Irene Stephanou

(19*-) Actress and stand-up comedienne, writer, performer and teacher. ** ** Studied at the School of Dramatic Art, University of the Witwatersrand and graduated with a BA (Dramatic Arts) Honours . She worked for the woman's group Progressive Arts Project (PAP) in the late 1980s She has co-written and performed three one-woman shows, which have toured South Africa and abroad. All her new work has been staged at the Market Theatre. They include Is Every Sperm Sacred?, Meze, Mira and Make-Up, Acropolis Cafe.

She developed a course called 'Theatre and Life' under the supervision of Barney Simon, and runs it at the Market Theatre Laboratory. She also organises development workshops in Johannesburg.

Co-edited a book on Barney Simon entitled The World in an Orange: Creating Theatre with Barney Simon with Leila Henriques.

She has been living with Multiple Scelerosis (MS) since she was 16 years old.