Biographie
Kellie Aiken is an American actress and classically-trained, dramatic coloratura soprano originally from Simpsonville, South Carolina, with a chameleon-like presence performing on stage, screen and in concert. She made her operatic debut in June 2024 as Donna Elvira in Varna International's production of Don Giovanni under Metropolitan Opera Maestro Gregory Buchalter. On June 25, 2022, she debuted at Carnegie Hall, has completed 2 summer residencies with MidAm International under the baton of Sir John Rutter in both the UK and Sweden in 2023 and 2025, respectively, and regularly appears as a soloist with the Palmetto Voices Spiritual Ensemble led by Dr. Sonja Sepulveda.
EARLY LIFE The daughter of the late Henry Aiken, an entrepreneur and small business owner and Barbara (Norris) Aiken, a professional pianist, organist, and Christian recording artist, she is the oldest of 2 children. She began her career at the age of 3, singing in her local church, revival events and live concerts with her mother and studying dance and gymnastics with former Rockette LaBruce Heist. She performed in her first play at the age of 5. Throughout her youth, Aiken amassed a resume of over 50 live shows, concerts, musical productions and plays in community, summer stock and regional theatre and continued to excel both academically and athletically as a cheerleader and competitive dancer throughout high school into the collegiate level's NDA sports program where her team was ranked 14th nationally. She was a member of the Winthrop Chorale and Chamber Singers for four (4) consecutive years as a first soprano which led to performances with the late Moses Hogan, the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and Alexander Bernstein. At university, she produced and anchored segments of Winthrop Close-Up, the on-campus news program, worked and designed informational and promotional graphics decks for the campus CCTV systems at the student center, was a member of Delta Zeta Sorority, and was inducted into both Delta Omicron and Alpha Psi Omega Honors Fraternities. She graduated with a BA in Theatre and a BA in Mass Communication from Winthrop University with a minor in Music-Vocal Performance. Upon graduation, she worked in Charlotte, NC regional theatre and toured for a year with Stageworks Improvisational Theatre Company before relocating to New York City.
PERFORMANCE HISTORY In the early fall of 2003, she landed her first Off-Broadway production at the historic Provincetown Playhouse where she would meet and be advised by the late Academy Award winner, Celeste Holm. That work was followed up with a year and a half long engagement at The Wings Theatre Co. as the lead actress and last-minute replacement cast member with only 4 days of rehearsal in "Manhattan Towers" by Beverly Bonner. Aiken went on to play Meip Gies in a production of "The Diary of Ann Frank," and worked at The Bernie West Theatre as Rose in "The Wool Gatherer," Desdemona in "Othello," and Gwendolen in "The Importance of Being Earnest" with director and acting coach Thomas G. Waites where she would eventually meet her mentor Vincent D'Onofrio through an introduction by Waites.
At The Manhattan Theatre Club, she created the role of Mary Kate in "Famous Ghost Monologues" by Sarah Bunting and then followed up that performance as Carol in "Oleanna" at The Atlantic Theatre Company. She performed a series of sketch comedy shows from 2006-2010 with the independent satirical company "The Billionaires for Bush" and as part of the 9-11 Lower Manhattan Arts Council Special Series she collaborated and performed as the soprano soloist and actress in a production called "Tangle." "Tangle" was a post-modern artistic experience choreographed and directed by Tai Dang with original music by Philip Glass.
While in New York, Aiken studied opera at The Juilliard School coached by Edith Bers and Manhattan School of Music's Elizabeth Cole, she trained in method acting with her mentor, Vincent D'Onofrio and attended classes regularly at the Broadway Dance Center.
In 2006, Aiken filmed the role of Wife for the short film "Defending the Caveman," which still runs at the beginning of the one-man show in over a dozen concurrent live productions in the United States and around the world. She utilized her gymnastic, dance and stunting skills in working on Spiderman 3 (2007) and BIIP Media's "Brutal Kicking" web series as the Blonde Assassin; played the best friend, Vicki, of an alien werewolf in the sci-fi indie thriller Amazon Rage (2006) and, the temptress Kelly in Grand Slammed (2010) with Paul Calderon, Alex Emmett and Walter Masterson.
