JENA NECRASON
Co-Artistic Director and Founder
A movement professional with over 25 years of experience, Jena is a performer, educator, director, and collaborative theatre maker. After two decades in New York City, Jena relocated with her family to the state of Vermont.
From 1997-2016 Jena was on faculty at The Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City where she taught Movement for Actors, Physical Acting and Devising for both the Professional Conservatory and New York University's Tisch School of the Arts Drama Department. From 2008-2016 she served as Head of Movement. She has been movement director/physical acting coach on over 40 productions in New York. From 2007-2011 Jena served as Director of Stella Adler Studio's Teen Conservatory, overseeing actor training for young actors from all over the country. She co-developed the Summer Shakespeare Outreach Program at the studio.
Additional teaching: The University of Vermont Theatre Dept. (Lecturer in Acting), The National Shakespeare Conservatory, SUNY Purchase Dance Dept., Michael Howard Studios (assistant to Fay Simpson), The School for Visual Arts, The Hathaway Brown School, Chelsea Piers Field House, The Flynn Center for the Performing Arts. Jena has been a guest artist at Chandler-Gilbert Community College in Arizona, Champlain College, and Saint Michael's College. She actively mentors emerging young theatre makers and actors in Vermont and New York, coaching and advising on college auditions and graduate school prep.
Jena has taught movement and dance classes for young people, gymnasts, athletes, and actors. She has trained in: The Lucid Body Technique, Laban-Bartenieff, Grotowski, Viewpoints, and Yoga. From 1997-2007 she was a certified personal trainer teaching group fitness classes and working with private clients.
As a performer, her work ranges from devised physical theatre to classical theatre. Performing credits - New York: Lincoln Center, Cherry Lane Theatre, Ohio Theatre, Connelly Theatre, and HERE. Regional: Glimmerglass Opera, KO Festival (MA), Vermont Shakespeare Festival, Gorilla Theatre (FL). Jena has also performed abroad in London, and was invited to spend a month studying with Pina Bausch and Tanztheatre Wupperthal in Germany.
As a choreographer/director her work includes critically acclaimed New York productions of Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Julius Caesar, and 12 seasons of Shakespeare in the Park for Vermont Shakespeare Festival. For Vermont Shakespeare Festival, she has directed A Midsummer Night's Dream, Julius Caesar, R3: Richard III, and The Taming of the Shrew, and Shakespeare: Completely Unbound. Jena has collaborated with ground-breaking artists such as Judith Malina, Margie Gillis, Fay Simpson and John Gould-Rubin and is a longstanding member of Actor's Equity Association and Screen Actor's Guild/AFTRA.
BFA in Dance Performance from the Performing Arts Conservatory at SUNY Purchase.
A movement professional with over 25 years of experience, Jena is a performer, educator, director, and collaborative theatre maker. After two decades in New York City, Jena relocated with her family to the state of Vermont.
From 1997-2016 Jena was on faculty at The Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City where she taught Movement for Actors, Physical Acting and Devising for both the Professional Conservatory and New York University's Tisch School of the Arts Drama Department. From 2008-2016 she served as Head of Movement. She has been movement director/physical acting coach on over 40 productions in New York. From 2007-2011 Jena served as Director of Stella Adler Studio's Teen Conservatory, overseeing actor training for young actors from all over the country. She co-developed the Summer Shakespeare Outreach Program at the studio.
Additional teaching: The University of Vermont Theatre Dept. (Lecturer in Acting), The National Shakespeare Conservatory, SUNY Purchase Dance Dept., Michael Howard Studios (assistant to Fay Simpson), The School for Visual Arts, The Hathaway Brown School, Chelsea Piers Field House, The Flynn Center for the Performing Arts. Jena has been a guest artist at Chandler-Gilbert Community College in Arizona, Champlain College, and Saint Michael's College. She actively mentors emerging young theatre makers and actors in Vermont and New York, coaching and advising on college auditions and graduate school prep.
Jena has taught movement and dance classes for young people, gymnasts, athletes, and actors. She has trained in: The Lucid Body Technique, Laban-Bartenieff, Grotowski, Viewpoints, and Yoga. From 1997-2007 she was a certified personal trainer teaching group fitness classes and working with private clients.
As a performer, her work ranges from devised physical theatre to classical theatre. Performing credits - New York: Lincoln Center, Cherry Lane Theatre, Ohio Theatre, Connelly Theatre, and HERE. Regional: Glimmerglass Opera, KO Festival (MA), Vermont Shakespeare Festival, Gorilla Theatre (FL). Jena has also performed abroad in London, and was invited to spend a month studying with Pina Bausch and Tanztheatre Wupperthal in Germany.
As a choreographer/director her work includes critically acclaimed New York productions of Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Julius Caesar, and 12 seasons of Shakespeare in the Park for Vermont Shakespeare Festival. For Vermont Shakespeare Festival, she has directed A Midsummer Night's Dream, Julius Caesar, R3: Richard III, and The Taming of the Shrew, and Shakespeare: Completely Unbound. Jena has collaborated with ground-breaking artists such as Judith Malina, Margie Gillis, Fay Simpson and John Gould-Rubin and is a longstanding member of Actor's Equity Association and Screen Actor's Guild/AFTRA.
BFA in Dance Performance from the Performing Arts Conservatory at SUNY Purchase.
