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Kennedy J.L. Jopson

@kennedyjopson

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Texas Made | London based | Broadway bound
Actor | Writer l Dramaturg
Dramaturgy Fellow @wantedmusical 🤠
Rep 🎭: @wintersons_

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American (with African, Polish & Dutch origins) “I didn’t meet my biological Father, or even know what he looked like until I found him at the age of 25. My Mom is a White woman who had 4 Black biracial children, and in many ways was ostracized by her family and society. From a young age, my Mother told me my biological Father didn’t want his family to know he had a baby with a White woman. She married my Step-Dad, who is Black, when I was 5. They tried their best to create a cohesive family unit and encouraged us to tell people he was our biological Father to avoid the social stigma of us each having different Fathers. My Step-Dad abused my older brothers and I, which caused a huge rift in our immediate family. My maternal grandparents’ house was a haven for us growing up. They supported us in times of need and never made us feel unloved or racially different.

I learned my paternal Black relatives are originally from Louisiana, where I coincidentally spent many summers. I plan to visit New Orleans in the next year or so and hope to find out more information about my ancestry. I’m not sure I could say I’m ‘closer’ to one part of my culture than the other because I’m from the South, Dallas Texas. In that region of the U.S., you may be of a different race, but we’re all culturally Southerners. I grew up in what I guess would be considered economically as lower-middle-class, turned middle-class home with an interracial family, so social justice issues have always been apparent and important to me.

We all live in multitudes. Don’t allow anyone to tell you who you are or make your appearance the topic of every conversation; it dulls the mind and makes for shallow connections. When you are lonely, lean on your passions. When you’re lost, remember your values and search for inspiration. In recent years, I’ve admired artist and Black feminist Lorraine O’Grady. She’s done so much in her lifetime and didn’t even become a visual artist until her 40s. Her journey is inspiring, and I resonate with the critical and compassionate lens through which she examines the world.

Check out my performance via @greenwichtheatre

Read more at www.mixedracefaces.com taken in London, United Kingdom by @kennedyjopson

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a year ago

March 23, 2026 is a night I will never forget 💙✨

I had the honor of performing my commissioned original writing as a curtain raiser for the late Chadwick Boseman’s acclaimed play Deep Azure, directed by @tristanfaiduenu at Shakespeare’s Globe, London 🙌🥹🦋

Even more special — this was the FIRST EVER Black Out Night at the venue. To be a small part of such a powerful and historic moment in theatre, alongside the incredible @laragraceilori means the world to me.

My piece was titled:
“Shakespeare IS a Black Woman… Say Her Name!”
I knew I had to bring something that the space needed to hear.

At the start of this year, I wrote down my wishes, burned them, and released them to the universe. One of them was to perform at Shakespeare’s Globe… and just 3 months later, I was on that stage.

Grateful doesn’t even begin to cover it 🥹🙌🙏

Thank you to Tristan, the Deep Azure cast, and every person supporting me and helping turn my dreams into reality.

Let’s see what else this year has in store ✨ by @kennedyjopson

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7 months ago

My Days - The Notebook Musical

Allie Hamilton is a head strong character (Kennedy by definition means “helmeted head”🤠) She’s an opinionated young woman, an artist, a bit of a rebel, and indecisive. In her youth, she’s unsure if she can have what she truly wants and live the life she wants to live. As she ages, she loses parts of her self through her fragmented and dissolving memory.

The song takes you on a journey of her picking up the pieces, overcoming what ties her down, and taking control of her life. Finding her voice and using it.

The beautiful message of the Notebook is that we can and will do this again and again in our lives.
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#London #musicaltheatre #musicaltheater #WestEnd #TheNotebook #TheNotebookMusical #CrazyCoqs #jazzSinger taken in Crazy Coqs by @kennedyjopson

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2 years ago

Indulge me for a moment while I lip sync the wrong verse out of time yet somehow on beat 😂🗽💛

📸: ms.rainamusic
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#BrooklynBridge #NewYork #ICameHereToWork #Theatre #London taken in New York, New York by @kennedyjopson

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a month ago

This Texas dadblamed female bandit is proud to say: I am WANTED on BROADWAY 🎭 🤠🙌🥹💛

Through Alicia Keys’ Kaleidoscope Dreams Foundation, I have been selected as the Script & Dramaturgy Fellow supporting book writer and lyricist Angelica Chéri on the new Broadway musical WANTED opening Nov 8 2026.

Based on a remarkable true story, WANTED follows two Black biracial sisters in 1893 Texas who pass as white and become outlaws to eradicate their mother’s debt and reclaim the land that is rightfully theirs.

This opportunity feels serendipitous and this story feels like heritage. As a Black biracial woman from Texas who knows what it’s like to seek new pastures in search of building a life and enriching my spirit, I couldn’t imagine a story more meaningful to return home for.

I’m even more thrilled to be working with the kindest, most loving, talented and inspiring group of people. I can’t wait to help bring this story to audiences, and I couldn’t ask for a more fitting homecoming and beginning to my Broadway journey.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me in any capacity along the way. I’ll be documenting this buck-wild ride as it unfolds.

Let’s git ’er done. 🤠🙌🐎

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#WANTED #TexasHistory #BlackHistory #Broadway #NewMusical taken in James Earl Jones Theatre by @kennedyjopson

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a month ago

The Rise Of Josephine Baker at Riverside Studios’ Bitesized Festival has closed but this show will certainly go on to achieve GREAT things!

