Amanda Reid, the New Star of Alicia Keys’ Hell’s Kitchen, Comes Full Circle with the Songbook That Taught Her to Sing

Age: 20

Hometown: McKinney, Texas

Current Role: Amanda Reid makes her Broadway debut in Hell’s Kitchen as Ali, a 17-year-old girl born and raised in New York City who, like most teenagers, thinks she has the concrete jungle all figured out.

Credits: Reid appeared in the film Miss Juneteenth, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2020 and has also graced television screens as Carter Kennedy in the Apple TV+ series Me.

From Balance Beams to Belting Ballads
Reid showcases her triple-threat talent nightly at the Shubert Theatre, but she wasn’t always bound for the stage. Raised by her mom alongside her nine siblings, she remembers her family’s unanimous devotion to sports and how she never considered doing live theater until the curtain closed on her competitive gymnastics career. “My whole family is [interested in] sports,” she says. “I actually used to be a level 10 gymnast. It wasn’t until I was 13 and I quit gymnastics that, through a family friend, I found out about this youth theater organization and I did my first show.” That first show was High School Musical 2, and she took center stage as Gabriella Montez. From then on, Reid was breaking free into the world of theater. Already equipped with the talent for singing since the age of three, she learned to act and dance as she grew within the creative discipline.

Tapping Into TV
Playing a lead role in the Apple TV+ series Me, Reid discovered that her creative spirit flourishes on set as much as it does on stage. “It was my first really big film job,” Reid says of her time on Me. “I was a series regular, and I worked with an amazing, amazing team. Being on set was a whole other high, nothing like live theater. They’re just so different to me and I love them both in such different ways. I just know that I want to do both.”

The Perfect Part
While Reid may not be a 17-year-old breaking into song on the streets of New York, Hell’s Kitchen felt like a sort of homecoming for her, slipping into a character who may not be her twin on paper, but carries the same passion, spirit and lifelong soundtrack. “Playing Ali in Hell’s Kitchen is so full circle for me because when I was really young, I kind of taught myself how to sing off of listening to Alicia Keys songs,” Reid says. “When I heard there was an Alicia Keys musical I was like, ‘Wait, what?! I gotta be in that.’ I didn’t even know that there was a role this perfect, a role I felt so connected to.” She compares seeing the show for the first time to watching herself on stage, so deeply connected to the character and music that it was as if Ali’s story blurred with her own.

Hell’s Kitchen (Amanda’s Version)
Reid remembers the process from audition to performance as swift yet gratifying. “Everything just happened so fast,” she details. “They brought me in, and I learned the show in two weeks and then debuted as Ali. It was just so much fun to learn it all and discover my version of Ali.” From Hell’s Kitchen’s contagiously energetic dance breaks to its raw feelings of devastation, it’s no surprise that Reid finds choosing a favorite moment nearly impossible. “Everything is just so fulfilling in different ways,” Reid enthuses. “I’ll say one of my favorite songs to sing is ‘Heartburn’ at the opening of Act II.” The connection between her character’s anger and the dancers’ choreography not only creates a show-stopping entr’acte for the audience, but a highlight for Reid in her nightly performances. To bookend the angst of “Heartburn,” Reid also holds a tender spot for the youthful energy of “If I Ain’t Got You.” She says, “I feel like I’m just playing around on stage, and I feel like I get to be a kid in that scene and it’s just so much fun and so wholesome.”

Messing Up and Giving Grace
While the gymnast-turned-performer often strives for perfection, the Broadway stage has taught her the importance of imperfection. “Everybody’s learning,” she says. “Let yourself make mistakes. Sometimes I wouldn’t let myself make mistakes because I can’t mess up, but that’s the point of life. Everybody needs to make mistakes. Everybody needs to mess up, and you have to give grace to yourself for when you do. This is everybody’s first time doing life and we’re all learning this together.”

When It’s All Over
Looking ahead to what may come after she steps outside of Ali’s world, Reid is certain of one thing: It’s entirely unpredictable. While this may create some tension for the self-identified planner, where she lacks certainty in her path forward, she finds confidence in her faith. “At the end of the day, I have to throw away my urge to plan and give it to God,” she says. “He’s already given me more than I could even dream of and opened my eyes to more possibilities that I didn’t think I would have a chance to do in my life. I don’t even know what His plans are, but I know they will be amazing.”