Background:

American actress Napiera Groves is maybe best known for playing Bonnie McKechnie on “As the World Turns” from 2001 to 2004. She has guest starred in television shows like “Eve,” “Without a Trace,” “ Zoey 101,” “All of Us,” “Girlfriends” and “30 Rock.” The winner of the Miss Congeniality at the 1997 Miss USA pageant also has appeared on stage in such productions as “Dreamgirls,” “Bright Lights, Big City” and “Spamalot,” to name a few.


Danielle

Childhood and Family:

Napiera Danielle Groves was born on December 17, 1975, in Cincinnati, Ohio. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Howard University, in Washington DC.  


Miss Congeniality

Career:

18 year old Napiera Groves made her film acting debut as Molly Ryan in “Airborne” (1993), an adventure/comedy film directed by Rob Bowman and starring Shane McDermott, Seth Green and Brittney Powell. While attending Howard University, she was crowned the title of “Miss District of Columbia USA.” She continued to compete at the 1997 Miss USA pageant, in which she won the “Miss Congeniality” award. Still in 1997, she joined the touring company of the Tony Award winning “Dreamgirls” and also made her television movie debut in the award winning biopic “Don King: Only in America,” based on the book “Only in America: The Life and Crimes of Don King” by Jack Newfield.  

In 1999, Groves was cast as the wife of actor Patrick Wilson, Amanda, in the off Broadway musical “Bright Lights, Big City,” directed by Michael Greif of “Rent” fame. She later played Lady of the Lake in “Spamalot” on Broadway.

Entering the new millennium, Groves played the role of Kahara on the direct to video horror film “Killjoy” (2000), which was directed by Craig Ross Jr., written by Carl Washington and starred Ángel Vargas, Vera Yell and Lee Marks, and co-starred with Summer Simmons and Phillip DeMarks in the film “Sacred Is the Flesh” (2001).

However, Groves did not enjoy a big success until she became the third actress to play the role of Bonnie McKechnie on the CBS soap opera “As the World Turns,” after Caroline Aimetti (1993-1996) and Chloe Morris (1996-1999). She was on the show from 2001 to 2003 and then in 2004, and was replaced by actress Chauntee Schuler, who played the role between 2007 and 2009.

In 2004, Groves made a guest appearance as Yvonne in an episode of the UPN sitcom “Eve” called “They've Come Undone: Part 1.”

After leaving “As the World Turns,” Groves guest starred in television shows like “Without a Trace” (2005, as Lila Green), “One on One” (2005, as Tracy), “How I Met Your Mother” (2006, as Tanya) and “Girlfriends” (2007, as Reena). She also appeared in the Nickelodeon hit sitcom “Zoey 101” in the episodes “Spring Break-Up: Part 1” and “Spring Break-Up: Part 2” (both 2006), playing Kyra, and in the UPN/The CW sitcom “All of Us” episodes “Surprise, Surprise: Part 1” and “Surprise, Surprise: Part 2” (both 2006), as Daphne. She returned to features when she took on the role of Michele
in the 2007 comedy “Redrum,” starring Jill Marie Jones, Reginald Ballard, and Kenny Young, who also directed and co-wrote the film.  

In 2009, Groves appeared as Vontella in an episode of the Tina Fey sitcom “30 Rock” called “Kidney Now!.”  

In 2011, Groves starred as Gail Summers in the 25 minute length film “Happy Birthday Michael Peck,” opposite Barry Alan Levine and Michelle Murphy. James Breen directed and wrote the short.


Awards:

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