The Art of Directing

On Thursday, March 17 at 7:00 pm join The Umbrella Community for The Art of Directing featuring Michelle Aguillon, director of True West; Nancy Curran Willis, director of Bonnie & Clyde; and Rebecca Bradshaw, director of Oleanna. These three directors will discuss what goes on behind the productions at The Umbrella, sharing tricks of the trade and insights into the life of a director. In honor of Women's History Month, they'll also look at what it means to be a woman in a profession that is still dominated by men.

The ArtTalk series brings presentations about visual art to The Umbrella that spark insightful conversations and rich contemplation. Tickets to all of The Umbrella's ArtTalks are $10 for the general public and $7 for resident artists.

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About the panelists:

• Michelle Aguillon, director of True West, is currently directing Rapture, Blister, Burn by Gina Gionfriddo for Vokes Players in Wayland.  In addition to True West, she recently directed Of Mice and Men at Quannapowitt Players in Reading, Rabbit Hole and Good People at Hovey Players in Waltham, and God of Carnage at Acme Theater in Maynard. Other directing credits include Rabbit Hole (EMACT 2014 Festival Winner), Kimberly Akimbo, Sense & Sensibility, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Looking for Normal, and G.R. Point (IRNE Best Director winner), all with Hovey Players.  Michelle also directed Miss Saigon, Secret Garden (Turtle Lane Playhouse), Godspell (Metro Stage Co.), and Anton in Show Business (Acme Theater), and has directed various short plays for the Boston Theater Marathon, Hovey Summer Shorts, and the Acme Winter Works Festival.  Michelle has performed in various productions throughout the Boston area for over 20 years, and has appeared in several industrial films and commercial media.  She received her theatre education at San Francisco State University, California State University at Long Beach, and the National Theatre of London.  
• Nancy Curran Willis, director of Bonnie & Clyde, is an experienced freelance director with over 30 years of directing experience in professional, regional, community and high school theaters. As the Managing Director for Gloucester Stage Company she directed the The Laramie Project and Berlin to Broadway. She also directed Boston Theatre Works’ productions of Conspiracy of Memory, the New England premiere of Coyote on a Fence and the IRNE nominated and Elliot Norton award winning The Laramie Project. In 2008, Nancy received the coveted Elliot Norton Award (Boston's equivalent of a Tony) for Outstanding Direction for BTW’s production of Angels in America. Her productions have received IRNE (Independent Reviewers of New England) nominations for director for Lips Together, Teeth Apart at Vokes and for Doubt: A Parable at Hovey. Nancy was the artistic director and a founding member of Second Stage Theatre Company where she directed the New England premiere of Proposals at the New Repertory Theatre. Other professional credits include: Doubt: A Parable for Foothills Theatre; Crimes of the Heart, and On Golden Pond for Leatherstocking Theatre Company in New York.

  Here at The Umbrella Nancy directed the New England Premiere of the musical Bonnie and Clyde earlier this season. She was at the helm of the multi-award winning and EMACT nominated production of Angels in America, for which she received the coveted Best Director Award by ArtsImpulse. Last season’s production of Kiss Me, Kate for Concord Players won the EMACT Best Musical and Best Director Awards. Her work with large scale musicals has been extensively recognized with DASH nominations and awards: including best production for Grey Gardens and West Side Story at AFD. She has directed for Acme Theater, Vokes Players, Hovey Players, Burlington Players, Footlight Club and Winchester Players and recently retired after almost ten years as a Director, Guest Artist for Newton South High School where she was proud to bring the love of theater to the next generation of theater artists.

• Rebecca Bradshaw, director of Oleanna  is a theatre director, producer, and public relations professional in the Boston area. She is ecstatic to be back at the Umbrella after directing John Logan's Red. She has also directed full productions for SpeakEasy Stage, Stoneham Theatre, Bridge Rep of Boston, Hub Theatre of Boston, Weston Drama Workshop, Fresh Ink Theatre, Can’t Wait Productions, and Brown Box Theatre Project. She has directed readings and small projects for the Huntington Theatre Company, New Repertory Theater, Gloucester Stage, Harvard University, Boston University, New England Conservatory, and Brandeis University. She is the producer for The Bostonian Society's Blood on the Snow (May 2016) and on the producing team for Magnificent Bastard's Shit-Faced Shakespeare. Her knack for connecting people to people and ease in a fast-paced environment, made the leap to PR a perfect fit - joining the team at Drive Public Relations + Consulting last spring. Rebecca is a proud graduate of Emerson College, graduating with a BA in Theatre Studies. rebeccalynnbradshaw.com