In a groundbreaking milestone for Cockpit in Court Summer Theatre, we proudly present a transformative chapter that celebrates the incredible talent and vision of four exceptional female directors. Breaking barriers and shattering preconceived notions, these visionary leaders are at the helm, steering our productions with creativity, insight, and a fresh perspective. In a historic first for Cockpit, we begin our journey led by the unique voices of these accomplished directors, each bringing her distinct flair to the world of storytelling. Join us as we embark on this exciting venture, where the spotlight shines brightly on the brilliance of our female directors, setting the stage for a new era of creativity and innovation. Starting our journey, Lauren, a trailblazer in her own right, sets our stage.
Lauren Spencer-Harris
Director/Choreographer for Jerry’s Girls
Lauren is humbled to be directing Jerry’s Girls this Summer. Cockpit in Court holds an extremely special part in her heart.
Lauren’s first show at Cockpit was when she was 12 years old. She was a Dancing Flower in Alice in Wonderland with the Court Jesters Children’s Theatre. A very spirited and motivating young Diane Trowbridge- Smith taught her the etiquette of being a young actor. She taught her that no matter what part you hold in a production, you are valued and necessary. This may have created her actual spark for directing. Lauren continued performing with the Court Jesters until age 15 when she was excited to be cast in her first Mainstage Cockpit show, Jesus Christ Superstar in 1993.
This production was directed by F. Scott Black. This began her long journey working with Scott at Cockpit and at the Towsontown and Towson Dinner Theatres. Scott’s thorough directing style and encouragement to build characters, no matter what part you were, made a huge impact on the way Lauren learned to coach actors. The next few years at Cockpit exposed Lauren to working with all the “stars” of her childhood, such as Liz Boyer-Hunnicutt, Eddie Peters, Chuck Graham, and Shannon Wollman. Some productions included, How to Succeed in Business…, Mame, Steel Magnolias, and The Goodbye Girl. Some of favorite credits included performing in any Todd Pearthree directed show. He is a huge mentor to Lauren in so many ways. His gift of creativity, time management and clean stage transitions are incomparable in her opinion.
Upon high school graduation from The Baltimore School for the Arts, Lauren attended The Boston Conservatory. She earned her BFA in Musical Theatre with an emphasis in directing. It was while at the Conservatory, she decided she wanted to pursue directing. While there, she applied to enter the Directing Emphasis program. They only chose 5 student directors a year, and she was one of the only women chosen to study in their directing program. The first musical she ever directed on her own was Cabaret followed by the play, Savage in Limbo by John Patrick Shanley.
Upon graduation from Conservatory, Lauren was blessed to play many exciting and fun roles as a professional working actor, some locally and nationally, however her heart was behind the scenes.
Lauren has been back in Maryland since the mid 2000’s and has been directing ever since. She has held theatre faculty positions at numerous schools and institutions such as Patapsco Center for the Arts, Garrison Forest School, Seton Keough, and Harford Community College. She has also directed at numerous local community and children’s theatres.
To date, Lauren has been spending her directing energy with The Suburban Players at Saint Demetrios Orthodox Church. This will be her 7th season with them. Working at the Suburban Players brought her together with her current Jerry’s Girls Artistic team, Steven Soltow and Dan Morelli. She feels so blessed to be surrounded with such a young and fresh team. Steven and Dan are truly the best at their jobs and can’t wait to see what their future holds for them. It takes a village. Growing up at Cockpit was absolutely a huge part of Lauren’s.
Her love, as always, goes out to her daughter Zoe and Silvester. By day, she is a middle school English Teacher for BCPS.
See Jerry’s Girls June 14 – 30 at Cockpit in Court, Cabaret Theatre.
Performances:
June 14, 15, 21, 22, 28, 29 at 8 p.m.; June 16, 23, 30 at 3 p.m.
Tickets:
$20 Adult | $18 Seniors | $14 Student/Child. Purchase tickets online at www.ccbctickets or call the Box Office at 443-840-ARTS.
