Breon Arzell
Breon Arzell (he/him) is a dedicated teaching artist, actor, director, choreographer, writer, and collaborator. With Chicago as his artistic home, he has served as a mentor and instructor at several universities, studios, and theaters. He holds a BA in Theater Performance from Miami University of Ohio.
Choreographically, Arzell specializes in musical theater, hip-hop, jazz, contemporary, lyrical, and body percussion; and onstage, in improv comedy and classical theater, including Commedia. He is listed among NewCity Stage's, "50 Players for Chicago" (in 2018, 2020, 2023, 2025), recipient of six Jeff Awards, two Black Theater Alliance Awards, and a Helen Hayes Award (D.C.). His artistic efforts have taken him across the United States, Italy, Germany, England, and Singapore. He is certified to teach English as a second language through theater and drama-based activity.
Infusing various styles and genres into his work as a creator, Arzell wishes to inspire dialogue, uplift his community, highlight the uniqueness and commonalities of the human condition across all identities, and show how the past is intertwined with, and informs, the present.
"Within my work, there’s always movement, always story, always the heart song of humanity."
Featured Artworks
The Fly Honey Show, 2025
Image by GlitterGuts taken at Tahlia Hall
She Came From the Bronx, 2025
Image provided by UIC
GUY, Blues for an Alabama Sky, 2024
Image provided by Remy Bummpo Theatre
The Color Purple, 2025
Image provided by Goodman Theatre
DANCE Like There's Black People Watching, 2024
Image provided by Second City