The Board of Directors

Anne Hamburger is the Founding Artistic Director of En Garde Arts, which she established in 1986. Widely credited with pioneering the site-specific theatre movement in the United States, Hamburger has spent four decades redefining how and where performance happens, transforming city streets, historic landmarks, and public spaces into stages for ambitious, large-scale work.Under her leadership, En Garde Arts has developed and produced groundbreaking projects with artists who have gone on to shape the field, including Anne Bogart, Charles L. Mee, Jonathan Larson, and Reza Abdoh, while continuing to champion a new generation of changemakers such as Jared Mezzocchi, Aya Ogawa, Hansol Jung, and The Pack.Her work defines a model of performance that expands beyond traditional venues, engaging directly with the physical fabric of New York City. It has been recognized with six Obie Awards, two Drama Desk Awards, and an Outer Critics Circle Award.Anne holds an MFA from the Yale School of Drama and is the proud mother of two children, Hannah and Owen.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Bryan Doerries is a writer, director, and translator who currently serves as Artistic Director of Theater of War Productions, a company that presents charged performances of seminal texts, led by acclaimed actors, for audiences with something at stake to catalyze crucial dialogue about pressing, current issues. A self-described evangelist for ancient stories and their relevance to our lives today, Doerries uses age-old approaches to help individuals and communities heal from trauma and loss.During his tenure at Theater of War Productions, the company has presented diverse projects across the United States and the world, that regularly take place in homeless shelters and jails, military bases and hospitals, housing projects, churches, public parks, and rival gang territories, but also in cultural spaces, on the radio, and on Zoom. These free events are all designed to be authentic, community-driven exchanges that culminate in guided audience discussions about challenging, often divisive subjects, such as the visible and invisible wounds of war, end-of-life care, racism, incarceration, gun violence, domestic violence, the climate crisis, sexual assault, immigration, and addiction. Doerries’ books include The Theater of War: What Ancient Greek Tragedies Can Teach Us Today, The Odyssey of Sergeant Jack Brennan, All That You’ve Seen Here is God, and Oedipus Trilogy. Among his awards, he has received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Kenyon College, was named Public Artist in Residence for the City of New York, was elected a Hastings Center Fellow, and is a 2025 recipient of the Tällberg-SNF-Eliasson Global Leadership Prize.   Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

We invite you to this month’s International Directors’ Meet-Up, our monthly gathering of directors and theatre makers from around the world.It’s a space to share experiences, trade advice, and find support in what can often be a pretty isolating role. You can come and go as you need, drop in late, leave early, whatever fits your schedule.It’s simply a chance to set aside time each month to sit alongside others who understand the work.For dates, times, and details, head to boardofdirectors.world and pull up a chair at the table. Join the Board.Connect with usSupport the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

We invite you to this month’s International Directors’ Meet-Up, our monthly gathering of directors and theatre makers from around the world.It’s a space to share experiences, trade advice, and find support in what can often be a pretty isolating role. You can come and go as you need, drop in late, leave early, whatever fits your schedule.It’s simply a chance to set aside time each month to sit alongside others who understand the work.For dates, times, and details, head to boardofdirectors.world and pull up a chair at the table. Join the Board.Connect with usSupport the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Mikhael Tara Garver is a pioneering force in immersive storytelling and fandom-driven experience design, shaping how audiences gather, participate, and imagine together at the intersection of live experience, technology, and culture. For over two decades, her work has brought thousands into transformative worlds inside rock clubs and national parks, international theme parks and stadiums, and even a galaxy far, far away.Mikhael’s work centers on immersive experiences as engines for connection, empathy, and collective possibility. Her career places her at the heart of many of immersive storytelling’s defining moments, including serving as a director on the American Repertory Theater’s initial production of Sleep No More and as Creative Director for the band Great Caesar, where she designed