Directing Philosophy 

I am a collaborative director with an emphasis in creative movement. I define collaborative as a multifaceted theatre artist who approaches every aspect of the production from multiple perspectives, directly engaging with my collaborators to create a nuanced piece of theatre. I believe in curiosity and in creating spaces where we are dedicated to progress, rather than immediate perfection. I am a director who is not defined by the product but by the process. As a director, I seek collaboration with an ensemble and encourage and emphasize creative movement. The impact that movement has on any piece of work changes the final product from what you expected to creativity you never imagined. Through my own research and experience, the addition of movement training to a show sparks strong team dynamics in a cast, allows for undesirable body postures to be erased, inspires actors ownership, and displays a visual image the audience clings to. In my approach to traditional theatre pieces, I start with analysis and lead by asking open-ended questions. In my approach to devised theatre, I work as a leading ensemble member and take on the responsibility of synthesizing created material while sponsoring actor ownership and working through group mind practices. As a director, I emphasize the journey or research of rehearsal and reflection over the final product. I incorporate designers early in the process to not only inspire agency and voice in their own work but to allow them to be beneficial influences to the whole of the piece. I work with my cast as a team, within an ensemble. I use the rehearsal room as a laboratory to explore detailed text work, distinct movement vocabularies, and inventive revelations of space to deepen the means through which we can communicate both within the world of the play and in our lives outside of the theater. A goal early in my rehearsal process is to establish a common language amongst all of my fellow collaborators. I emphasize group mind and establish a safe and welcoming community by initiating daily warmups that target the body, voice, mind, and imagination. I am interested in projects that are highly theatrical and deeply intimate. I am a director who builds bold new experiences and I firmly submit that this will increase the vitality of the art form on a national scale, even when the work is done at a personal and local level. I seek to create theatre driven by inquiry. I desire to tell stories that blend provocative content with experimental forms. In my own work, I strive to invite collaborators to take part in any and all elements of producing; I believe that artists should influence the way their work is crafted and produced. My scholarship is informed by these goals, which I strive to infuse into my teachings whenever possible.