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ELANA
SWARTZ
DIRECTOR
Elana is driven by honest, playful,
and collaborative processes and products.
Elana has written and performed street theatre in Thailand, Mexico, Northern Ireland, and England.
She is passionate about creating environments where actors, designers, and collaborators feel both challenged and empowered to take creative risks. She seeks work that dissects how art influences culture and changes communities.
Over the seven years of volunteering with Harrisonburg High School, multiple productions won awards including acting awards, Best Ensembles and a State Championship for a one-act, commedia inspired adaptation of The Beggar's Opera. Pieces, a one-act play she co-wrote and co-directed with the students, placed third in the state within the Virginia High School League Theatre Competition.
Elana participated in the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society Fellowship through The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival this past January. Through her work as an assistant director alongside Wolf J. Sherrill, she received a Certificate of Merit for Region II for her work on School For Scandal.
Elana also recently spearheaded an intimate production of Lauren Gunderson's I and You in the student Experimental Theatre at James Madison University this spring.
"The production [I and You] itself was exceptional. Elana has an advanced eye for moment to moment work that is unrivaled by her peers. This gift, along with a clear design concept, motivated movement, and a moving character arc, created an engaging evening of thought provoking theatre."
-Wolf J. Sherrill,
Associate Professor, James Madison University
gallery directing
DIRECTING PRODUCTION PHOTOS
I and You by Lauren Gunderson
Elana was the Director in the Experimental Studio Theatre at James Madison University
School for Scandal by R.B. Sheridan Adapted by Wolf J. Sherrill
Elana was the Assistant Director at James Madison University.
- Received a KCACTF Region II Certificate of Merit for her work on this production.
Work at Harrisonburg High School
Elana worked as an acting coach, makeup designer, choreographer, and assistant director for Aida, Suessical, The Beggar's Opera, Oklahoma!, Les Miserables, and more!
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