She received a Tony nomination for best supporting actress in her 1972
broadway debut in Melvin Van Peeble's "Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural
Death". It was the first of seven nominations.
In 1997, she received a Living Legend Award from the National Black
Theater.
She graduated the Chicago Music Conservatory as a voice student and
continued her voice studies briefly at the Yale University School of
Music and at Julliard.
Adopted the professional name "Beatrice Winde" because Actors Equity
(the stage actors union) already had an actress by the name of Beatrice
Williams.
She acted in plays by Toni Morrison and Horton Foote and in productions
by the Negro Ensemble Company, the Manhattan Theater Club, the Jean
Cocteau Repertory Theater, Playwrights Horizon, and others.
She sang in Chicago with a group and as a soloist in a church choir
before deciding on an acting career.
She received the Audelco Award for best supporting actress for her
portrayal of the godmother in the play "A Lesson Before Dying", staged
by the Signature Theater Company.
She was awarded the 1997 Joseph Jefferson Award for Actress in a Cameo Role for "The Young Man from Atlanta" at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.