Ebonée Noel

Ebonée Noel started her career on the screen in an episode of “Law and Order: Special Victims Unit” and has since appeared in many TV and film works. She is best known for her roles as Livia Capulet in Shonda Rhimes’ “Romeo and Juliet,” the continuation series “Still Star-Crossed,” Special Agent Kristen Chazal on “FBI,” and August King on Oprah Winfrey Network’s “The Kings of Napa,” which premiered January 11th, 2022.

What inspired you to start acting?
When I look back, I was acting or performing as a form of play for as long as I can remember. I just didn't realize that what I was doing was a profession at first. The week before my fourth birthday, my mom took me to see “Beauty & the Beast” on Broadway with some family friends, and that's the moment it clicked for me, that playing pretend was something grown-ups could do for "work."

What has been your favorite part of working on “The Kings of Napa” so far?
This is a hard question because there are so many elements of this job that I love, but the way this role has pushed me to both grow and trust myself as a performer and a leader is probably my favorite part. That and the absolutely stellar group of people I got to work with and the fashion. Told you there were a lot of things I loved.

**Left:**
Dress by Christian Siriano
**Right:**
Houndstooth Pearl Jacket at **𝕷𝖆𝖚𝖗𝖊𝖓 𝕭𝖔𝖚𝖙𝖎𝖖𝖚𝖊**

What are you excited for audiences to see and experience in this first season?
I'm excited for audiences to have their expectations subverted every episode. For people to pick sides and teams and then be forced to either defend their choices or change their minds as everyone's personal secrets and flaws start spilling out. We were so hype on set arguing the different perspectives of our characters, and I can't wait to see the audience have those same discussions. I also can't wait for the audience to see the myriad of beautiful looks we created with hair, make-up, and wardrobe because we really did put them together with so much love and excitement, and I've never gotten to collaborate on a character's look to that level before. And then, of course, there are things I got to do as an actress on this show that I haven't gotten to do on screen, and I'm really excited for people who have been fans from other projects to get to see other sides of me as a performer.

Do you have any roles so far that you particularly connected with?
You know roles have a way of finding you at the right times. I felt very connected to Livia's (“Still Star-Crossed”) inexperience and her romantic fantasies about love and finding a way out of a station in life that she knew was beneath her. I felt very connected to Kristen (“FBI”) and her enjoyment of her own intelligence, talents, and the value she brought to her team. August is the character I feel the most connected to, partly because I've also dedicated more creative and physical energy to her than I have for any of my other characters by nature of the size of the role. But then, there was also her creative passion, her being pushed to really step up the plate and lead, the history and dynamics she has with each of her family members and the elements of my own life I used to inform those relationships. A lot came together to make August the character that probably lives the deepest in my marrow.

Do you have any dream roles or projects?
Yes. Quite a few in fact. I'm really interested in doing a movie-musical and digging into a role that demands that I use my voice and my body in a more involved way than I have for previous projects. I've also been dreaming of playing Lauren Olamina in Octavia E. Butler's “Earthseed” series for a while now. I'd love to play the lead character in a movie adaptation of “An Untamed State” or really anything written by Roxane Gay. And I have a long list of dream collaborators: Janicza Bravo, Sam Levinson, Michaela Coel, Jeremy O. Harris, to name a few.

What are your goals for the coming years?
My ultimate goal is to grow as a performer with every project. I am my own biggest critic and I know if I'm not sharpening my skills or deepening my craft, the jobs and opportunities that may come won't be as fulfilling as they can be. I hope I keep getting to play characters who are varied and who challenge me to employ all the different tools, skills, and perspectives I have access to. I also want to realize some of my own creative projects and learn more about the producing side of this business. The goal is to look back in a couple of years and feel both stronger and in more control of my instrument as a performer and more agency and comfortable as a creator of content.

If you weren’t acting right now, what would you be doing?
I always thought if I weren’t acting, I would want to have a business planning weddings. I have always loved weddings and the different elements of putting one together: the food, the dress, the flowers, the invites, etc. It's always seemed like I would still be able to scratch my creative itch, and I feel like I would enjoy the work of tailoring the experience around the needs and personalities of each different couple.

When you aren’t working, how do you spend your time?
I read, I have an amazing group of friends, I watch a lot of TV, and I spend a lot of time dreaming up the right project to try my hand at writing/producing one day.

Who or what inspires you?
I'm most inspired by the genius of other creators across medium as well as the resilience of the Black creative and performers who came before me and made my journey possible. I find inspiration listening to Jazmine Sullivan bless all our ears on “Heaux Tales” as much as I find inspiration watching Eartha Kitt in “Anna Lucasta.” The spark of genius and dedication to craft you can hear and see watching artists do what they love always makes me want to get to work. And when I think about what Black performers had to go through just to get to those moments where they could do their work, I feel a renewed energy to attack the more tiring aspects of this industry and to carry the baton they've passed down.

If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be?
To be bolder. I've always had the persistent belief in self I needed to stick it out in this industry but I have spent a lot of time trying to overcome a sense of timidity about my own talent and abilities. I know there are jobs and opportunities I didn't get because of own hesitancy to show up to spaces in a way that demanded people take notice. Whether it was feeling shy or not wanting to come across as having too much of an ego or just not feeling good enough, I wish I spent less time fighting my own inner critic and more time enjoying every invitation to take up space and shine bright.

Social Media.
Twitter and Instagram: @EboneeReigne

CREW CREDITS:
Editor-In-Chief + Producer: Alison Hernon
Creative Director: Mike Ruiz
Photographer: Ron Contarsy
Talent: Ebonée Noel
Fashion Stylist: Alison Hernon
Hair: Tish Celestine
Makeup: Latisha Rankin
Location: Blonde + Co.
Tearsheets by Daniel López, Associate Art Director, PhotoBook Magazine
Interview by Flora Medina, Contributor, PhotoBook Magazine
Fashion Styling Intern: Phoebe Wakabayashi