Lauren McDowell
ACTOR / WRITER / FILMMAKER
ABOUT
LAUREN MCDOWELL is an actor, artist, and writer.
Hi! Born and raised in North Carolina, I’ve spent my life cultivating a variety of creative interests in performing, writing, photographic, filmmaking, and visual arts. After receiving a Bachelors of Arts (B.A.) from the University of Southern California, I returned to the Carolinas and jumped headfirst into the arts: joining community theaters, artist collectives, nonprofit boards, acting classes, playwriting groups, improv troupes, comedy writing opportunities, and so much more. I’m an award-winning actor, a published writer and photographer, and above all a curious, multi-faceted creative deeply invested in my community with the perspectives of a global arts and entertainment landscape.
(Scroll to see extended bio below.)
ACTING
THEATRE
2026 — Pageant Materials by Skylar Schock, Miss Nevada. Arachne THTR at BOOM Fringe. Charlotte, NC. (Upcoming)
2026 — Dog Practice by Lauren McDowell, You. Action Series at Goodyear Arts, (One Act Play). Charlotte, NC.
2025 — Ubu The King by Alfred Jarry, Prince. XOXO Productions at VisArt (Staged Reading). Charlotte, NC.
2025 — Too Much Tea by Lane Brafford, Gotta Pee dir. Nicki Pappas, Main Street Theater of Rock Hill (One Act Play). Charlotte, NC.
2024 — Night of January 16th by Ayn Rand, Karen Andre dir Dr. Elizabeth Peterson-Vita, Union County Playmakers. Monroe, NC.
2023 — Shotgun by Laura Scott Cary, Yarrow dir. Matt Cosper, XOXO Performance (Staged Reading). Charlotte, NC.
2023 — Now & Then by Sean Grennan, Abby dir. Polly Adkins, Fort Mill Community Theater. Fort Mill, SC.
2023 — Office Hours by Kimberly Saunders, Sierra dir. Kimberly Saunders, Huntersville Arts & Cultural Center (Staged Reading) . Huntersville, NC.
2023 — Iced Tea New Play Table Reads, Queen City New Play Initiative (Staged Reading). Charlotte, NC.
2022 — Proof by David Auburn, Catherine (lead) dir. Polly Adkins, Fort Mill Community Theater. Fort Mill, SC.
2022 — Fall One Acts, Lead in One Act Play, dir. Annie Laurie Wheat, Main Street Theater. Rock Hill, SC.
2014 — Antigone by Sophocles, Messenger (supporting) dir. Matt Cosper, Charlotte Latin School. Charlotte, NC.
TELEVISION
2025 — “Fatal Attraction: I’d Kill to Be You,” as Serena Karlan (Co-star), TV One Network via Lifetime.
COMMERCIAL
2026 — Principal, Delta Seltzer: Socials / Cocktails with Delta Proof (Online). Tattoo Projects: Charlotte, NC.
2025 — Principal, R+Co: Spiritualized Dry Shampoo (Online). Los Angeles, CA.
2025 — Principal, Delta Seltzer: Holiday Campaign (Online). Tattoo Projects: Charlotte, NC.
2025 — Principal, Smashbox Cosmetics: Always On Eye Shadow Stick (Online). Smashbox Studios: Los Angeles, CA.
AWARDS
2022 —Won, Best Actress in a Non-Musical, for Catherine in Proof, Metrolina Theatre Association Awards, 2021-2022 Season. Charlotte, NC
COMEDY
2025 — Performing ‘Say One More Mean Thing About Us Here at Disney and We’ll Drop a Live-Action Remake of Cars ‘ with Queen City Comedy during Strange Charlotte Fringe. Arts Factory: Charlotte, NC.
2022 — June. Recess Improv Show, OTC Improv, Fort Mill Community Playhouse. Fort Mill, SC.
2022 — April. Writer’s Block Improv + Sketch Show, OTC Improv, Fort Mill Community Playhouse. Fort Mill, SC.
2022 — February. Recess Improv Show, OTC Improv, Fort Mill Community Playhouse. Fort Mill, SC.
2021 — December. Three’s A Crowd Improv Show, Fort Mill Community Playhouse. Fort Mill, SC.
2021 — October. Three’s A Crowd Recess Improv Show, Fort Mill Community Playhouse. Fort Mill, SC.
