Tracee Chimo Biography

Tracee Chimo is an American stage and film actress, who became an arts critic favorite after her 2012 breakout role as Daphna, the antagonist in Joshua Harmon"?s dark comedy Bad Jews. She is known for her versatility, as is evidenced by her ability to transform her physical appearance to suit the needs of her character. It has been suggested that her early training as a dancer contributed to Chimo's understanding of how physical changes affect how others perceive a character, as well as how they evidence the individual's inner life.

Early life

Chimo was born in Saugus, Massachusetts. Her father is of Albanian descent and her mother is of Irish and Italian ancestry (her father is an Albanian Orthodox Christian, and her mother is Catholic). She splits her time between living in Los Angeles and New York City.

Career

Chimo's 2010 work in Bachelorette and Circle Mirror Transformation was praised by Erik Piepenburg of The New York Times, who lauded Chimo for transforming herself into two characters so distinct from one another, commenting, "If, at the same time, you could meet the shy, expressionless Lauren, mumbling into the wall of her red hoodie, and the glittering, claws-extended Regan, the meanest predator on the hunt, it would be hard to believe that they are the same person underneath. And maybe they aren"?t "? even if the actress Tracee Chimo channeled those characters to critical acclaim in two Off Broadway plays this season." Chimo's performance in Mirror was also singled out by Elisabeth Vincentelli of the New York Post, who called her "a master of the comic silent reaction."

In 2012, Charles Isherwood of The New York Times, who also noted Chimo's performances in these two productions, called her work in the Broadway revival of Harvey "excellent". Echoing other critic's, Isherwood stated, "What's most startling about this actress is her versatility: she seems to be almost physically transformed from performance to performance, so deeply does she burrow into her characters"? identities. I didn"?t recognize her at all, with her hair a frizzy nimbus of angry-looking dark curls and her face scrubbed free of makeup, in keeping with Daphna"?s righteous self-seriousness."

In 2016 TBS premiered the TV comedy series People of Earth, on which Chimo plays Chelsea Healey.

Awards and nominations

2014 Lucille Lortel Win for "Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play" for Bad Jews

2013 Outer Critics Circle Award nomination for "Outstanding Lead Actress - Bad Jews

2013 Drama League Award nomination for "Distinguished Performance - Bad Jews

2013 Rising Star Award - Winner from the Salem State University Alumni Association

2011 Stage Scene Award LA for "Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Drama" for her work in Neil LaBute's The Break of Noon

2011 Clarence Derwent Award on June 14 for "Most Promising Actress in New York City"

2011 Lucille Lortel Nomination for "Outstanding Lead Actress" in Bachelorette

2010 Drama Desk Award for "Outstanding Ensemble Performance" in Circle Mirror Transformation

2010 Obie Award for Circle Mirror Transformation

2010 Lucille Lortel Nomination for "Outstanding Featured Actress" in Circle Mirror Transformation

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role
2012	'	Margaret
2013	He's Way More Famous Than You	Tracee
2013	Gods Behaving Badly	River Styx
2013	Concussion	Woman #2
2013	Side Effects	Receptionist
2013	Take Care	Rachel
2014	Cyber	Secretary
2016	Sully	Evelyn May

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2010	Guiding Light	Jamie Collick
2010	Louie	Dog Pound Volunteer	Episode: "Dogpound"
2011	Inside the Actor"?s Studio Apartment	Actress
2012	First Dates with Toby Harris	Michelle	Episode: "Movies"
2012	I Just Want My Pants Back	Dylan
2013-2015	Orange Is the New Black	Neri Feldman	8 episodes
2013	The Good Wife	Chrissy Quinn	Episode: "Outside the Bubble"
2014	The Money	Jane Mulvaney	Pilot
2013	Black Box	Mackenzie Teller	5 episodes
2014	Royal Pains	Lauren	Episode: "Oh, M.G."
2015	High Maintenance	Orly	Episode: "Esme"
2015-2016	Difficult People	Gaby	3 episodes
2016-present	People of Earth	Chelsea Healey	10 episodes

Theatre

Title	Role	Notes
Circle Mirror Transformation	Lauren	Sundance Theatre Lab Playwrights Horizons
Origin Story	Zoe	Sundance Theatre Lab
Vamp	Angela	Emerging Artists Theatre
Bushwhackin"?	Amber	Waves Primary Stages
Guilty	Lindsey	Acorn Theatre @ Theatre Row
365 Days 365 Plays	Week 37	The Public Theater
Hollywood Nurses	Nurse Suzanne	ARS Nova
Vendetta Chrome	Tallulah	Clubbedthumb The Ohio Theatre
Irena"?s Vow	Fanka Silberman	BPAC The Walter Kerr Theatre Rose Nagelberg Theatre
Bachelorette	Regan	Second Stage Theatre
Break of Noon	Host/GiGi	Lucille Lortel Theater MCC Theater Geffen Playhouse
Harvey	Myrtle Mae	Roundabout Theatre Studio 54
Bad Jews	Daphna	Roundabout Theatre Laura Pels Theatre