A multi-hyphenate theatre maker who views her solo work as an artistic extension of the social justice work she has been committed to for the last thirty years. Arlene’s award-winning solo works tour throughout the United States and internationally. Many of these works are an exploration of disability in our culture. As an actor she has performed on stages big and small in LA and Chicago and has worked in film, and television (Some of it good- Most of it bad). As a playwright she is the recipient of a Chicago Cultural Center Theatre Residency, a 3 Arts/UIC Fellowship, a Millennium Parks Grant from The Boeing Company Charitable Trust, a LA Ovations & a LA Garland Award. Her work has been a finalist in New Plays from Heartland, and a semi-finalist for Blue Ink Award, O’Neill Play. Her writings have been featured in Ms. Magazine, Huffington Post, Medium, Paramanu Pentaquark, En Posse Review, True Stories About Love - Chicago Story Press and Women of Letters Anthology by Penguin Press. She has a Doctorate degree from UCLA, teaches writing and performing and coaches across the country. Arlene is a Resident Playwright at Chicago Dramatists where she developed the Solo & Story curriculum. Her soon-to-be released new book Writing & Performing the One-Person Show will be published by Northwestern University Press 2025. Finally, she is to her knowledge the only actor to have appeared in Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure AND Dougie Howser, M.D. in the same 24 hours.
