Yaya DaCosta
Actress, Model & Activist
An actress and model, Yaya DaCosta began her acting career at age 11 when her mentor..
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Full Bio
An actress and model, Yaya DaCosta began her acting career at age 11 when her mentor, acting coach Ann Ratray, sent her to her first audition. Theater remained a hobby during school and after graduating from Brown University with a BA in Africana Studies and International Relations, she stumbled upon a second place spot in the hit reality television show America’s Next Top Model. During the show’s trip to Japan, DaCosta’s fluency in Portuguese won her a friend in a half-Japanese, half-Brazilian police officer who got her and the other contestants out of a sticky legal situation and ultimately saved that season of the show.
Following America’s Next Top Model, DaCosta was picked up by Ford Modeling Agency. Soon after, she made the transition from model to actress starring opposite Antonio Banderas in Take the Lead, Danny Glover in Honeydripper, Woody Harrelson in The Messanger, and Charles Dutton in Racing for Time which earned her an NAACP Image Award Nomination.
DaCosta has also had a recurring role on the soap opera All My Children. In addition, DaCosta joined The Signature Theater Company. Their production of The First Breeze of Summer gained DaCosta praise from The New York Times, calling her “sharp and admirably credible …in a lovely New York debut.”
Off screen, DaCosta is passionate about human rights and has a love for the African Diaspora. Through her work with international organizations like “charity: water” and Women for Women International, or at home in Harlem, where she volunteers teaching Spanish and French to Montessori school students, DaCosta encourages children to become citizens of the world.
Testimonials
Ernie was perfect for our Elders Conference at Little River Casino Resort in Manistee, Michigan. We will definitely be using PDA again!
LITTLE RIVER BAND OF OTTAWA INDIANS
Our speaker was great and the crowd enjoyed her! She was very engaging. Thank you again PDA for the great list of suggestions!
MEDTRONIC
Everything went great! and our speaker was wonderful! Thank you so much for all your help PDA! Looking forward to the next one.
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI – KANSAS CITY
I hope that this message finds you well. We had a phenomenal time with Atsuko this past Thursday. We wanted to just let you know how amazing she was. All those that were in attendance thoroughly enjoyed her and had nothing but amazing things to say about her. Thank you for working with us to make sure this happened!
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY CAMPUS
We had a fantastic day with Inge! She was very engaging with all those that attended. Her personal stories about the holocaust were very special and we were moved that she was willing to share them with everyone. Thank you again, PDA for all your hard work and dedication to make this program such a success!
SALT LAKE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Dear PDA Group, Thank you so much for your hard work in scheduling our speaker! From the moment we reached out to you the first time, you worked with us on all details and logistics and kept us up-to-date on the progress. Thank you for all your hard work on making our event such a success! We couldn't have done it without you and your team!
SAP COMPANY
Thank you again, Dr. Kimbrough, for a great presentation, our attendees are still talking about it!
CAMPUS LABS
Dr. Henry Lee's presentation was entertaining, insightful and wise. I, and everyone at Pfizer, especially appreciate the remarks you directed about following your passion and preparing yourself to excel. Thank you, everyone, at PDA for helping to make this happen!
PFIZER
The event was successful! I received many messages expressing how awesome, outstanding and inspiring Ms. Webb-Christburg's speech was."
DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. MEMORIAL BREAKFAST, BOSTON, MLK SPEAKER
Everything went well. Atsuko was very easy to work with and the students enjoyed her performance! Thank you again for your recommendation and I hope to work with you again in the future!
CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Dr. Novello left this morning after a very successful event on our campus! Thank you PDA Group for your help from the first phone to the last you were with us every step of the way.
GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY
Jordan Carlos was very very entertaining! A majority of students who answered the event survey indicated they really enjoyed Jordan and definitely will bring him back!
WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY
On behalf of myself and my organization Entertainment Unlimited the Campus Programming Board of Ferris State University, we thank you PDA and Dan for a successful event!! Dan was magnificent! Students really enjoyed the presentation. I know I did. Can't wait to bring in more programs with PDA Group.
FERRIS STATE UNIVERSITY
It was a great pleasure to work with PDA Group! The communication was always prompt, friendly and helpful. We loved the speakers and events we booked through Mr. Peter Walker (PDA Group).
WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
Thank you, Peter, for all your help, you'll be happy to know that the event went incredibly well! Aneesa Ferreira was by far one of the best speakers we've ever had!
FURMAN UNIVERSITY
Topics
Becoming a Citizen of the World
Videos
‘Our Kind of People’ star Yaya DaCosta Reveals What Fans Can Expect from Her Series
America's Next Top Model Contestants Who Actually Made It
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