Arlene Duncan

{{Infobox person

| name = Arlene Duncan

| image =

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| other_names = Kairene

| birth_name =

| birth_date =

| birth_place = Oakville, Ontario, Canada

| death_date =

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| alma_mater = Sheridan College

| occupation = Actress, singer

| years_active = 1978–present

| known_for =

| notable_works =

| spouse =

}}

Arlene Duncan is a Canadian actress and singer.{{cite web|url=http://www.ccah.ca/Default.asp?id=6&l=1&a=article&cid=116 |title=A Pillar in the Community - Arlene Duncan |date= May 25, 2010 |work=Canadian Caribbean Association of Halton |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110826151133/http://www.ccah.ca/Default.asp?id=6&l=1&a=article&cid=116 |archivedate= August 26, 2011 |url-status=dead }} Her father is African Canadian, with ancestors from Nova Scotia. Duncan has appeared in more than 80 film and television roles, in addition to many theatrical productions. She is best known for her television role as Fatima, a diner owner in the CBC situation comedy Little Mosque on the Prairie.{{cite news|url=http://jam.canoe.ca/Television/TV_Shows/L/Little_Mosque_On_The_Prairie/2007/01/09/3255655.html |title=Little Mosque On The Prairie: CBC's 'Mosque' needs a miracle |last=Brioux |first=Bill |date= January 9, 2007 |newspaper=Toronto Sun |url-status=usurped |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20120713071026/http://jam.canoe.ca/Television/TV_Shows/L/Little_Mosque_On_The_Prairie/2007/01/09/3255655.html |archivedate=July 13, 2012 }}

Early life and education

Duncan was born in Oakville, Ontario, to Alvin Aberdeen Duncan, a Royal Canadian Air Force veteran of World War II, and a Jamaican mother, Icilda.{{Cite web|last=Levy|first=Genelle|title=Ontarians should know more about the Black history of Oakville|url=https://www.tvo.org/article/ontarians-should-know-more-about-the-black-history-of-oakville|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=TVO.org|language=en}} Her father's side of the family has been living in Canada for five generations.{{Cite web|last=Zekas|first=Rita|date=May 30, 2009|title=A little shopping, not on the Prairie|url=https://www.thestar.com/life/2009/05/30/a_little_shopping_not_on_the_prairie.html|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=thestar.com|language=en}} She is the great-grand-daughter of Benedict Duncan, a slave who fled Maryland through the Underground Railroad and became a sexton in Oakville.{{Cite news|date=September 14, 2001|title=Well-known actor/singer returns to help church celebrate its 169th anniversary|work=The Oakville Beaver|url=http://images.halinet.on.ca/OakvilleImages/Images/OI0110587034pf.pdf}} Her great-great-grandfather, Samuel Adams, moved to Canada in 1855. Duncan's family has been heavily involved in Oakville's Black community, her great-grandfather Jeremiah Adams was the groundkeeper of Turner Chapel (Oakville) and her father worked as Oakville's resident Black historian until his death in 2009. Additionally, Duncan's mother founded the Canadian Caribbean Association of Halton.{{Cite web|last=Levy|first=Genelle|date=December 1, 2020|title=Ontarians should know more about the Black history of Oakville|url=https://www.tvo.org/article/ontarians-should-know-more-about-the-black-history-of-oakville|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=TVO.org|language=en}} Canadian Olympic sprinter Donovan Bailey is Duncan's half-brother.

Duncan attended T. A. Blakelock High School in Oakville. During her time there, she was active in drama and student band.{{Cite web|title=Thomas A. Blakelock High School - Arlene Duncan|url=https://tab.hdsb.ca/school-info/hall-of-fame/arlene-duncan|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=tab.hdsb.ca|language=en-US|archive-date=May 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519032036/https://tab.hdsb.ca/school-info/hall-of-fame/arlene-duncan|url-status=dead}} She graduated from Sheridan College's musical theatre program.{{Cite web|last=Williams|first=Paul|date=July 11, 2013|title=Arlene Duncan|url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/arlene-duncan|access-date=February 18, 2021|website=www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca}}{{Cite web|last=MacLean|first=Bill|date=December 15, 2011|title=Arlene leaves the prairie for Caroline, or Change|url=https://www.beachmetro.com/2011/12/15/arlene-leaves-prairie-caroline-change/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=Beach Metro Community News|language=en-US}} Duncan was a winner of the Du Maurier's [https://www.broadcasting-history.ca/programming/television/search-stars Search for Stars] contest and represented Canada at the Pacific Song Contest in 1979.{{cite news|date=September 1, 1979|title=Canadian Singer to Visit New Zealand|page=14|work=Ottawa Citizen|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=OaMyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zu4FAAAAIBAJ&pg=2990,774610&dq=arlene-duncan&hl=en|accessdate= August 13, 2012}}{{cite web|last=Bessey|first=Melissa|date= January 16, 2012|title=Woman of the Week: Arlene Duncan|url=http://www.womenspost.ca/womanoftheweek/2012-01-16/woman-week-arlene-duncan|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510033802/http://womenspost.ca/womanoftheweek/2012-01-16/woman-week-arlene-duncan|archivedate= May 10, 2012|access-date= August 13, 2012|work=womenspost.ca}}

