As the break out star of WGN's ratings record breaking new series "Outsiders" starring actress/playwright/GLAAD Award Nominee Tina Alexis Allen is a force to be reckoned with in this clash-of-cultures drama rooted in coal mining Kentucky. With Oscar-nominated actor Paul Giamatti on board as an executive producer, "Outsiders" was the most viewed original series in WGN America's history when it premiered a few weeks ago. Allen stars 'Shurn,' an integral and fiery member of the 'Farrell' family clan alongside 'Big Foster Farrell' played by David Morse ("Treme," "Hurt Locker") and 'Lil Foster Farrell' played by Ryan Hurst ("Sons of Anarchy," "Bates Motel").
The youngest of 13 kids growing up in Chevy Chase, Maryland, Tina was a tomboy at heart. After accepting a basketball scholarship to the University of Maryland, she caught the fashion bug and moved to NYC upon earning her MBA in marketing. While spreading her wings in a corporate job for iconic 80's African American clothing designer Willi Smith, she spent her weekends seeing Broadway shows and reigniting her love of the arts. Soul searching emotionally after a break up, she abruptly quit her successful career in the fashion marketing world to fully pursue her true passion for acting and has since been celebrated for her diverse range of roles in theater, film and television, including as a powerhouse executive, a transsexual, a housewife and even a man.
Famed acting coach, Susan Batson (Nicole Kidman, Tyler Perry, Chris Rock) has described her as "a true chameleon - capable of playing anything." In Los Angeles, she performed a 12-character one-woman show, Irresistible, lauded by critics as rivaling the work of Lily Tomlin. For her work in The Break-up Notebook, Allen was nominated for a GLAAD award alongside Glee's ferociously acerbic Jane Lynch. In addition, she starred and produced the Slamdance Jury Prize Nominated film Phantom Pain, and was a series regular as the hilarious "Dr. Mills" on IFC's "The Onion News Network."
Allen recently wrote and performed her critically praised solo show, Secrets Of A Holy Father. Based on her own true story, Allen yearns to understand the complicated and highly secretive double life of her father. By transforming herself into him, she took her father's journey, submerging into the Universal themes of family betrayal and redemption in a tour-de-force performance from the heart. Her memoir based on the solo show is due out early 2017 on HarperCollins' Dey Street Publishing. She is also developing the story for television.
In addition to acting, Allen merges art, fashion, and social consciousness with the No More Violence jewelry collection that she co-founded with artist and designer Gina Raphaela. Sold at Barney's, the Gina Raphaela brand uses deconstructed and transformed bullets as a foundation for daring necklaces, rings and bracelets. Their philanthropic mission provides a percentage of all proceeds to be donated directly to non-profit organizations while raising awareness and making a stand of no more violence.
