'This Is Us' star Sterling K. Brown returns to his Guthrie stomping grounds

AP photo by Jordan Strauss

Emmy winner Sterling K. Brown was in Minneapolis to appear on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," but he made time to stop by the Guthrie to get a tour and dazzle aspiring actors.

Brown is no stranger to the local theater. In 2000, he spent two months as a member of the Guthrie Experience training program for graduate students; five years later, he returned to star in a production of "Intimate Apparel."

But until this past Saturday, he hadn't had the opportunity to check out the Guthrie in its downtown location. In addition to a tour, he spent an hour taking questions from more than 60 students from the University of Minnesota/Guthrie BFA training program.

"It was incredible," said freshman Samantha Glasse (seen in above photo, left, with Domino D'Lorion, right. Photo by Marita Meinerts Albinson/Guthrie Theater) who first started following Brown's career when he was appearing on Lifetime's "Army Wives." "A lot of times you meet these people and you think they're going to be removed, but he was focused on us. He gave us his full attention."

About halfway through his Q&A in a Guthrie rehearsal room, Brown was joined by his wife, actress Ryan Michelle Bathe who has also appeared on the Guthrie stage.

Brown has won Emmys for his work on both "This Is Us" and "The People v. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story." He also has a role in the highly anticipated feature film, "Black Panther," which premieres Thursday.