Credit: Matthew Murphy

With her Broadway debut in the critically acclaimed production of “Every Brilliant Thing,” Tracee Ellis Ross chose a role that takes a deep dive into suicide and an inventive avenue to cope in its aftermath.

Initially told from a young child’s perspective about a parent’s battle with severe depression, the interactive solo show written by Olivier Award nominees Duncan MacMillan and Johnny Donahoe follows a growing list of every “thing” that comes to mind that makes life worth living.

In July, the Golden Globe Award-winning actress, known for roles in “Girlfriends” and “Black-ish,” took over the reins of the smash hit revival following performances by “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” star Mariska Hargitay and Tony Award winner Daniel Radcliffe. 

Each performer is allowed to improvise a little bit with their own special flourishes to the story — which rises to one million entries for the list throughout the years. In her narration, Ross references the Black church’s relationship to therapy, Black authors, pop culture and music choices. Songs by Curtis Mayfield and Ross’s mother, the legendary diva Diana Ross — especially with the audience singing along to the 1981 Oscar-nominated romantic ballad “Endless Love” — added to her signature flair.

Another special nuance the former fashion editor and budding hair care entrepreneur added to the play was a focus on Black mental health. July is recognized as National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 

‘Moving forward’

On Thursday, Ross joined Black mental health experts Carlita Ector, Johnell (Jay) Lawrence, and Beatriz Oliva to discuss mental wellness in the Black community during a post show talkback following a sold-out performance at New York City’s Hudson Theatre.

“Jay and I are friends, and this night was presented to me, and I spoke to … two very good friends of mine, and asked them to help me put this together,” Ross explained, adding: “And one of the things that Jay said when it started was, ‘I will be happy to help you do this and make it soft and human, which is something that was really important to me.”

The 53-year-old actress noted that the Black community has historically faced significant stigma around discussing mental health.

But such conversations show some improvement.

According to a 2025 study from Pew Research Center, 26% of Black adults revealed they are extremely or very likely to turn to a mental health professional for emotional support, which is significantly higher than Whites (16%) and Asian (17%) adults.

“I feel like we are moving forward,” Ector — a former theater actress who is the founder of Darkness Rising Project — shared. “We’re definitely making progress as a Black community. I also feel like the progress that we’re making is slow, and it’s uneven at times. I feel like we’re now having the conversation, which is great.”

Credit: Matthew Murphy

“More of us are saying the words, but I think that it is going to require more than saying the words,” she added. “I think it’s going to require holding space. I think it’s going to require really showing up for each other.”

Ross explained that works like “Every Brilliant Thing” can “have a deep impact and make people feel seen in ways that they didn’t expect.”

She furthered that that was one of the aspects that drew her into the material: “It is a very real, deep story, but it’s told with a buoyancy and a sense of light and a sense of joy, and a reaching towards a thing that makes life worth living, while also saying, ‘I see you. I see you in the dark spaces that you might be in.'”

‘A healing pathway’

“I also want to say, the playwrights were very responsible with this material,” the “Solo Traveling” star continued. “[They] made sure the language not only felt honest for each actor playing the narrator, but also reflected the right information and the right language in what we were talking about, and that came and evolved as it was happening…. We listen everywhere, we listen to people that are in the audience, we listen to ushers and everyone in the experiences that are happening to make sure that this is a safe and warm room because this is heavy material, and it is my biggest intention every night when I do the show and every time I do the show to create a safe and warm space for all of us to flourish together with material that can be very opening.”

When asked by Ross what role art plays in supporting mental health and creating a sense of belonging, Lawrence talked about its healing powers.

“For me, music was probably my first sense of ease and comfort when I was a young person…I didn’t realize how healing it was,” the sought after social impact strategist continued. 

Lawrence, who serves as Assistant Vice President of Community Engagement for the New York City-headquartered Vibrant Emotional Health added: “What’s also sad for me is that a lot of Black and Brownish young people don’t have access to the arts, which is a healing pathway, which is something that isn’t honored enough…it’s like what you said in the play… ‘Imagination is what makes life worth living.'”

Ross, who closes out the Broadway production on Aug. 9, revealed she, herself, struggled with depression in different ways: “Hope is often a very dangerous game for me…but the joy in the moment, which I think is what I connected to so much in this material — of finding the little thing, the little thing that made me remember there’s joy and that I’m worth it — is incredibly life affirming.”

Producers announced in May that a North American national tour for “Every Brilliant Thing” will kick off in Seattle in 2027. 

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