an 18-show immersive journey unfolding over eight days at SXSW. Most recently, Mikhael served as Director of Immersive Experience for the THEA Award–winning Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser, realizing her long-held vision of a two-day, three-night live immersive journey that gently draws participants into epic narrative agency. Though not a Star Wars fan at the outset, she has always believed in immersive storytelling’s power to foster transformation and remains deeply grateful to the fandom whose passion continues to carry that force forward.Her award-winning body of work spans projects for AMC Television, Amazon, the National Park Service, Bloomberg, BBDO, Hormel, Tentrr, Viacom, Warner Bros., The La River, Smirnoff, IDEO, Facebook, and Virgin. She has delivered keynotes and advisory leadership across the experiential landscape, including at the World Experience Summit, and has served as a Lead Creative Consultant for Walt Disney Imagineering.A recognized leader in the field, Mikhael is a founding board member of the Immersive Experience Institute, a recipient of the first-ever immersive commissions from The Kennedy Center, Goodman Theatre, the Public Theater, and the National Theatre of Scotland, a multi-year grantee of the Pop Culture Collaborative where she was named a Pop Culture Leader driving culture change, and an International Sacatar Fellow in Bahia, Brazil, where she began writing her book on immersive practice.She is currently the Founder and CEO of Culture House Immersive, a creative studio dedicated to shaping the future of experiential entertainment where technology, story, and human connection meet.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Matt Torney is an Irish-born theatre director and the Artistic Director of Theatrical Outfit in Atlanta, where he leads one of the Southeast’s most respected regional theatre companies, Theatrical Outfit. Originally from Belfast, Torney began his career as a freelance director in Ireland before moving to the United States in 2006 to complete an MFA in Directing at Columbia University.He has directed extensively across the U.S. and internationally, working on both new plays and bold reimaginings of classical texts, with a practice grounded in rigorous collaboration with actors and a strong visual partnership with designers. His productions have received numerous award nominations, including multiple Suzi Bass and Helen Hayes Award nominations.Recent and notable work includes The Honey Trap at the Irish Repertory Theatre (New York Times Critic’s Pick), The Lehman Trilogy by Stefano Massini, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee, and upcoming productions of The Glass Menagerie and The Price at Theatrical Outfit. His forthcoming projects also include The Lehman Trilogy at Alabama Shakespeare Festival.Before joining Theatrical Outfit, Torney served as Associate Artistic Director of Studio Theatre in Washington, DC, and as Director of Programming for Origin Theatre Company in New York. He was also an Associate Director at Rough Magic in Dublin for eight years.Torney’s work is driven by a belief that live theatre is an essential counterbalance to an increasingly digital world, capable of bringing communities together to wrestle with complexity, celebrate joy, and sit honestly with uncertainty. As an artistic leader, he is deeply committed to new work, regional artists, and theatre that speaks directly to the moment in which it is made.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Adriana Baer has been an arts professional for over 20 years. She has held leadership roles at Profile Theatre (Executive Artistic Director) and Cutting Ball Theater (Associate Artistic Director), and has worked with companies including Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and Theatre Communications Group, the national service organization that works for a just and thriving theater ecology.Adriana has directed at theaters including Houston’s Alley Theatre, Portland Center Stage, and Artists Repertory Theatre. She has taught courses and lectured as a guest speaker at numerous colleges and universities nationwide. She holds a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and an MFA in Directing from Columbia University. As part of her mission to support the arts sector as a whole, she worked as the Arts Program Officer for a private family foundation during the pandemic, ensuring that crucial funding for arts organizations was made into multi-year commitments and distributed quickly.As a professional podcaster, Adriana founded, produced, and cohosted From Your Center, successfully publishing over 60 weekly episodes. She has been a guest on dozens of podcasts and teaches the art of podcasting and public speaking through online courses and 1:1 coaching.Adriana is dedicated to community building in the arts sector and believes in the power of creativity to enhance the local economy, cultural identity, and civic life. She is the proud founder and CEO of I’m Into This Place, a media brand focused on highlighting the vibrant arts and culture scene of Clark County. Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Lizards Lying in the Sun/Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol is a collective of artists. They work in theater, create books, radio programs, videos, and educational projects.Since 2003, they have been developing projects to connect work and life, to erase and redefine boundaries. Their work seeks to create narratives from real-life events. It has nothing to do with entertainment; it is a space to think, articulate, displace, and unravel what daily life merges, overlooks, and presents to us as given. Things are what they are, but they can also be different.They have presented their work in almost every state in Mexico; at festivals, independent venues, state theaters, and universities.Abroad, among many others, they have worked at the Reina Sofía Museum (Madrid), Kunstenfestivaldesarts (Brussels), Schaubühne (Berlin), FIBA ​​(Buenos Aires), Wiener Festwochen (Vienna), Festival de Otoño (Paris), Theater Spektakel (Zurich), FTA (Montreal), HAU (Berlin), Kammerspiele (Munich), Santiago a Mil (Santiago), Bienal de Teatro (São Paulo), DeSingel (Antwerp), BITEF (Belgrade), Festival Internacional (Caracas), FAEL (Lima), Belluard International (Freiburg), Cena Contemporânea (Brasilia), TBA (Portland), FIAC (Salvador de Bahia), Festival de Otoño (Madrid), RADAR (Los Angeles), Temporada Alta (Girona), Dialog Festival (Wroclaw), Centro Cultural España (Guatemala), BAD (Bilbao), Inteatro (Ancona), TNT (Terrassa), MESS (Sarajevo), Fusebox (Austin), Norderzon (Groningen), among many others.They have received numerous awards and recognitions, including the ZKB Patronage Prize at Zürcher Theater Spektakel and the Audience Award at the Impatience Festival (Odeon Theatre and Centquatre Theatre) in Paris. Since 2023, their work has been part of The Hemispheric Institute Digital Video Library in New York. Luisa Pardo (Xalapa) is a stage artist, aspiring farmer, and teacher; she is the founder and co-director of the Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol collective, which has produced over 20 artistic projects and performed in 23 countries at various forums and festivals. She has collaborated on theater projects with Hugo Arrevillaga, Juliana Faesler, Marco Canale, and others, and on film projects with Yulene Olaizola, Marise Sistach, and Nicolás Pereda, among others. She worked closely with the Cine Too Lab project and the CAI in Oaxaca. Currently, she is developing and coordinating the YIVI artistic-educational project in the Mixteca Alta region.Lázaro Gabino Rodriguez (Durango) Actor. Master of Arts in Theatre from the Amsterdam University of the Arts (AHK). Since 2003, he has been a member of the Lagartijas Tiradas al Sol collective, where he has developed his theatre work. He writes various texts and has been part of the Cascajo audiobook publishing house since 2016. As an actor, he has appeared in more than 30 feature films with directors such as Nicolás Pereda, Raya Martin, Gust Van der Berghe, and Yulene Olaizola. He has received numerous awards and has been the subject of retrospectives at the Toulouse, Paris Cinema, Geneva, and Cali Film Festivals.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Brian Kulick is a director, writer, producer, educator, and current Chair of the Graduate Theatre Program at Columbia University. He has been the Artistic Director of Classic Stage Company, where he directed Galileo with F. Murray Abraham, The Tempest with Mandy Patinkin, and The Forest with Dianne Wiest. He commissioned and co-directed poet Anne Carson's award-winning An Oresteia, collaborated with composer Duncan Sheik on productions of Brecht’s Caucasian Chalk Circle, Man’s A Man, and Mother Courage, and produced CSC's much lauded Chekhov Cycle (Ivanov, The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, The Three Sisters, and The Cherry Orchard) with Alan Cumming, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Ethan Hawke, Joley Richardson, Peter Sarsgaard, John Turturro and Dianne Weist. He initiated CSC’s Music Theatre Initiative and produced revivals of Stephen Sondheim’s Passion and Pacific Overtures. He also made CSC the home for playwright David Ives, whose Venus in Fur transferred to Broadway and was nominated for a Tony Award for best play. Before this, he was an Artistic Associate and then Associate Producer for the Public Theatre, where he directed the New York premiere of Tony Kushner’s adaptation of A Dybbuk, as well as acclaimed productions of Twelfth Night, Winter’s Tale, and Timon of Athens at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. Other notable works include:  The premieres of Tony Kushner’s The Illusion (New York Theatre Workshop), Kathleen Tolan’s The Wax (Playwrights’ Horizon), and Nilo Cruz’s Two Sisters and a Piano (The McCarter Theatre).  