“I’ll give you one hint: Thomas Jefferson’s coming home.”
These words from Performing and Media Arts Department Chair Dr. Samantha Sheppard left the audience buzzing with excitement at the department's Projects and Participation Kick-off for Fall 2024. Could it really be true? Was Daveed Diggs, the Tony Award-winning actor who originated the roles of the Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in Hamilton, coming to Cornell?
On Sept. 25, that excitement became reality when Diggs arrived on campus as the 2024 Heermans-McCalmon Distinguished Guest Artist. Invited by Associate Professor of PMA Theo Black, Diggs, who has built an illustrious career in film and music, had fans clamoring for seats in the Kiplinger Theatre for his highly anticipated Q&A session with Dr. Sheppard.
While the evening Q&A was the most publicized part of his visit, Diggs also imparted invaluable insights to PMA students during an afternoon masterclass focused on adaptation, which included a sneak peek of Diggs’ latest screenplay, an adaptation of Percival Everett’s Pulitzer-finalist novel Telephone. In this intimate session, student performers were challenged to bring fresh perspectives to existing works, creating innovative theatrical adaptations.
Emily Rubinstein ’25, Ava Alvarez ’27, Audrey Pinard ’25, Davis Ouriel ’25 and I, led by Jack McManus ’25, were selected to perform a monologue from Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida, a work Diggs and Black had previously performed together at the Pacific Repertory Theatre.
I spent the entire week before Diggs’ arrival fangirling. Growing up in South Korea, my access to American theater was limited to YouTube “slime tutorials” (if you know, you know) and New York Times reviews, which mainly featured white actors. That changed when Hamilton was released on Disney+ in July 2020. For the first time, I saw actors of color leading the stage — a rarity in an industry historically dominated by white performers. At the time, the Asian American Performers Action Coalition reported that nearly 60 percent of roles on New York City stages in the 2018-19 season were played by white actors. This lack of diversity made me question my own dreams of becoming a theater artist. But Diggs’ portrayal of Jefferson, with his vibrancy and pure enjoyment of the stage, reignited my passion.
Diggs’ multifaceted career resonated with my 16-year-old self. Not only did he shine in Hamilton, but he also pursued experimental theater, starred in the Snowpiercer TV series, and made music with his hip-hop group, ‘clipping.’. His versatility showed me that a multi-hyphenate career was possible. Inspired by his journey, I set off to pursue an arts education in the U.S. at Interlochen Arts Academy. Now, standing in front of Diggs and shaking his hand, I could not help but feel starstruck. It was a full-circle moment for me — a dream ignited by his performance, now fueled by his mentorship.
The masterclass began with a theatrical adaptation of Billy Joel’s song “Vienna,” performed by Emily Pugh ’25, Justin Lee ’25, and Jessica Meng ’26. The trio embodied the song’s central theme of time, with Pugh portraying a young, ambitious student frantically grappling with the realization that time is slipping away. Lee played the role of a wise, older man, observing as Pugh’s character struggled against the physical embodiment of time, portrayed by Meng, who circled around the two human figures. Recognizing the unsustainable pace of Pugh’s character, Lee intervened, notably delivering Joel’s famous line: “You can’t be everything you wanna be before your time.”
As the performance concluded, Diggs broke the silence after a contemplative pause.
“Wow. That was brilliant,” Diggs said. He proceeded to request that the trio run through the performance again, with the feedback of playing with larger motions to intensify Pugh’s character’s distress and having Lee’s character move with an air of ease.
Following the trio, duo Tess Lovell ’25 and Wulfgar Ramsey ’24 initiated a swift change in set to perform their adaption of David Bowie’s song “Space Oddity.” The duo created an elaborate world in which they are two married submarine explorers facing an underwater catastrophe, all while being on a livestream watched by their son Tom. As the two explorers sink deeper into the ocean and closer to their demise, they share a heartfelt moment of grieving.
Diggs, who recently became a father, became quite emotional during the performance and took time to wipe away his tears before providing the duo with feedback. He requested that the two students focus on the delivery of lines to each other, eliminating the distraction of props and allowing them to connect with the dialogue.
The masterclass then shifted as students were tasked with staging a scene from Diggs’ latest screenplay. Based on Percival Everett’s Telephone, the screenplay follows a dissatisfied geologist and paleobiologist, who returns home from a field trip to find his daughter suffering from mysterious memory and vision issues. Unable to help his daughter, he leaves home after discovering a cryptic note in his jacket, hoping to be able to help another in the face of his own helplessness at home.
It was amazing to witness Diggs explain his creative vision, offer context for the project and reveal the project’s not officially announced, star-studded cast. Three students stepped up last minute to read for the roles, and did a remarkable job finding set pieces and bringing the family’s dynamic to life.
“I missed theater,” Diggs remarked afterwards. He further elaborated on how he feels that the film industry sometimes stifles an actor’s ability to experiment due to limited takes and strict direction.
As the masterclass ended, students gathered around Diggs, eager to chat with him. It was evident that Diggs played a pivotal role in many of our teenage years, and the masterclass was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“[The students] absolutely exceeded my already high expectations, by a staggering magnitude,” Black said in his final comments to those who performed in the masterclass. “Daveed was so stoked to engage with [them]. With immense thanks, and the encouragement to journal [their] experience while still fresh and converse with each other about the aspects of craft he engaged with each project.”
Katie Kim is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at sk2673@cornell.edu.