Career

In 1982, Duncan released her debut single [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od8tHp7rMfE "I Wanna Grove"], which won her the Female Vocalist of the Year Award at the 1983 Canadian Black Music Awards in 1983. Duncan also has performed under the name Kairene, releasing the single [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVy1feyzdJQ "I Need a Man"] under Radikal Records in 1993. She has additionally sung jingles for McDonald's, Pepsi and Toyota.{{Cite web|title=Arlene Duncan {{!}} Black In Canada|url=http://www.blackincanada.com/2010/12/04/arlene-duncan/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=www.blackincanada.com}} In 1994, the Black Label Artists Coalition awarded Duncan for Outstanding Achievement in Dance/House Music.

Duncan has been active in musical and dramatic theatre. She has been involved in theatrical productions of Sophisticated Ladies, Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang, Once on This Island, The Mother Club, A Raisin in the Sun, Ain't Misbehavin', The Nutmeg Press, Recurring John{{Cite web|title=Cast|url=http://recurringjohn.weebly.com/cast.html|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=Recurring John}} and The Who's Tommy.{{Cite journal|last=Breon|first=Robin|title=View of The Growth and Development of Black Theatre in Canada: A Starting Point {{!}} Theatre Research in Canada / Recherches théâtrales au Canada|url=https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/tric/article/view/7342/8401|access-date=February 19, 2021|journal=Theatre Research in Canada / Recherches Théâtrales Au Canada|date=June 6, 1988 }} Duncan won a Dora Mavor Moore Award in 2012 for Outstanding Performance by a Female (Musical) for her performance in Caroline, or Change."'Crash,' 'Caroline, or Change' big winners at Dora Mavor Moore theatre awards". Canadian Press, June 25, 2012. Duncan's performance as Caroline in Caroline, or Change earned her a Dora Mavor Moore Award in 2012 for Outstanding Performance by a Female (Musical) and a Toronto Theatre Critics Award for Best Actress in a Musical.{{Cite web|date=May 31, 2012|title=The 2nd Annual Toronto Theatre Critics' Awards|url=https://jazz.fm/the-2nd-annual-toronto-theatre-critics-awards/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=JAZZ.FM91|language=en-CA}}{{Cite web|date=May 31, 2012|title=Kim's Convenience gets five thumbs up at Toronto Theatre Critics Awards|url=https://nationalpost.com/entertainment/kims-convenience-gets-five-thumbs-up-at-toronto-theatre-critics-awards|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=nationalpost|language=en-CA}}

Duncan has appeared in many movies and television shows, most notably portraying café owner Fatima Dinssa on the CBC Television series Little Mosque on the Prairie. Duncan played Harriet Tubman in the CBC Television Special All for One, for which she received an ACTRA Award. Duncan later reprised the role of Harriet Tubman in 1995 in CBS's Gemini Awards-nominated "Sing Out, Freedom Train".{{Cite news|last=Quill|first=Greg|date=February 1994|title=Freedom Train packed too full|work=The Toronto Star}}{{Cite web|last=|first=|last2=|date=January 30, 1995|title=The 1995 Gemini nominees|url=https://playbackonline.ca/1995/01/30/4086-19950130/|access-date=February 19, 2021}} In recent years, she has also appeared in minor roles on Degrassi: The Next Generation, Suits, and A Dog's Journey. Duncan's most notable recent role has been as Velma Diggs in the ongoing CBC Television series Diggstown.{{Cite news|last=Cowie|first=Del|date=March 4, 2020|title=Surf's up: Vinessa Antoine is back in Diggstown and the stakes couldn't be higher {{!}} CBC Television|language=en-US|work=CBC|url=https://www.cbc.ca/television/surf-s-up-vinessa-antoine-is-back-in-diggstown-and-the-stakes-couldn-t-be-higher-1.5483492|access-date=February 19, 2021}}

Duncan has cited Diana Ross, Salome Bey, and Melba Moore as influences.