His work has also been seen at The Mark Taper Forum, San Diego's Old Globe, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, ACT Theatre, The Magic Theatre, and Trinity Repertory Theatre, where he served as Associate Artistic Director.  His work in opera and music theatre includes productions of Carmen, Pelleas and Melisandre, A Soldier’s Tale, The Anatole Cycle, and The Guilty Mother (all for Long Beach Opera), and a remounting of Gordon Davidson’s production of Benjamin Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream  (Los Angeles Opera).  He is the author of Staging Shakespeare (Methuen), How Greek Theatre Works, The Elements of Theatrical Expression, and The Secret Life of Theatre (all for Routledge). His most recent book, Staging the End of the World: Theatre in a Time of Climate Crisis, has just been released by Methuen.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Kareem Fahmy has directed and developed plays at theatres including MCC, The Atlantic, The New Group, Ensemble Studio Theatre, New Dramatists, The Civilians, Writers Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse, Geva Theatre, Pioneer Theatre, The Magic, Contemporary American Theatre Festival, Berkeley Rep, and more. He is a New York Theatre Workshop Usual Suspect.His plays, which include Fountains of Youth, Dodi & Diana, American Fast, A Distinct Society, The Triumphant, Pareidolia, The In-Between, and an adaptation of the novel The Yacoubian Building,have been produced at Colt Coeur, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Pioneer Theatre, Writers Theatre, City Theatre, Artists Repertory Theatre, InterAct Theatre, Capital Stage, Constellation Stage, Noor Theatre, Target Margin Theatre, the Human Race Theatre Company, and Theater Alliance.Kareem has received fellowships from MacDowell, Yaddo, Sundance Theatre Lab, the Stratford Festival of Canada, New Harmony Project, Hermitage Artists Retreat, Banff Playwrights Lab, Oregon Shakespeare Festival (Phil Killian Directing Fellow), The Old Globe (Classical Directing Fellow), Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center (National Directors Fellow), Second Stage (Van Lier Directing Fellow), Soho Rep (Writer/Director Lab), Lincoln Center (Directors Lab), The New Museum (Artist-in-Residence), and New York Theater Workshop (Emerging Artist Fellow). He is a NYSCA/NYFA Playwriting Fellow.He's been a finalist for the Princess Grace Award, the O'Neill National Playwrights Conference, and the National Showcase of New Plays, is a two-time winner of the Capital Rep New Play Award, and received the Joanne Woodward/Paul Newman Playwriting Award for American Fast. His work has been developed at Atlantic Theatre Company, New York Stage & Film, Denver Center, Northlight Theatre, Citadel Theatre, and many more.​As a screenwriter, he was in the inaugural cohort of Warner Media's Access Writers Program. His TV pilots have been finalists for the episodic labs at Sundance, Orchard Project, and Austin Film Festival.​MFA, Theatre Directing from Columbia University.​Kareem lives in New York City with his husband, acclaimed fiction writer John McManus, and their dog Kip.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Alvin Tan is the founder and artistic director of The Necessary Stage, one of Singapore’s most respected theatre companies, and the co–artistic director of the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival. A central figure in the evolution of devising in Singapore, he has directed more than one hundred productions presented across Asia, Europe and Australia, including cities such as Glasgow, Cairo, Busan, Melbourne, Birmingham, London, Dublin, New Delhi, Budapest and Bucharest.His practice is distinguished by a social anthropological approach to character and an unflinching engagement with humanitarian and social issues. This is exemplified in his long-running collaboration with playwright Haresh Sharma. Tan’s stagings of Off Centre focused national attention on mental health, while Fundamentally Happy confronted the emotional and legal complexities surrounding paedophilia. Through these and many other works, he has consistently foregrounded contemporary Singaporean life and identity.Since founding The Necessary Stage in 1987, Tan has championed a collaborative, research-driven methodology. The company’s signature play-building process blends rigorous investigation, extensive improvisation and collective authorship. Under his leadership, TNS has become one of Singapore’s most influential theatre groups.Tan’s commitment to theatre as social engagement extends far beyond the rehearsal room. His advocacy helped catalyse the rise of community theatre in Singapore and brought