Diane Lane's maternal grandmother, Eleanor Scott, was a three-times married Pentecostal preacher of the Apostolic denomination, and Diane Lane was influenced by the theatricality of her grandmother's sermons. Diane Lane began acting professionally at the age of six at the La MaMa Experimental Theater Club in New York, where she appeared in an production of Medea. At 12 Diane Lane had a role in Joseph Papp's production of The Cherry Orchard with Meryl Streep. Also at this time, Diane Lane was enrolled in an accelerated program at Hunter College High School and was put on notice when her grades suffered from her busy schedule.