Working with incredible writing is always an absolute godsend in theatre and I’m so grateful to @shanigray_ for inviting me to be a part of this story.

I have learned so much working under the effortlessly chic and tremendously knowledgeable @jordimcarter

And had the privilege and pleasure of co-directing phenomenal actors @shanigray_ @philipbayntun @cldoro @robdedomenici

This was a beautiful team of people to collaborate with and I’m so proud of this production.

Shoutout to our costume designer @candacegraydesigns who made this show look FABULOUS with her own designs! 🤯

Atage manager @iam_maureen__ who held us all together 🫂✨🙌

And producer @cynthchika whose work promoting the show helped us sell out our entire run leading the theatre to add additional seats to accommodate Josephine popular demand 🥳
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#theriseofjosephinebaker #riversidestudios taken in London, United Kingdom by @kennedyjopson

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2 months ago

Step into my office… lately, I’ve been living it up on top 😏💐🍂💚🥂✨

📸: @b.clarencephotography
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#londonheadshots #mixedraceactor #hadestown #jazzsinger #bluessinger taken in London, United Kingdom by @kennedyjopson

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2 months ago

Meet the creative team (part 1) behind The Rise of Josephine Baker @riversidestudioslondon Aug 25-29 ✨

Tickets available to book now 🎟️

Creatives
Writer & Producer @shanigray_
Director @jordimcarter
Assistant director @kennedyjopson
Dramaturg @somebodyjones_
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#josephinebaker #londontheatre #londonjazz #blackcreative #1920stheme taken in Riverside Studios by @kennedyjopson

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2 months ago

THE RISE OF JOSEPHINE BAKER

By Shani Gray
Directed by Jordi M. Carter

Inspired by the extraordinary life of Josephine Baker, The Rise of Josephine Baker follows the African American performer as she escapes segregation-era America to become an international sensation.

Arriving in 1920s Paris during the dazzling Jazz Age, she prepares for her breakthrough in La Revue Nègre, a sensational production which ignited controversy and propelled her to fame across Europe.

Marking 100 years since her iconic Banana Skirt Dance, the show revisits a performer both celebrated and contested, prompting reflections on race and desire.

With a colourful cast of characters shaping her image and career, from artist Paul Colin to lover Pepito Abatino and theatre producer André Daven, Josephine embarks on a journey to find success on her own terms.

Rooted in archival research from the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts (@nypl @nypl_lpa), The Rise of Josephine Baker captures life at the threshold of international stardom during the era of Le Tumulte Noir (The Black Craze).

Presented by Gray Stripe Productions.

CAST
Shani Gray (@shanigray_) as Josephine Baker
Christoph L. Dorocant (@cldoro) as Paul Colin
Robert De Domenici (@robdedomenici) as Pepito Abatino & Ensemble
Philip Bayntun (@philipbayntun) as André Daven & Ensemble

PLAYING
Aug 25, 27–29
@riversidestudioslondon

🌍 taken in Riverside Studios by @kennedyjopson

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3 months ago

In honor of assemblage pioneer and contemporary master artist BETYE SAAR’s recent passing and her lifelong commitment to exploring ancestry, mysticism, and social justice; this month’s read is Passing (1929) by Nella Larsen, one of my favorite novels that I return to time and time again. At fewer than 200 pages, it’s a deceptively slim book that holds remarkable emotional and intellectual depth.

The novel follows Irene Redfield and Clare Kendry, two childhood friends who reunite in 1920s Harlem after years apart. Both women are light-skinned enough to pass as white, but they have made radically different choices. Irene passes only when it is convenient, while Clare has built an entirely new life as a white woman, concealing her Black identity even from her racist husband.

Presented through the most beautiful prose you will ever encounter, Larsen navigates their uneasy friendship and nuanced love to explore identity not as something fixed, but as something performed, negotiated, and constantly shaped by the expectations of others. The novel asks difficult questions about belonging, safety, desire, and what it costs to move between worlds.

Some of my favorite aspects of this story is Larsen’s intuition and ability to paint such powerful emotional worlds for each character. I think it’s important to acknowledge passing not as a phenotype but as a historical methodology and act of survival and metaphorical death. Through examining the history of racial passing we better understand the nuances of identity and how resilience is a form of creativity as well as resistance. Passing (1929) continues to challenge us to consider not only who is allowed to belong, but who gets to define identity in the first place.

✨ Join us for our next read!

📚 Next Book: The Souls Of Mixed Folk by Michele Elam

Works of art shown:
Keep for Old Memiors, 1976
A Loss of Innocence, 1998
Sketchbook pages for Blend and Cream, 2001
Gris Gris Guardian, 1990–93
Tea Dancer Turns Thirty-Nine, 1977–78
I’ll Bend But I Will Not Break, 1998
When Tears Are Not Enough, 2016
Black Girl’s Window, 1968
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#mixedrace #bookclub #BetyeSaar #nellalarsen by @kennedyjopson

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3 months ago

This has been a hot mess summer but also so damn good 🤠🔥 I’ve tried new things, I’m staying creative, Im surrounded by good people, and good things are coming my way.

Good News, I’m Alive and Evolving ☀️🦋✨ taken in London, United Kingdom by @kennedyjopson

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3 months ago

Happy Pride 🌈✨💃💛🦋 taken in London, United Kingdom by @kennedyjopson

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3 months ago