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Linara Washington was born in the little town of Beaufort, SC to a beautiful Brazilian woman and an American son of a preacher man. Her mother spoke no English at the time, which has given Linara the added benefit of being fluent in Portuguese. She is currently adding German to her list of languages and is hoping to conquer French, Italian, Japanese, and Hebrew.

Her time in South Carolina was brief, as the next sixteen years were spent moving from college town to college town. All in all she has lived in over 14 states and short stint in Brasil when she was still a baby. During a three-year stop in St. Paul, Minnesota, Linara attended The Blake School where she began to cultivate her love of acting. While at Blake she had the pleasure of attending many shows at the famous Guthrie Theatre (which coincidentally was located just one block from the school) as well having participated in the Dudley Riggs Improvisational Theater's enrichment program for high school aged youth. Mighty Ducks 2 was filmed at the high schools skating rink and it was no surprise to anyone that Linara made every effort possible to be a part of the production. Though she was only an extra at the time the experience definitely left its mark helping to spark the desire to be in the movies.

An excellent math and science student, Linara initially decided to pursue those interests rather than acting. The oldest of three girls, her parents probably would have disowned her had she not pursued a more "practical" course of study and been a proper role model for her younger siblings. She was accepted at the prestigious University of Chicago where started her courses as a Pre-med Biology major. But, as with all things that are meant to be, she soon found herself taking a number of writing classes and participating in the campus's theater productions. One school year she actually directed two shows and performed in five shows, taking on a role three days before opening after another actress unexpectedly quit. Her beloved college mentors: poet, Elizabeth Alexander and director/professor, Curt Columbus, were so influential in her growth as an artist that she changed her major to English, took her MCAT money and purchased headshots, and did not tell her parents until graduation day that she was going to pursue acting. Her parents, thankfully, did not kill her.

Linara's gutsy move proved to be the right one. She has had the pleasure of working at a number of Chicago's most acclaimed theaters including The Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, Northlight, and the Tony Award winning Victory Gardens. She has appeared in over 30 commercials nationally and internationally. A supporting role as Keisha--the cute and sassy receptionist-- in Barbershop 2 motivated her move to LA where she has since enjoyed recurring roles on "American Dreams" and "E.R." as well as a number of guest star spots including "Cold Case", "Close To Home", and "Without A Trace." She most recently had the pleasure of working with Will Ferrell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and acclaimed director Marc Forster in the upcoming film "Stranger Than Fiction."

A perfectionist who enjoys getting involved in everything, when Linara isn't on stage or screen she enjoys dancing-especially samba-cooking, learning the guitar (a replacement for the 14 years of violin she gave up earlier in life), painting, making jewelry, reading, and writing among other things. She is currently working on two screenplays; one of which is an adaptation of a stage play she wrote seven years ago on The Hottentot Venus.

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Linara Washington

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