performance into the heartlands through projects such as the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival, Theatre for Youth Branch, the Marine Parade Theatre Festival and Theatre for Seniors. These platforms have enabled diverse communities to explore their stories and cultural identities on stage. He also initiated publications such as 9 Lives: 10 Years of Singapore Theatre to encourage exchange between artists, thinkers and civil society.His international work includes representing Singapore at conferences and cultural forums around the world, including the World Culture Forum Alliance in São Paulo and the Conference of Asian Foundations and Organisations in Barcelona. He was a Fulbright Scholar at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and holds degrees from the National University of Singapore, the Institute of Education and the University of Birmingham. His contributions have been widely recognised, including the Young Artist Award, the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres and the Cultural Medallion.A dedicated mentor, Tan has played a formative role in the development of artists, including Chong Tze Chien of The Finger Players and Natalie Hennedige of Cake Theatrical Productions.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Suman Mukhopadhyay’s films deal with the socio-political realities and engage in a critical assessment of the contemporary. His explorations into the subaltern lives and histories have lent a distinction to his filmmaking and theatre productions.  Suman has directed nine full-length feature films, including Putulnacher Itikatha(2023), Nazarband (2020), Asamapta (2017), and Herbert (2005), which won the National Award for Best Regional Film that year.​ He participated and won awards in various national and international theatre and film festivals, including Busan, Montreal, Dubai, Munich, San Francisco, Seattle, and Kerala etc. Suman has also made several documentaries, TV series, short films, and cine-plays.  He was conferred with an award from the Motion Picture Association and Asia Pacific Screen Awards, Brisbane, in 2017. His latest film, Putulnacher Itikatha (The Puppet’s Tale), had its world premiere at the International Film Festival of Rotterdam 2025. Suman Mukhopadhyay is one of India’s leading theatre directors and has done productions ranging from European drama to major adaptations of Bengali masterpieces and Indian plays.  His major plays are Teesta Paarer Brittanto, Mephisto, Bisarjan, and King Lear. Suman taught and directed plays at UC Berkeley, the University of Toledo, Kalamazoo College, and Barnard College in the USA.  He was on a Fulbright fellowship (2022) at Columbia University, New York, and was a George A. Miller Visiting Artist, UIUC (2023).  Very recently, he was a recipient of the Hubert Bals Development Fund 2025. https://www.sumanmukhopadhyay.com/Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Pirronne Yousefzadeh (She/Her/Hers) directs theatre that speaks to the moment and uplifts Global Majority communities with buoyancy, joy, and theatrical magic. She is a director, writer, and educator, serving as Associate Artistic Director and Director of Artistic Partnerships at the Playwrights’ Center. Previously, she served as the Producing Artistic Director at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center and as the Associate Artistic Director and Director of Engagement at Geva Theatre. Additionally, Pirronne is a founding member of Maia Directors, a consulting group for artists and organizations engaging with stories from the Middle East and beyond. Recent projects include King Lear (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival), The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington by James Ijames (Mixed Blood; Star Tribune’s Best of 2024 list), the world premiere of The Ants by Ramiz Monsef (Geffen), the world premiere of It’s Christmas, Carol! by Mark Bedard, Brent Hinkley, and John Tufts (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Vietgone by Qui Nguyen (Geva Theatre Center), Heartland by Gabriel Jason Dean (59E59), Yoga Play by Dipika Guha (Playmakers Repertory Company, and the world premiere of Kid Prince & Pablo by Brian Quijada (The Kennedy Center). She has directed and developed work at The Public/Joe's Pub, Playwrights Horizons, New York Theatre Workshop, Ars Nova, Soho Rep, Atlantic Theater Company, Ma-Yi Theater Company, Rising Circle Theater Collective, The Woodshed Collective (The Tenant: Best of 2011, The L Magazine), Partial Comfort Productions, Noor Theatre, Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Wild Project, Dixon Place, The Living Theatre, The Lark Play Development Center, New Dramatists, The Kennedy Center, Geffen Playhouse, Williamstown Theatre Festival, American Conservatory Theater, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Ojai