Meet Our Director of Programs
As Olympia Family Theater grows, we always value our new members to the OFTeam! Read here as Artistic Director, Lily Raabe, interviews our new Director of Programs, Erin Murray.
LR – First – let’s find out a little more about you as a person – what are some of your hobbies and pastimes?
EM – I love traveling and cooking and see both activities as a way to stay curious. Rather than planning extensively, I love leaving room for locals to suggest a place they like to eat or spend time, and I’m definitely more focused on sharing cozy food with my friends instead of worrying over an intricate recipe. We are so lucky to live in Washington State with our dazzling natural beauty, so I try to go camping at least once every season.
LR – What four adjectives describe you?
EM – Enthusiastic (my teachers used that word to my parents at every single parent/teacher conference throughout K-12 without fail), ambitious, funny, and caring.
LR – And now, tell us a little bit about your theater background, including one project you’re especially proud of!
EM – I started acting when I was 7 (though I was performing well before then as I have a distinct memory of lip synching to George Michael’s “Faith” on a picnic table at a family event when I was even younger than that). When I was 13, my parents took me to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival for the first time where I fell in love with Shakespeare and language-centered stories in general. I pursued acting opportunities until undergrad where I fell in love with Directing. I have been a freelance director for over 15 years and earned my Theatre Directing MFA from Northwestern University in Chicago. My teaching artist experience grew out of the relationships I developed through Directing and I love how teaching artistry informs my Directing process. In 2018, I directed a workshop production of Danielle Mohlman’s DUST at Youth Theatre Northwest with 13 advanced high school students. DUST was a dark retelling of the Peter Pan myth placed inside of a school shooting and involved a lot of choreography – the mermaids were the high school swim team and they “swam” on stage. The process was challenging for both myself as a director and educator as well as the students since the first March for Our Lives protest happened in the first week of our rehearsals. The play was haunting, powerful, and asked all of us to have hard conversations. The project involved new work, striking visual storytelling, large ensemble, powerful themes, and collaborating with young people: all things I seek out in my work. (Side note: Olympia community members might have caught my work when I directed “The Women” by Clare Boothe Luce at Harlequin in 2019!).
LR – Why do you think arts education is vital to community health?
EM – Arts education provides a space where kids can find, explore, and express their unique identity while giving them the tools to create a world not yet physically realized. We create spaces outside binaries or strict linear rules and lead primarily by the light of “yes, and.” The skills and tools taught in Arts education reinvigorates the mind and heart which lead to revitalized communities. The ritual of Arts education invites cities to gather and discover while they share in the experience of listening. In a world of individual screens and bumper sticker slogans, Arts education holds space for the joyful mess of living and loving.
LR – What excites you most about joining OFT’s community?
EM – The team and mission of OFT thoroughly inspires me. I want to be a support and bolster all of the new work and community outreach ideas that Lily Raabe is in the process of innovating. OFT comes from a rich history of committing to the community and I am excited to bring that proven commitment to new communities in Thurston County. Most of all, I am eager to meet all of the talent in OFT and imagine new projects to make with the students in Olympia, WA!
