Kevin Mambo - Biography, Career and Movies

Fortune Samuel | June 12, 2024 | Biography | No Comments

Kevin Mambo is a Zimbabwean-Canadian actor and musician. He is widely recognized for his portrayal of Marcus Williams on the CBS daytime serial "Guiding Light," a role that earned him two Daytime Emmy Awards.

52-year old Mambo is also celebrated for his performance as Fela Anikulapo-Kuti in the Broadway production of the musical "Fela!" His talent in both acting and music has made him a prominent figure in the entertainment industry.

Early Life and Education

Kevin Mambo was born (June 29, 1972) in Harare, Zimbabwe, and grew up in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. As a child, he was deeply involved in music, singing in the church choir and learning to play several instruments: piano at age 8, saxophone at age 10, and guitar at age 19.

Mambo attended Aden Bowman Collegiate in Saskatoon and later Brentwood College School in Mill Bay, British Columbia. He went on to study Political Science and African History at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, where he also took classes at the McGill Jazz Conservatory. Kevin then transferred to the University of Southern California, where he earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Mambo's early musical and educational experiences laid a strong foundation for his later success in acting and music.

Acting Career

Kevin Mambo has a rich and varied acting career, spanning theater, television, and film. In 2015, he appeared in the Billie Holiday Theatre production of Jackie Alexander's Brothers from the Bottom alongside Wendell Pierce. In 2014, he starred as Barret Rude Jr. in the musical The Fortress of Solitude, which premiered at the Dallas Theater Center and The Public Theater in New York. This musical is based on Jonathan Lethem's novel of the same name.

Mambo's other notable theater roles include playing Mafala in the first National Tour of The Book of Mormon (2012-2013) and the Chancellor in Danai Gurira's The Convert, directed by Emily Mann (2011-2012). He also portrayed Fela Anikulapo-Kuti in the Broadway production of the musical Fela! at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre.

Off-Broadway, Mambo has appeared in several acclaimed productions, including Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Ruined at the Manhattan Theatre Club and the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Hoodoo Love at the Cherry Lane Theatre, Once Around the Sun at the Zipper Factory Theater, and Fela Is a Weapon at the Shrine Theater.

In film and television, Mambo's credits include roles in Cadillac Records, Nina, and Mistresses. His extensive television work features appearances on Guiding Light (where he won two Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series), One Life to Live, Soul Food, Any Day Now, Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Deadline, Law & Order: Trial by Jury, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Spin City, Family Matters, Freshman Dorm, The Firing Squad, and One of Us Tripped.