as The Drowsy Chaperone at the Marquis Theatre. In 2008, she took over the role of Madame Morrible in the L.A. cast of Wicked.

Worley continues to perform today in several acting circuits and in her one-woman show, “KEEP LAUGHIN.” She is also very active in the lecture circuit and proudly serves as president of the nonprofit Actors and Others for Animals.