Karen Sabo

Here's the thing: in shows I direct, no one gets off easy.  And certainly not me.  

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I've been a member of Actors' Equity since 1995, and have respect for acting.  But the hardest thing I've done in theatre is to direct.  Actually, I think the hardest thing in theatre is to direct well, and I'm not going to do it if I can't do it well.

 

Working always from a place of generosity, love of people, and respect for art, I require actors to go deeper than they might be inclined, and to always pursue action within the show.  Whether they're professionals or amateurs (and I write that cognizant that the root of the word amateur means "one who works for love"), I direct in such a way that we all, actors, designers, technicians, build a road together that we can travel down, veering within a framework that we've all built under my guidance, that starts with respect for the script and the story we tell.

 

Whether I'm directing or teaching, I recognize that theatre is a system of signs, deliberately arranged to generate meaning. When we recognize that theatre is made of signs, it enables the artists and audiences to recognize signs in our larger society that we may otherwise take for granted, or think are inevitable, and be less subject to the power of those signs, because we become more skilled at reading them, whether they're on the stage or in the news.  I know that when theatre artists deliberately create a little world on stage, that's practice for being able to deliberately create our larger community. 

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You will find my shows consistently engaging, my actors happy and empowered, and my processes invigorating.  I use my love of interdisciplinarity to create multi-layered shows with great heart and much humor that also engage audiences' minds. 

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I direct because if I do it right, I make a positive impact on the world.  Contact me to direct, and I'll make a positive impact on your audiences and make people fall in love with theatre all over again.