Playwrights Conference, Cleveland Playhouse, La Jolla Playhouse, Geva Theatre, Pioneer Theatre Company, Huntington Theatre Company, Two River Theater Company, Milwaukee Rep, Kitchen Theatre Company, Dorset Theatre Festival, InterAct Theatre Company, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, On The Boards, Perseverance Theatre, and Hangar Theatre, where she was a 2006 Drama League Directing Fellow.Pirronne is a Usual Suspect at New York Theatre Workshop, New Georges Affiliated Artist, member of Ensemble Studio Theatre and Wingspace, and an alumna of the 2050 Fellowship at NYTW, Sagal Fellowship at Williamstown Theatre Festival,  SDC Denham Fellowship, Lincoln Center Directors Lab, Soho Rep Writer/Director Lab, Ensemble Studio Theatre's Resident Director Program, New Georges Jam, and Drama League Directors Project. She has served on the faculty at The University of Texas at Austin, Rutgers University, and Bard High School Early College, and as a guest director and instructor at Yale School of Drama, Juilliard, Fordham University, and University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, among others. Pirronne received her M.F.A. in Directing from Columbia University, where she was a Shubert PreConnect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Acadia Barrengos (she/her) is a New York-based director whose work excavates lost histories and engages audiences viscerally. In addition to NYC, she has worked in Washington, D.C., Chicago, San Francisco, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and New Jersey.Inspired by the study of epigenetics, Acadia is driven by stories that wrestle with inheritance. Her work prioritizes surprise, ensemble, and rhythm. Acadia’s work walks the line of hope and doubt, and investigates the space between the pedestrian and spectral, the bloody and the magical.B.F.A in Directing from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Minor in Arts Entrepreneurship.https://www.acadiabarrengos.com/Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Joe Deer is the award-winning director and choreographer of over 200 productions - from Off-Broadway to London, regional to summer stock, international, and university stages. His projects vary from new works in Matera, Italy, to operas, classic plays, and musicals at some of the world's finest theaters and training centers.  Joe is a former Chair and Artistic Director of the Department of Theatre, Dance and Motion Pictures at Wright State University (Dayton, OH), where he is the Distinguished Professor of Musical Theatre (emeritus). Joe was Director of The Musical Theatre Initiative at Wright State, an international center founded to celebrate and explore the history, culture, and craft of this art form. For 20 years, he was Founding Head of Wright State's Musical Theatre Program. His students populate Broadway, national tour, regional, and international stages and have won numerous Tony and Olivier Awards.Joe began his career as a street busker in New York’s Shubert Alley and eventually appeared in the Broadway and touring productions of Anything Goes, The American Dancemachine, Singin' In The Rain, NYC Opera’s acclaimed productions of Brigadoon and The Music Man.  Off-Broadway shows include Rainbow, Subway Series (with NYC Tapworks), and Music, Rhythm and Tap (at Brooklyn Academy of Music). He also appeared at Carnegie Hall and The Kennedy Center Honors. Joe’s stage managing credits include the Broadway revival of Guys and Dolls, regional productions of Lend Me a Tenor, and productions for New York’s Playwrights’ Horizons, as well as serving as a production assistant on the first workshop of Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins.Joe received the Ohio Governor’s Award for the Arts in Arts Education (2016), Wright State University’s Trustees’ Award for Faculty Excellence, and the College of Liberal Arts Award for Faculty Excellence (2014), more than three dozen regional awards for best production or direction, and was inducted into the Dayton Theatre Hall of Fame. He was the founding President of the Musical Theatre Educators Alliance, from whom he received a Career Achievement Award for his ongoing commitment to Musical Theatre education. Joe is a frequent guest artist and master teacher at the world's finest institutions, including the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (London, England), Danish Academy of Musical Theatre, Stage School (Hamburg, GE), Royal Welsh School of Music and Drama (Wales), Sheridan College (Canada), Scuola del Teatro Musicale (Milan, Italy) and many of the top training programs in the US (Carnegie Mellon University, North Carolina School of the Arts, University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music and many others). He has presented workshops for thousands of students and teachers worldwide. In the Dayton (Ohio) region, he