Aiken was then cast as Amelia Earhart in the one-woman show Amelia's Flight at Rockefeller Center in 2008. And, after working on Broadway, Off-Broadway and gaining experience in numerous independent films and television, in April 2010, she relocated to Los Angeles, CA.
In late 2010, while working on a fitness campaign for the now-banned supplement Xenadrine, Aiken suffered a spinal injury which would later become degenerative and has been a driving force for her mobility-challenged awareness and activism within the arts.
The next year, she filmed the lead in Farhad Besharati's music video "Remember," played the Midwestern young mother, Piper Douglas, on an episode of America's Court and filmed the pilot for a new relationship makeover show The Sexperts (2011) as the fantasy coach and co-host.
Aiken portrayed a young Roberta in the Mark Wahlberg film The Gambler (2015). She has appeared on the final season of HBO's True Blood, Desperate Housewives, Togetherness, and the IFC sketch-comedy show Birthday Boys. She performed alongside Heather Graham in the Lifetime Network's Petals on the Wind (2014) and is in the independent film You're Not You (2014) with Hilary Swank.
She filmed the CBS pilot Four Stars (2016) with Wilmer Valderama as Valerie "Candy" Fitzgerald, the Academy Award winning film LaLa Land, HBO's The Tale with Laura Dern and she appears in the 8th seasons of Modern Family and NCIS: LA.
Prior to the pandemic, she studied in Los Angeles with acting coaches Cornell Womack and Gregory Berger at Berg Studios, was in pre-production for an untitled feature film with Electric Media (production status unknown) and a feature film version of the award-winning short film The Ningyo (2018) which won critical acclaim throughout the independent film festival circuit. In March 2020, she relocated to her home state of South Carolina which has become a base while allowing for continued work both throughout the US and abroad.
She is an active member of AGMA, AEA and SAG-AFTRA.
PERSONAL LIFE Amid performance opportunities, Aiken leads creative teams as a Creative Director, Art Director and Graphic Designer in branding, marketing, UX and UI, social media strategy, events and multi-platform design working with a diverse range of clients from e-commerce startups and hoteliers to fine arts organizations, non-profits and cosmetics' manufacturers.
Philanthropically, she continues to advocate for equity within the arts. Her personal story is shaped by resilience, reinvention and the unyielding power of the Divine within Art. As a survivor of domestic violence while navigating the challenges of a spinal injury, she draws on personal experiences to lend in her philanthropic efforts. Thanks to advanced neurotechnology and a dedicated physical training regimen, including MMA training with UFC's Stephen 'Wonderboy' Thompson and Pitch Black Sports, she maintains a high-performance lifestyle that meets the physical demands of the worlds of screen and opera.
She is an active member of The Junior League of Greenville, SC whose mission is to advance women's leadership through meaningful community impact in the areas of economic mobility and human trafficking. Since October 2022, she has worked with the missions and humanitarian aid organization, Bridge Builders International and Latvian-based Baltic Minds Foundation. When in Latvia, she works with marginalized communities including those displaced by the war in Ukraine and assists in artist retreats and seminars teaching immersive arts workshops, vocal pedagogical master classes and private voice coaching sessions.
During her time in Los Angeles, she volunteered at Love 4 Paws Animal Rescue, the SAG Foundation, the Motion Picture and Television Fund, Martha's Kitchen Homeless Outreach, and SAG-Aftra's Los Angeles Conservatory at The American Film Institute where she facilitated and taught workshops to young or returning actors. She has taught elementary school and special education classes with LAUSD, served as a first soprano in the Cathedral Choir at The Cathedral of Our Lady of The Angels in Downtown Los Angeles, as well as being a cantor for 9 years at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Beverly Hills, CA.
