Earning her degree from the National Theatre School of Canada made Ivana Shein a second generation Canadian playwright, and gave her world class training as an actor.

After graduation, she appeared as a young Patricia Clarkson in Lucky McKee’s The Woods, as well as the role of Receptionist Number Two in Richard J Lewis’s award winning film, Barney’s Version, starring Dustin Hoffman and Paul Giamatti. Performing as Receptionist #2 led to a logical deception to the department of U.S. Homeland Security that Ms. Shein was ‘starring’ alongside Giamatti and Hoffman, making her an instantly famous Canadian actor. That deception became her play, The Life Changing Role of Receptionist #2, that debuted at Montreal’s Just For Laughs, and performed at Upright Citizen Brigade.

Her short play, Single, was produced by LA's IAMA Theatre Company, with The Blacklist's Amir Arison directing. Single became the basis for a pilot for the series The Music In Us that she is developing with with Westworld’s Richard J Lewis. The Music in Us takes a deep dive into the work of Canadian music icons, and is repped by ICM Partners. When Cameron Crowe read her pilot he said, “Thank you, Ivana, for knowing all the best music comes from Canada!”

She currently has a podcast, Skinny Dipping, in development at Sugar23 about emotional nakedness, which she will host, while also recurring as the mother of the lead character (in two timelines) on Shonda Rhimes's, ABC series, Station 19, where she is doing her best to be a queer positive television mom.