Work

= Film =

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Film

!Role

1979

|An American Christmas Carol

|Jennie Reeves

1987

|data-sort-value="Liberators, The" | The Liberators

|Amanada{{Cite web|title=The Liberators|url=https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/465780/the-liberators|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=Turner Classic Movies|language=en}}

1988

|All for One

|Harriet Tubman

1995

|Sing Out Freedom Train

|Harriet Tubman

1996

|Extreme Measures

|E.R. Nurse

2000

|Enslavement: The True Story of Fanny Kemble

|Harriet

2001

|Drop the Beat

|Mrs. Brown

2001

|Don't Say a Word

|Aide

2002

|data-sort-value="Scream Team, The" | The Scream Team

|Sherriff{{Cite web|title=Arlene Duncan|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0241903/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=IMDb}}

2003

|Eloise at Christmastime

|Lily

2005

|Get Rich or Die Tryin'

|Judge{{Cite web|title=Little Mosque is big hit for Arlene Duncan|url=https://www.insidehalton.com/whatson-story/2954110-little-mosque-is-big-hit-for-arlene-duncan/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=InsideHalton.com|date=October 5, 2007 |language=en-CA}}

2009

|Chloe

|Party Guest{{Cite web|title=CHLOE {{!}} a film by Atom Egoyan|url=https://www.sonyclassics.com/chloe/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=www.sonyclassics.com}}

2012

|Silent Hill: Revelation

|Teacher{{Cite web|title=Arlene Duncan|url=https://spicyonion.com/person/arlene-duncan-movies-list/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=Spicyonion.com|language=en}}

2014

|data-sort-value="Fighting Man, A" | A Fighting Man

|Mary{{Cite web|last=Sumi|first=Glenn|date=April 24, 2014|title=A Fighting Man|url=https://nowtoronto.com/a-fighting-man|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=NOW Magazine}}

2017

|Flint

|Claire McClinton{{Citation|title=Flint (2017)|url=https://letterboxd.com/film/flint/|language=en|access-date=February 19, 2021}}

2019

|Easy Land

|Mrs. Fraser

2019

|data-sort-value="Dog's Journey, A" | A Dog's Journey

|Hilda{{Citation|title=A Dog's Journey (2019)|url=https://letterboxd.com/film/a-dogs-journey/|language=en|access-date=February 19, 2021}}

= Television =

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year

!Series

!Role

!class="unsortable" | Notes

1997–2004

|Franklin

|Officer Rabbit

2005–2008

|Degrassi: The Next Generation

|Mrs. Van Zandt{{Cite web|last=Staff|date=February 23, 2017|title=Arlene Duncan - Biography|url=https://www.northernstars.ca/arlene-duncan-biography/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=Northernstars.ca|language=en-CA}}

|4 Episodes

2007–2012

|Little Mosque on the Prairie

|Fatima Dinssa

|91 Episodes

2013

|Covert Affairs

|Patricia{{Cite web|title=Arlene Duncan {{!}} TVSA|url=https://www.tvsa.co.za/actors/viewactor.aspx?actorid=14554|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=www.tvsa.co.za}}

2013–2017

|But I'm Chris Jericho!

|Ms. Lawrence

|12 Episodes

2014–2017

|Teenagers

|Sandra

|7 Episodes

2015

|Suits

|Emma Powell

|2 Episodes

2018

|data-sort-value="Rick Mercer Report, The" | The Rick Mercer Report

|Announcer

2019–2020

|Diggstown

|Velma Diggs{{Cite web|last=Karimjee|first=Abbas|date=April 16, 2019|title=Interview With Arlene Duncan From CBC's Diggstown and Little Mosque on the Prairie-Exclusive In Depth|url=https://abbaskarimjee.wordpress.com/tag/acting/|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=Abbas Karimjee's Weblog|language=English}}

|6 Episodes

2024

|The Spiderwick Chronicles

|Melvina

|1 Episode

= Theatre =

class="wikitable sortable"

!Year(s)

!Production

!Role

!class="unsortable" | Notes

1987

|Sophisticated Ladies

|N/A{{Cite news|last=Rochon|first=Lisa|date=June 15, 1987|title=Ladies fitting tribute for the Duke|work=The Globe and Mail}}

1997

|Ain't Misbehavin'

|N/A

|Played the role introduced by Armelia McQueen{{Cite news|date=March 15, 1997|title=Arlene Duncan: 'a little more sexual'|work=The Hamilton Spectator}}

1999

|data-sort-value="Nutmeg Princess, The" | The Nutmeg Princess

|Nutmeg Princess{{Cite news|last=Wagner|first=Vit|date=March 13, 1999|title=Music saves Princess|work=The Toronto Star}}

|Based on the book of [https://www.annickpress.com/Books/T/The-Nutmeg-Princess same name]

2011–2012

|Caroline, or Change

|Caroline

|Won Dora Mavor Moore Award for Performance

2014

|Recurring John

|The Park Dweller

2014

|data-sort-value="Mother Club, The" | The Mother Club

|Marge{{Cite news|last=Barnard|first=Elissa|date=March 5, 2014|title=Playwright pushes boundaries; Peters tackles difficult subject of rape in black community in The Mother Club|work=The Chronicle Herald}}

2014

|Once on This Island

|Mama Euralie{{Cite web|last=Sumi|first=Glenn|date=January 30, 2014|title=Once On This Island|url=https://nowtoronto.com/once-on-this-island|access-date=February 19, 2021|website=NOW Magazine}}