Lauren Lapkus | |
---|---|
Lapkus in 2016
|
|
Born |
Dorothea Lauren Allegra Lapkus September 6, 1985 Evanston, Illinois, U.S. |
Occupation | Actress, comedian |
Years active | 2005–present |
Spouse(s) | Chris Alvarado (m. 2014–2016) |
Website | LaurenLapkus.com |
Dorothea Lauren Allegra Lapkus (born September 6, 1985) is an American actress and comedian, best known for portraying Dee Dee in the NBC sitcom Are You There, Chelsea? and Susan Fischer in the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black. She has also made appearances on such television shows as Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Middle, Hot in Cleveland, and @midnight. She is also known for her many podcast appearances, including Comedy Bang! Bang!, improv4humans, and her own podcast With Special Guest Lauren Lapkus. She was a main cast member on the TBS original sitcom Clipped.
Lapkus was born in Evanston, Illinois, of half Lithuanian and half Greek descent. At an early age she would film sketches with her older brother and later at Evanston Township High School she participated in the annual student revue and variety show YAMO.
During her senior year of high school, she began taking improv classes at the iO Theater. She would attend DePaul University graduating in 2008 with a degree in English, while she continued performing improv most nights. Lapkus credits watching a lot of television sitcoms and Saturday Night Live while young with giving her the education to become a comedian.
Upon graduation, she moved to New York City for a year where she got involved with Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre. After living in New York for 15 months, she relocated to Los Angeles in 2010.