I am a director, educator, devisor, dramaturge and collaborative theatre artist working in a wide scope of creative practices.
I'm currently based in London, but I am the proud bilingual kid of two Sicilian immigrants, born & raised in Boston. I am a first-gen American and first-gen high school graduate with dual citizenship. In 2012 I graduated with top marks from Brown University and in 2017 I received my MA with Distinction in Theatre Directing from LAMDA. I was long listed for the 2019 JMK Award.
I am passionate about cultures, communities, places, and shared histories. I also have a background in devised theatre, physical theater, and clowning that I regularly bring into my directing work. I am skilled in dramaturgy, both in developing new work and also in research and analysis. My goal is to use my combined skills of directing, dramaturgy, and producing to support the work of other artists through thoughtful artistic or literary programming. I'm currently on the lookout for opportunities to expand my professional experience in this direction.
In 2016, I founded Trinacria Theatre Company, which uses the arts to develop projects focusing on community-building, place-making, and intercultural exchange in communities with low access to cultural programming. Trinacria has a established a residency program for international theatre artists to live, train, and work in rural communities in Messina, Sicily. Our residency invites international professional artists to create new work while engaging with the community and learning about the local culture. Our 2016 debut was a full-length devised performance based on a local folklore titled "La Storia di Colapesce," which was featured on RAI International and toured to ten different locations in Messina, Boston, and NYC. Currently the company is working on devising a new large-scale, site-specific piece with the working title "The Hades & Persephone Project." We have also previously experimented with a prototype international arts festival in the region which we hope to expand in the future. This October, I was a featured speaker at the 2019 National Outdoor Theatre Conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where I presented on placemaking theatre in Italy, supported by a grant from the Paul Green foundation. For more information, please visit www.trinacriatheatre.com.
I also have extensive experience as an educator and have worked with students of all ages from 3 to 18. I freelance regularly as a workshop leader and/or guest director for LAMDA's Widening Access Department, which strives to connect with people and communities who are underrepresented in higher education and the arts. Prior to coming to London, I founded and nurtured the academic and extracurricular performing arts programmes at Saint Joseph Preparatory High School in Boston, which "have become an extraordinary legacy in the relatively short life of the school."
To view my portfolio, please visit www.mariagrazialafauci.com
She/her/hers
2-5 years
Italian