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SHAKINA

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Press


PRESS

Featured
San Jose Mercury News - 5 & DIME Review
July 11, 2025
San Jose Mercury News - 5 & DIME Review
July 11, 2025

Review: Here’s how TheatreWorks made a classic story even better.

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July 11, 2025
San Francisco Chronicle - 5 & DIME Review
June 22, 2025
San Francisco Chronicle - 5 & DIME Review
June 22, 2025

Review: ‘Come Back to the 5 & Dime’ musical a clarion call for trans resilience.

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June 22, 2025
LA Times
November 15, 2024
LA Times
November 15, 2024

‘Trans Diaries’ actors counter election attacks with a powerful tool: their own stories.

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November 15, 2024
Critics Choice Awards
November 15, 2024
Critics Choice Awards
November 15, 2024

See Shakina’s reaction to being selected as an honoree for the Critics Choice Association’s Celebration of LGBTQ+ Cinema & Television.

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November 15, 2024
Autostraddle
February 29, 2024
Autostraddle
February 29, 2024

Shakina Nayfack and “Quantum Leap” Put the Audience Inside a Trans Experience

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February 29, 2024
GLAAD
February 6, 2024
GLAAD
February 6, 2024

Shakina Says ‘Quantum Leap’ Character’s Coming Out Story Is “A Celebratory Invitation Into Our Experience”

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February 6, 2024
E! Online
February 6, 2023
E! Online
February 6, 2023

Writer and activist Shakina Nayfack detailed directing Quantum Leap's episode about a transgender teen and shared how she hopes to rewrite the stories of young people we've lost.

By Brett Malec Feb 06, 2023

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February 6, 2023
Vulture
June 30, 2022
Vulture
June 30, 2022

In2015 Jackson meets trans actor Shakina Nayfack, who tells him she is starting the Musical Theatre Factory, a place to develop new work. MTF gives Jackson and his crew space to workshop A Strange Loop for two weeks. Located above the old Drama Book Shop on West 40th Street, the space also happens to house a working gay-porn studio…

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June 30, 2022
Daily Beast
December 29, 2020
Daily Beast
December 29, 2020

Shakina Nayfack Made Trans History on Network TV. That’s Just for Starters. In NBC’s ‘Connecting,’ Shakina Nayfack was the first trans actor to be a series regular on a primetime network comedy. She tells Tim Teeman about faith, porn, and making history.

Read the full story here!

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December 29, 2020
The Face
September 27, 2019
The Face
September 27, 2019

How ​‘Transparent’ finally reclaimed its story for the trans community. Actress Shakina Nayfack explains how she took on the role of trans woman Maura in the show’s wild, musical finale.

Colin Crummy

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September 27, 2019
Hollywood Reporter
September 29, 2017
Hollywood Reporter
September 29, 2017

7 Breakout Actors On Streaming TV Shows: "In a cast full of scene stealers, Shakina Nayfack can steal an entire episode of Hulu’s Difficult People with a single line. She stars as Lola, a “trans truther,” who works at the restaurant with Billy Eichner's Billy and definitely knows how to put her co-workers in their place."

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September 29, 2017
Lenny Letter
July 4, 2017
Lenny Letter
July 4, 2017

Shakina Nayfack on the Radical Act of Being a Trans Woman in Love. The Difficult People actress on her groundbreaking role, shaving her head, and subversive assimilation.

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July 4, 2017
SALON
January 29, 2017
SALON
January 29, 2017

Manifest Pussy: Why don’t we just let Shakina Nayfack speak for us all?
A transgender activist has seized the pussy agenda with both hands. Let's let her run with it for awhile.
By Emily Jordan of Salon.com

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January 29, 2017
PRIDE
August 22, 2016
PRIDE
August 22, 2016

Difficult People's Shakina Nayfack Is The Trans Star You Need to Know. From her role as a trans "truther" on Hulu's Difficult People to her solo tour around North Carolina in response to HB2, here's why you're about to fall in love with Shakina Nayfack. by Rebekah Allen for Pride.

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August 22, 2016
NBC NEWS
July 9, 2016
NBC NEWS
July 9, 2016

Trans Actress Shakina Nayfack Is Ready for Her Close-Up. Following in the footsteps of Laverne Cox and Jamie Clayton, transgender actress Shakina Nayfack will soon be making her television debut. 

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July 9, 2016
Fusion.net
June 6, 2016
Fusion.net
June 6, 2016

Shakina Nayfack's 'Manifest Pussy' to tour NC in HB2 protest. As the battle over North Carolina’s anti-trans “bathroom bill” intensifies, one transgender performer has come up with a brilliant plan to protest this noxious piece of legislation: She’ll simply obey the law. by John Walker for Fusion.net

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June 6, 2016
Backstage
March 1, 2016
Backstage
March 1, 2016

15 Trans* Actors You Should Know

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March 1, 2016
Entertainment Weekly
February 26, 2016
Entertainment Weekly
February 26, 2016

Difficult People is adding transgender actress and activist Shakina Nayfack to the cast when season 2 returns, EW has confirmed. 

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February 26, 2016
The Advocate
February 25, 2016
The Advocate
February 25, 2016

Transgender Actress Shakina Nayfack Joins Cast of Difficult People

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February 25, 2016
American Theatre Magazine
November 23, 2015
American Theatre Magazine
November 23, 2015

Shakina Nayfack Found Herself While Founding Musical Theatre Factory. The founder of the brand new development hub opens up about the company’s and her own gestation.

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November 23, 2015
She Wired
November 15, 2015
She Wired
November 15, 2015

If you love theater, you love Shakina Nayfack, even if you don't realize it yet.

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November 15, 2015
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