Keke Palmer Makes History As The 1st Black Cinderella On Broadway

21-year-old Keke Palmer is making history all over the place! First, she was the youngest person to ever be granted a talk show in BET’s Just Keke, now she’s the first black Cinderella on Broadway.

The 21-year-old will debut her Broadway career in the Rodgers & Hammerstein‘s Cinderella on Broadway, which starts on Tuesday 9th September 2014, with Sherri Shepherd as her wicked stepmother.

As this is her first Broadway show, she is looking to Brandy – who played Cinderella in the 1997 movie adaptation with the late Whitney Houston for inspiration.

Speaking on her new role, Keke stated 

“I feel like the reason I’m able to do this is definitely because Brandy did it on TV“. “In me doing this, it shows everybody that everything is possible“. It’s a “dream come true“.

Keke is a multitalented young woman. She has been in the business since she was just 10 years old! For her film debut, she played Queen Latifah‘s niece in Barbershop 2: Back In Business.

Furthermore, Keke released her first studio album, So Uncool, in 2007 at the age of 14, and her most recent mixtape, Keke Palmer, showed a more mature side to the actress/singer.

Not only will Cinderella not be her first time acting and singing, but it also won’t be her first time in a high-pressure, titular role — in 2006, she played Akeelah in the award-winning Akeelah And The Bee. For her portrayal, Keke won the award for Outstanding Actress In A Motion Picture from the NAACP Image Awards — no small feat, considering her competition was Beyonce in Dreamgirls and former co-star Queen Latifah in Last Holiday.