EDUCATION
2019
University of Southern California, Bachelor of Arts
Narrative Studies Major with Minor in Art and Minor in Classics.
RELEVANT COURSEWORK:
Performance Art under American Performance artist and filmmaker Patty Chang, The Culture of Athenian Democracy (Theatre + Philosophy) under USC President CL Nikias, Experimental Film/Video Art under artist and filmmaker Jennifer West, and Classical Theatre under Demetrios Kritsotakis at Dikemes International Center for Hellenic & Mediterranean Study Athens, Greece (2018)
Charlotte Latin School HS Diploma (2015)
CONTINUED EDUCATION
2025 - Present - Film Acting, Weekly - Vedra Grant, Dortch Acting Studio, Charlotte, NC (Ongoing)
2024 - Film Acting Intensive Workshop - Stacia Crawford, Alicia Fusting, & Pat Dortch, Wilmington, NC
2022 - Meisner Intensive Workshop - Insight Acting Studio, Beth Becka, Wilmington, NC
2019 - Performance Art & Prosthetics, USC Roski School of Art and Design. Performance art pieces performed under performance artist Patty Chang, Los Angeles, CA
2021 - Improvisation Level 1, OTC Improv, Fort Mill, SC
MEDIA
Headshots
Performance Stills
Clips / Footage
BIO
As a high school student, Lauren was recognized for her creative work: receiving National Scholastic Art and Writing Awards at Carnegie Hall and the Department of Education in New York City and Washington DC, respectively, for her work in Visual Art/Photography. She also gained a valuable core theatre understanding in challenging high school productions like Sophocles’s ‘Antigone’ and Ionesco’s ‘Rhinoceros,’ and some early on-set experience doing Background work on some of the large productions (like Showtime’s Homeland) as they passed through the Carolinas.
Lauren then pursued her creative interests as a student at the University of Southern California. At USC, in addition to a number of technical skills in the arts and a holistic, critical education, she also gained valuable insights into the entertainment industry and the creative incubation at work in the hub and heart of culture in Los Angeles—completing coursework in performance art and experimental/analog filmmaking in the school of Art and Design, and media arts and production in the USC School of Cinematic Arts, as well as benefitting overall from firsthand access to the institution’s robust programming (and the talented industry professionals who shared their wealth of insights with the community). Lauren also studied abroad in Athens, Greece, and was able to study the ancient tragedies, like one of her first plays, ‘Antigone,’ in greater depth at the original sites of productions thousands of years ago.
Lauren received a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) with a Major in Narrative Studies and minors in both Fine Art and Classics.
After graduating, Lauren returned to North Carolina to continue building skills, experience, and community in the performing arts. She quickly got involved with a number of theatre arts organizations: community theaters, grassroots playwriting groups, improv comedy troupes, and artist collectives. She has served as a contributing playwright, a nonprofit board member and secretary, and a volunteer designer/social media manager for a number of local theatre organizations.
In her debut community theatre production, Lauren was awarded the 2022 Metrolina Theater Association Award (“MTA”) for Best Actress in a Play for her portrayal of Catherine in David Auburn’s Pulitzer-winning play ‘Proof’ at the Fort Mill Community Playhouse.
Lauren is grateful for the embrace of community organizations here in the Carolinas, such as the playwriting incubator Main Street Theater of Rock Hill, the residency and artist collective Goodyear Arts, Queen City Comedy, XOXO Productions, among others, that encourage developing talent to write, perform, and shoot their own work. Lauren’s writing in comedy and satire, which she has also performed as monologues, has been published on McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Points In Case, The Belladonna, among others.
She is also grateful for Freedom Models, the modeling agency with whom she signed in 2024, and the experiences she’s gained from being on working sets of an extremely high caliber, and global brand relationships she’s been able to form with clients like Smashbox Cosmetics, Thom Browne, and Tecovas, among others.
She is currently a member of the 2025-2027 William C. Friday Fellowship for Human Relations, and the ASC Cultural Leadership Training program. She was recognized as a Picture Card Artist by a/perture cinemas in Winston-Salem, NC in 2022, and awarded a Residency at Goodyear Arts in Charlotte, NC in 2024. She has also continued her education with ACLU of North Carolina’s Clapback training program, was rewarded a scholarship for NYU’s online course in Introduction to Film & Television, and is a recipient of the ASC Artist Support Grant and the Charlotte is Creative’s H.U.G. Grant.