Alumna Heather Alicia Simms ’96 Books Recurring Role on ‘The Kings Of Napa’

Theatre alumna Heather Alicia Simms ’96 will have a recurring role on the new show The Kings of Napa.

Janine Sherman, executive producer and showrunner of Claws, is developing the show with OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network). 

The drama centers around the King family, an aspirational African American family whose wealth and class have put them on the cover of design magazines and society pages. Taking place in the beautiful Napa Valley vineyard, the King's wine business has brought the family mass amounts of success and acclaim. However, when the patriarch of the King family makes a sudden exit from the company, his three children must take over the business, and struggle to maintain their legacy. 

Before The Kings of Napa, Simms has acquired many stage and film credits over the years, including her roles on and off broadway. She has participated in such productions as By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (Carmen and Lottie), Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Dussie Mae), Gem of the Ocean (Black Mary), A Raisin in the Sun (Ruth and Beneatha Younger - Understudy), and Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (Cassandra).

Other credits include Born Bad, The Exonerated and Insurrection: Holding History. Her film credits include Red Hook Summer, The Nanny Diaries, Broken Flowers, and the upcoming Roxanne, Roxanne. Her television credits include Law and Order, Whoopi, and The Good Wife. She received an Audie award for her work on the audiobook Upstate, and the prestigious TCG/Fox Foundation Fellowship.

The Kings of Napa will premiere on OWN in 2022.