proudly affiliates with The Muse Machine, where he has been a frequent director and teacher, and The Human Race Theatre Company, where he's a Resident Artist. He holds an MFA in Directing from Carnegie Mellon University.Joe is the author of the book, Directing In Musical Theatre: An Essential Guide (revised and expanded secondConnect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Mei Ann Teo (they/them) is a queer immigrant from Singapore, an artistic leader, theatre maker, and educator whose work bridges the intersections of the artistic, the civic, and the contemplative. As a director, deviser, and dramaturg, Teo creates across genres, from music theatre and reimagined classics to intermedial participatory projects and documentary theatre, always with a deep curiosity for how performance can reimagine our shared world.Teo has directed and developed an extraordinary range of productions across the U.S. and internationally. Their directing credits include Jillian Walker’s SKiNFoLK: An American Show at The Bushwick Starr; Ruth Tang’s Building A Character with Rebekah Sangeetha Dorai at Wild Rice’s Singapore Theatre Festival; and Madeline Sayet’s Where We Belong, which premiered at Shakespeare’s Globe before touring nationally to Woolly Mammoth, The Public, Seattle Rep, Baltimore Center Stage, Philadelphia Theatre Company, The Goodman, Portland Center Stage, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and Folger Shakespeare Library. Teo also directed the North American premiere of Amy Berryman’s Walden at TheatreWorks Hartford, which swept the Connecticut Critics Circle Awards, including Best Production and Best Director.Internationally, Teo directed the world premiere of Dim Sum Warriors at Theatre Above in Shanghai, written by Colin Goh and Yen Yen Woo, composed by Pulitzer Prize–winner Du Yun, which went on to tour 25 cities across China. Their documentary and socially engaged work includes the acclaimed Lyrics from Lockdown by Bryonn Bain (touring Belgium’s Festival de Liège, Singapore’s M1 Festival, National Black Theatre, and U.S. prisons and universities) and Labyrinth for the Beijing International Festival, named one of the Top 8 Productions by Beijing News.A recipient of the League of Professional Theatre Women’s Josephine Abady Award and the inaugural Lily Fan Director Lilly Award, Teo has served as Artistic Director of Musical Theatre Factory, Associate Artistic Director and Director of New Work at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and now as Artistic Director of New Work at Ping Chong and Company, carrying forward the company’s legacy into a new era under the banner of “Pink Fang.”Across continents, disciplines, and communities, Mei Ann Teo’s work continues to challenge, heal, and expand our understanding of what theatre can be — a space where art and justice meet, and where the stories of the diaspora, the queer body, and the collective imagination are given bold and resonant life.Learn more at meiannteo.com.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

In this episode, director and actor Shaun Patrick Tubbs joins us to talk about his journey through the worlds of theatre, opera, and new play development. This path has taken him from Wright State to Juilliard, from Miami to New York, from performing center stage to shaping stories from the director’s chair.Shaun’s directing work reflects a deep commitment to both craft and conscience. His productions include Ragtime (Union Avenue Opera), Defacing Michael Jackson (Miami New Drama), The Tempest and Life Is a Dream (Juilliard), Sweat (Wright State University), Black Dick (New York Theatre Workshop), Independence Eve (Signature Theatre DC), hop thA A (Ars Nova), Artney Jackson (The Lark/New Black Festival), and Disgraced (Asolo Repertory Theatre). Each work he approaches reveals a director attuned to rhythm, character, and the political heart of storytelling — a sensibility born from years of listening as an actor and creating as a collaborator.As a performer, Shaun has appeared in Terminus (New York Theatre Workshop), The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged (Human Race Theatre), My Mañana Comes (Manhattan Theatre Club), and The Book of Grace (Zachary Scott Theatre). His range as an artist — from classical to contemporary, comedic to deeply human — reflects his belief that theatre at its best is an act of empathy and invitation.A recipient of numerous fellowships and awards, Shaun holds an MFA from the University of Texas at Austin and a BFA from Wright State University. He is a proud member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC), Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), and SAG-AFTRA.Shaun’s artistry is grounded in both rigorous training and radical openness. Whether directing a new work or reimagining a classic, he asks the same questions: What does this story demand of us now? How do we create space for transformation, not just performance? And what happens when artists bring their whole selves to the work, intellect, heart, humor, and history?In conversation, Shaun is as generous and thoughtful as his directing suggests, exploring how identity and experience shape artistic choices, how collaboration becomes a political act, and how storytelling can hold a mirror up to both beauty and discomfort. His career is a testament to a life lived in dialogue with the art form itself.Discover more about his work at shaunpatricktubbs.com.