Angeline Larimer

Undergraduate - IU Theatre Circle “Meet the Playwrights Night” play THE FILE ROOM.

MFA Playwright Recipient 2002
Indiana University
Studied for three years as Assistant Instructor with Prof. Dennis J. Reardon
AI’s: Michael Chemers, Ben Sahl
First woman in the IU playwriting program 1999-2002.

IU Dept. of Theatre & Drama Jason Stradtman Award for Excellence in Playwriting 2000, 2001, 2002

*Remembering Jason Stradtman who would have been the 2001 MFA graduate. He passed away from cancer July 1998.

Scripts:
THE FILE ROOM
CHILDREN OF THE STAR WARS
LOOK HOMEWARD, EDDIE
FISH IN THE DESERT
LIFE WITHOUT RUE
CLEMENT’S ARK
THE SPECTRUM OF LETTING GO
LAFRACOTH ILLUMINED
LASTING
JUNIPER’S DEAD HENS

1999- present
Playwriting/Applied Theatre/Hybrid Applied Theatre & Health Humanities
Indiana University Department of Theatre and Drama (AI)
Bloomington Playwrights Project
Indiana University - Purdue University
PlayPenn
Theatre for Veterans
Indiana University Indianapolis (Applied Theatre)
Propel New Works

Guest Lecturer:
Indy Convergence
Hobart and Williams Smith Colleges
Indiana Prison Writers Workshop
PlayPenn
Fordham University
LA Writers Center

2000 - present.
Raised two humans to adulthood with co-parent partner. The job of caring about how they’re doing is never over.

With his permission, our son was diagnosed with MERLD in 2005 after three years of misdiagnoses. The details are his story now, but this experience as a parent eclipsed most other things. It later influenced the decision to pursue patient advocacy, medical humanities, bioethics, and most recently applied theatre that is used to help support individuals in their personal development and self advocacy pursuits. It also encouraged a preoccupation with ethical writing.

Both of my kids have been my greatest teachers.

Life in the Pumpkin Shell (2004 - 2010)
Began as an exploration in the new medium of blogging. It chronicled life in the 00’s raising two young kids.

It became a support and advocacy blog for parents traversing the frustrating process of early diagnostics for non-verbal children. Millions read the post “To the parents of other Jacks.” Hundreds of connections were made worldwide through comments and emails. I retired the blog in 2011 to pursue patient advocacy work, but I still receive requests for updates.

The Graduate Certificate in Medical Humanities and Health Studies from IUPUI provided a bridge between my MFA playwriting work and my need to do advocacy work in healthcare. The MHHS program provided incredible access to the medical world, as well as a valued perspective on the multiple benefits of an arts and humanities education.

I also attended the Columbia University Narrative Medicine Workshop in 2020.

My play THE SPECTRUM OF LETTING GO began as a course project for MHHS as a play intended to be a vehicle for public health. It focused on the opioid crisis in 2015, proper administration of naloxone, PTSD in veterans of the Vietnam War, and end of life decisions. Its further development was funding by the generous Myles and Peg Brand Fellowship in Bioethics, and was given a professional reading by Indianapolis theatre professionals on IUPUI’s campus. It later received a nomination for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize in 2022.

In 2018, I became affiliate faculty for the Medical Humanities and Health Studies program. I began teaching for the Applied Theatre, Film and Television program in 2019, as well, and developed cross-listed courses between the two programs.

I have presented on Medical Humanities themes at the Advanced Teaching and Learning Symposium at IUPUI, American Society of Bioethics and Humanities, the Humanities Health Consortium, the International Health Humanities Conference, the National Humanities Conference, and Writers in Health Professions.

Courses Taught:

Introduction to Medical Humanities
Dramatic Medicine (400 level)
Playwriting and Medicine (400 level)
Theatre of Health and War (400 level)

MA Philosophy in Bioethics/ Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPU)
Certificate/Yale University Sherwin B. Nuland Summer Institute in Bioethics

The principles I learned through studying philosophy and the medical ethics practicum training deepened my understanding of human thought and need, as well as complex issues surrounding high stakes decision-making.

As a public health bioethicist:

2020 - 2021 Marion County & CDC Overdose Data to Action Grant Bioethicist

Current member: OD2A Group, Overdose Fatality Review, OFR REACT, Former subcommittee Leader of OFR Access-to-Care Group

Co-Developer Indiana Substance Use Disorder Oral History Project - currently interviewing peer recovery coaches.

Paper:
Goals of care communication and higher-value care for patients with advanced-stage cancer: A systematic review of the evidence

My work is often at the intersection of playwriting and health humanities. I facilitate intensive playwriting workshops for special groups and nonprofit organizations that serve their communities. I have worked with students of all ages, non-theatre majors, medical students, public health students, U.S. military veterans, incarcerated writers, formerly incarcerated writers, and persons recovering from substance use disorder.

Paper example:
MEDICAL STUDENT AS PLAYWRIGHT: DRAMATIZING IMELDA | Emily Beckman and Angeline Larimer

2022 - present

I was hired for the role of Lead Dramaturg for the 2022 conference in PlayPenn after working extensively on the LA Writers Center “Voices of Afghanistan” project with producer Che’Rae Adams.

They’re an incredible group to work with at PlayPenn.

Classes:
Writing the Autobiographical Play
Ethical Playwriting

2022 conference dramaturg for Ian August’s All the Emilies in All the Universes - which is a GREAT play!