An almost pathologically shy adolescent, Joan Allen found the courage to come out of her shell on stage. Theater allowed her to be outrageous, to express sorrow and anger, in short, to be anything but the good little Midwestern girl of her upbringing. While attending Eastern Illinois University, the tall, angular student somehow attracted the attention of the flamboyant John Malkovich who would later invite her to move to Chicago and join the now famous Steppenwolf Theatre Company's fledgling ensemble.