Ms. Freeman is an actress, singer and director. she made her Broadway debut in 1979 in the original production of Ain't Misbehavin'. She won the Obie Award for Distinguished Performance by an Actress for her portrayal of Dinah Washington in the 1998 Off-Broadway play Dinah Was. She has also won 8 screen actors awards And a People's choice award. On television, she is best known for her roles as Haleh Adams in the NBC medical drama series ER, Evelyn Smalley in the TV series Working, and Irma Lerman in Orange Is the New Black.