About Me
Elizabeth is a theatre educator, director, and teaching artist. She teaches Drama & English at Carlmont High School in Belmont, CA. Elizabeth holds an M.A. in Theatre Education from Emerson College, a B.A. in English from Whitman College, and teaching licenses in Theatre and English.
Elizabeth cares deeply about sharing her artistic passion with young people. She practices a process-based, student-centered approach to theatre education and believes that the best teaching environment is one in which every student feels supported, safe, challenged, and ultimately successful.
Elizabeth understands the power of theatre education because she has lived it. She was actively involved in youth theatre growing up, starting with her very first acting role (a ladybug in Going Buggy) and continuing through her time at Saratoga High School. Elizabeth went on to attend Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA, where she graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in English and a minor in Theatre. Knowing that she wanted a career teaching theatre, Elizabeth moved back to the Bay Area after graduation and took a full-time position with California Theatre Center (CTC), a non-profit theatre for youth.
While at CTC, Elizabeth worked as a performer and teacher and was eventually promoted to Education Coordinator. She worked alongside the Education Director to oversee all aspects of CTC's educational programming, including curriculum development, training new teachers, and communicating with parents and other patrons on a daily basis. Outside of the office, Elizabeth was responsible for directing and producing school outreach productions, teaching summer conservatories, training high school students in leadership skills, and leading workshops in a variety of topics. She taught hundreds of young people in all grade levels, from kindergarten through high school.
In the fall of 2014, Elizabeth relocated to Boston, MA to begin graduate studies at Emerson College. After earning an M.A. in Theatre Education and a teaching license, she spent three years as the Drama Teacher and Theatre Director at Ashland Middle School. Elizabeth developed the curriculum for her drama classes and taught every child in the school. As the leader of the Drama Club program, she directed two productions each year with a cast & crew of up to 80+ students. She also taught with a number of other schools and organizations in the greater Boston area, including Hingham High & Middle Schools, Somerville Arts for Youth, Somerville High School, Arlington Center for the Arts, Watertown Children's Theatre, Next Generation Theatre Company, North Shore YMCA, and ArtsEmerson.
Since moving back to California in 2019, Elizabeth has taught and directed with numerous Bay Area-based theatre companies, including Portola Valley Theatre Conservatory, Redwood City Youth Theatre, Starting Arts, and StarStruck Theatre. She has continued teaching throughout the pandemic and has become quite adept at adapting her teaching and directing for Zoom!
Elizabeth is also an actor with experience performing for children and adults. At CTC, she appeared in numerous productions for elementary school audiences, including Charlotte's Web (Fern), The Elves and the Shoemaker (Holly the Elf), Cinderella (Stepsister), and many more. While on tour with CTC, Elizabeth performed in 32 cities across 3 states for tens of thousands of school-age children. Other roles include Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Miranda in The Tempest, and Betty in Dangerous Corner.
Outside of the theatre, Elizabeth enjoys literature of all genres. She also loves classic films (especially Hitchcock), travel, history, coffee, and the San Francisco Giants.
Photo Credit: Maren Lovgren & Hayley Lovgren