At age six, began to stage shows for his family

By age 14, could play 10 brass instruments

Professional debut as a musician, toured West Indies with the Metropolitan Brass Ensemble

Performed with the Negro Ensemble Theatre

With his brother, ran The Harriet Tubman School, a private school (dates approximate)

Appeared in a touring production of "Guys and Dolls", starring Richard Roundtree and Leslie Uggams

Feature film debut, "Short Eyes"

Co-starred in the Broadway production of "Timbuktu"

Toured with Liza Minnelli; became known as 'Mr Cellophane Man' after his solo number

Was featured dancer in the TV special "Baryshnikov on Broadway"

Won a Tony nomination for his supporting role in the hit musical "Dreamgirls"

Starred in the Off-Broadway revival of the musical "Golden Boy"

Understudied Ben Vereen in "Grind"; played the role for the last two weeks of the show's brief run

Was featured in the PBS staging of Scott Joplin's "Treemonisha"

Had regular role on the ABC soap "All My Children"

Headlined own nightclub act in NYC; played Upstairs at Greenstreet and The Latin Quarter, among other venues

TV-movie debut "God Bless the Child" (ABC)

Originated the role of Jelly Roll Morton in the world premiere of "Jelly's Last Jam" in California

Played the servant Lane in an all-black film version of Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest"

Earned praise for his turn as an AIDS patient in two episodes of the CBS drama series "Chicago Hope"

Co-starred in the HBO TV-movie "Soul of the Game"

Had featured roles in "That Thing You Do!" and "Multiplicity"

Won praise for his performance as dancer Willie Johnson, one of the men involved in the Tuskegee Syphillis Experiment, in the HBO original movie "Miss Evers' Boys"; earned Emmy nomination

Played Billy Flynn in the national tour of the musical "Chicago"

Joined cast of "Dawson's Creek" (The WB), playing the school principal

Co-starred in "The Visit", playing the older brother of an inmate

Played Benjamin Chadway in the Showtime series "Soul Food"

Appeared in "John Q" with Denzel Washington; directed by Nick Cassavetes

Starred in the thriller "The Manchurian Candidate" directed by Jonathan Demme

Cast as the Police Chief in "After the Sunset" with Pierce Brosnan and Salma Hayek

Cast opposite Hilary and Haylie Duff in the comedy "Material Girls"