Arlene Duncan is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

actress and singer from

Oakville, Ontario Oakville is a town in Regional Municipality of Halton, Halton Region, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Lake Ontario between Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton. At its Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census population of 213,759, it is List of tow ...

. Her father is

African Canadian Black Canadians (also known as Caribbean-Canadians or Afro-Canadians) are people of full or partial sub-Saharan African descent who are citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The majority of Black Canadians are of Caribbean origin, though ...

, with ancestors from

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. 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 ''Little Mosque on the Prairie'' is a Television in Canada, Canadian television sitcom created by Zarqa Nawaz and produced by WestWind Pictures, originally broadcast from 2007 to 2012 on CBC Television, CBC. Filmed in Toronto, Ontario, and Indian ...

''.

Early life and education

Arlene Duncan was born in

, to Alvin Aberdeen Duncan, a

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

veteran of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and a Jamaican mother, Icilda. Her father's side of the family has been living in Canada for five generations. She is the great-grand-daughter of Benedict Duncan, a slave who fled Maryland through the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. T ...

and became a sexton in Oakville. 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) Turner Chapel was an African Methodist Episcopalian Church located at 37 Lakeshore Road West in Oakville, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1890. An earlier structure, built on the east side of Sixteen Mile Creek, had burned down. The wes ...

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. Canadian Olympic sprinter

Donovan Bailey Donovan Bailey (born December 16, 1967) is a retired Jamaican-Canadian sprinter. He once held the world record for the 100 metres. He recorded a time of 9.84 seconds to win the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games. He was the first Canadian ...

is Duncan's half-brother. Duncan attended T. A. Blakelock High School in Oakville. During her time there, she was active drama and student band. She graduated from Sheridan College's musical theatre program. Duncan was a winner of the Du Maurier's
Search for Stars
' contest and represented Canada at the Pacific Song Contest in 1979.

Career

In 1982, Duncan released her debut singl
"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 singl
"I Need a Man"
under

Radikal Records Radikal Records is a Teaneck, New Jersey based independent record label launched in 1990 by Jurgen Korduletsch for the purpose of introducing European dance, techno, rave and trance music to the United States. Radikal has released a "who's who" of ...

in 1993. She has additionally sung jingles for

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

Pepsi Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961. History Pepsi was ...

and

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

. 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 ''Sophisticated Ladies'' is a musical revue based on the music of Duke Ellington. The musical ran on Broadway in 1981–83, earning 2 awards and 8 nominations at the 35th Tony Awards. Production ''Sophisticated Ladies'' opened on Broadway at th ...

'', ''Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang'', ''

Once on This Island ''Once on This Island'' is a coming-of-age one-act stage musical with a book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty. It is based on the 1985 novel ''My Love, My Love; or, The Peasant Girl'' by Rosa Guy, a Caribbean-set retelling o ...

, The Mother Club,

A Raisin in the Sun ''A Raisin in the Sun'' is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The title comes from the poem "Harlem" (also known as "A Dream Deferred") by Langston Hughes. The story tells of a black family's experiences in south Chi ...

, Ain't Misbehavin''', ''The Nutmeg Press'', ''Recurring John'' and ''

The Who's Tommy ''The Who's Tommy'' is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Pete Townshend and a book by Townshend and Des McAnuff. It is based on the 1969 rock opera ''Tommy'' by The Who. Productions The musical opened at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, ...

''. Duncan won a

Dora Mavor Moore Award The Dora Mavor Moore Award (also known as the Dora Award) is an award presented annually by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts which honours theatre, dance and opera productions in Toronto. Named after Dora Mavor Moore, who helped estab ...

in 2012 for Outstanding Performance by a Female (Musical) for her performance in ''

Caroline, or Change ''Caroline, or Change'' is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori and lyrics and book by Tony Kushner. The score combines spirituals, blues, Motown, classical music, and Jewish klezmer and folk music. The show ran both Off-Broadway and on Broad ...

''."'Crash,' 'Caroline, or Change' big winners at Dora Mavor Moore theatre awards".

Canadian Press The Canadian Press (CP; french: La Presse canadienne, ) is a Canadian national news agency headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Established in 1917 as a vehicle for the time's Canadian newspapers to exchange news and information, The Canadian Pre ...

, June 25, 2012. Duncan's performance as Caroline in ''Caroline, or Change'' earned her a

in 2012 for Outstanding Performance by a Female (Musical) and a Toronto Theatre Critics Award for Best Actress in a Musical. Duncan has appeared in many movies and televisions, most notably portraying café owner Fatima Dinssa on the

CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV) is a Canadian English-language broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster. The network began operations on September 6, 1952. Its French-l ...

series ''

''. Duncan played

Harriet Tubman Harriet Tubman (born Araminta Ross, March 10, 1913) was an American abolitionist and social activist. Born into slavery, Tubman escaped and subsequently made some 13 missions to rescue approximately 70 slaves, including family and friends, us ...

in the CBC Television Special ''All for One'', for which she received an

ACTRA Award The ACTRA Awards were first presented in 1972 to celebrate excellence in Canada's television and radio industries.

. Duncan later reprised the role of Harriet Tubman in 1995 in CBS's

Gemini Awards The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in the United States a ...

-nominated "Sing Out, Freedom Train". 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 ''Diggstown'' (known as ''Midnight Sting'' in the UK), is a 1992 American sports comedy-drama film directed by Michael Ritchie and written by Steven McKay, based on the 1978 novel ''The Diggstown Ringers'' by Leonard Wise. It stars James Woods ...

''. Duncan has cited

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups o ...

Salome Bey Salome Bey (October 10, 1933 – August 8, 2020)While ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' gives her year of birth as 1939, other sources say she was born in 1933 or 1944. was an American-born Canadian singer-songwriter, composer, and actress who liv ...

, and

Melba Moore Beatrice Melba Hill or Beatrice Melba Smith (sources differ) (born October 29, 1945), known by her stage name Melba Moore, is an American singer and actress. Biography Early life and education Moore was born Beatrice Melba Hill or Beatrice Melba ...

as influences.

Work

Film

Television

Theatre

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Duncan, Arlene 20th-century Canadian actresses 20th-century Black Canadian women singers 21st-century Canadian actresses 21st-century Black Canadian women singers Actresses from Ontario Black Canadian actresses Black Nova Scotians Canadian film actresses Canadian musical theatre actresses Canadian people of African-American descent Canadian stage actresses Canadian television actresses Dora Mavor Moore Award winners Living people People from Oakville, Ontario Year of birth missing (living people)