Bio: Eliana Sigel-Epstein is a director and theatre-maker in Chicago. She graduated from Tufts University in Boston, MA in May 2011 where she directed Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya and Jean-Claude van Itallie’s Eat Cake, among others, and performed in over 8 productions. In the fall of 2009, she studied at the Moscow Art Theatre, and she cannot wait to return to Moscow, especially with some of the inspiring artists she met while studying there in 2009. Currently, she is directing a staged reading of an original adaptation of The Marriage (Gogol) and working in the Development Department at Writers’ Theatre in Glencoe, IL. In her free time, she practices Russian thanks to Rosetta Stone and watches Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show nightly.
What attracted me to this program?
When I studied abroad in Moscow junior year of college, I saw theatre productions unlike anything I had seen before. Perhaps because of the language barrier, I saw productions that communicated stories that transcended words. “Opus No. 7” at GITIS particularly amazed me with its imaginative and evocative storytelling about a very painful subject. I am excited to learn from masters of theatrical storytelling, whose works like “Opus No. 7” and others redefined my expectations of theatre. I am also looking forward to the challenge and adventure of studying and learning in a foreign country.
Why do I do theatre?
The reason that I create theatre is because of the essential role it plays in our culture. Theatre and storytelling is one of the oldest traditions, and I think it’s because humans need storytelling to make sense of their lives. Every time I am part of creating theatre, I know I am joining that tradition of storytelling.