About Me

After moving all throughout my childhood and teen years, between the Midwest in Chicago and being “out west” in Las Vegas, I found a four-year home among the corn fields while attending Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. On top of being a directing student in the Department of Theatre and Dance, I also obtained minors in New Works for the Stage, Women’s and Gender Studies, and Management and Organizational Communication. Through my academic studies and extensive extracurricular experiences, I spent a lot of time learning from professors and student leaders around me, which is ultimately what shaped my understanding of what theatrical leadership and my process could look like.

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Being a leader in this space, I believe theatre making should be equal parts professionalism and play. Theatre is an art form with an incredibly rich history and renowned predecessors. Each new play, project, or undertaking grows from this laid foundation and relies on the continued time and talent of many other dedicated artists. To respect the work that came before ours and the ongoing process of others, I believe that the least I can do as a director is uphold a sense of professionalism. 

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However, the fact that theatre is incredibly precious doesn’t mean it has to be pretentious. It should be playful! At its heart, theatre has always been a result of engaged artists being aware of the world around them. Seeing how their community interacts with their environment, analyzing that collected data, and creating. As a director, I consider myself to be a professional people-watcher. Even on my morning walks, I make note of what strangers are saying during their one-sided phone calls, or what poster their eyes linger on in a window display. This same curiosity exists when I flip through the pages of a script. I notice, I question, then I take my findings and encourage play!

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I keep this “professional play” mindset at the forefront when I’m directing. In practice, that looks like leading with…

• Curiosity

• Humor

• Collaboration

• Humility

• Courtesy

Since moving away from the corn fields, I’ve spent the majority of my time collaborating with a variety of theaters and organizations, emphasizing lifelong learning through working with other theatre-makers and administrators at these institutions. While I remain flexible and am always looking to expand my expertise, I’m incredibly fortunate that these experiences have continued to solidify the fact that these values can and should be upheld in creative spaces and beyond.

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From one-person plays to large-scale summer musicals, I know the importance of being in continual creative practice and working on a variety of productions. Those two extremes and everything in between continue to build my endurance and artistry as a director. But the opportunities that truly excite me include pieces that…

• Aren’t necessarily interested in a fourth wall.

• Focus on or uplift the stories of all kinds of women. The more perplexing, bold, wild, and badass, the better.

• Evoke that same childlike wonder from the first time you experienced a moment of theatre magic. Think less technical spectacle on stage, and more making unexpected character discoveries or finding innovative ways to work around practical production limitations. The moments when an artist’s craft shines brightly and leaves you thinking, “I can’t believe we did that.”

My Type-A brain will analyze and conceptualize how best to bring these elements out while honoring the piece. Then my excited and sometimes silly theatre kid self will inevitably breathe new life into those carefully laid plans through conversations and discoveries in the room with actors and other creatives. It’s well thought out. It’s a little messy. It’s organized chaos.

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With a curious mind, I continue to use my people-watching tendencies for good as a theatre director based in Columbus, Ohio. Or wherever my car can take me.

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Along with being a director, I’m also the Director of Development for All The World’s A Stage, a Disney adult, horror fanatic, and an occasional half-marathon runner. When I’m not in a rehearsal room, I’m most likely on the road on my way to explore a city only a few hours away. That or in my apartment, calling family and friends for hours on end, discovering new music or books, or completing a puzzle over wine.