Dawn-Lyen Gardner

Dawn-Lyen Gardner is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Charley Bordelon West in the Oprah Winfrey Network drama series Queen Sugar.

Early life
Gardner was born in Los Angeles, California. She is of mixed heritage, with an African-American father and a Chinese mother.

After graduating from Los Angeles County High School for the Arts in 1999, Gardner later moved to New York City and attended Juilliard School with actress Rutina Wesley, with whom she would later work with in the TV show Queen Sugar. Gardner graduated from Juilliard in 2003.

Career
Gardner began acting on television at an early age, appearing in a recurring role on Viper and guest starring on ER. While attending Juilliard, she began acting on stage, appearing in such productions like For Colored Girls, The School of Night, and The Seagull. She also appeared in a number of regional productions. She had a number of guest-starring roles on television shows including Crossing Jordan, Bones, Heroes, and Castle. Gardner also worked as a voice actress, playing Steela Gerrera in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

In 2016, Gardner was cast as a lead character alongside Rutina Wesley in the Oprah Winfrey Network drama series Queen Sugar, created and produced by Ava DuVernay and Oprah Winfrey. Gardner left the series after six seasons and made a cameo appearance in the final season in 2022. For her performance, Gardner reciived four Black Reel Awards nominations and a NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series nomination.