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Director, Professor, and writer Anne Bogart has led the Directing concentration at Columbia University's School of the Arts' Theatre program for over 30 years—almost as long as the concentration has been in existence. While her reputation off-campus precedes her as the co-founder of the renowned SITI Theatre Company, which she founded with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki in 1992, and the revolutionary Viewpoints acting method, on campus, she is known for her extraordinary dedication to her students and their success. She is the recipient of four Honorary Doctorates from The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Skidmore College, Bard College, and Cornish College. She was a recipient of a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, the Richard B. Fisher Award, a USA Fellowship, a Rockefeller Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and received the 2016 Alfred Drake Award from Brooklyn College. Works with SITI include Radio Christmas Carol, Falling & Loving, The Bacchae, Chess Match, The Theater is a Blank Page, Steel Hammer, Persians, A Rite, Café Variations, Trojan Women, American Document, Antigone, Freshwater, Under Construction, Who Do You Think You Are, Radio Macbeth, Hotel Cassiopeia; Death and the Ploughman, La Dispute, Score, bobrauschenbergamerica, Room, War of the Worlds, Cabin Pressure, The Radio Play, Alice’s Adventures, Culture of Desire, Bob, Going, Going, Gone, Small Lives/Big Dreams, The Medium, Hay Fever, Private Lives, Miss Julie, and Orestes. Operas include Tristan and Isolde, The Handmaid’s Tale, Alcina, Macbeth, Norma, Carmen, I Capuleti e i Montecchi, Nicholas and Alexandra, Marina: A Captive Spirit, Lilith, and Seven Deadly Sins. Bogart is the author of six books: A Director Prepares, The Viewpoints Book, And Then, You Act, Conversations with Anne, What’s the Story, and, most recently, The Art of Resonance.Connect with usThis monthly gathering invites directors and other theatre makers to come together, share experiences, and seek advice in a supportive community. There is often an isolating nature to directing, and this new space aims to foster connection and collaboration. The Board of Directors is an opportunity to set aside time each month to be alongside members of the Directing community all over the world. Support the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home

Here’s something that most people don’t know: my whole career as a podcaster is actually an accident.It all started in 2020, during the pandemic, with The Theatre of Others Podcast. At first, it was just a way to stay connected, to share ideas, and to bring a little spark of creativity at a time when we all felt isolated. What began as a small experiment suddenly took off, and it opened doors I never expected.Now I find myself on a new path—with The Board of Directors. And this wasn’t supposed to be a thing either. But the truth is, directors rarely get the chance to see each other’s work. We don’t sit in on each other’s rehearsals. We don’t often get to share how we live inside this strange, demanding, exhilarating role of being a director.So this podcast is not about how to direct—it’s not a handbook of tips and tricks. It’s about how to BE a director. What it feels like. What it means. The doubts, the breakthroughs, the ways we navigate making work with others.And because I can do whatever I want, I’m choosing to talk with directors I admire, directors you may know, and directors you may never have heard of—but each one has something worth sharing. Something I believe will challenge us, move us, and maybe even change the way we see our own practice.I am as much a student of these conversations as you are. I come with my curiosity, my questions, my desire to learn. Sometimes we’ll agree, sometimes we won’t. And that’s all part of it.So, if you’re looking for insight, companionship, and a glimpse into the often unseen world of the director’s craft, join me here, on The Board of Directors. Let’s learn what it means to be a director—together.Music: Purple Planet MusicConnect with usSupport the showTo submit a question:Voice- https://www.speakpipe.com/TheBoardofDirectorsEmail- [email protected] CreditsHost: Adam MarpleMusic: https://www.purple-planet.com/home