Artistic Director
Lily Raabe (she/her) is a storyteller, facilitator, and community builder who grew up on a school bus, with roots and community in Eastern Oregon, Portland, New York, Hawai’i, Seattle – and now Olympia. She holds her M.A. in Educational Theater for Colleges and Communities from New York University (NYU) with a focus on applied theater, directing, Theater of the Oppressed, and new works development; and she holds her B.A. in Drama from University of Portland. Raabe has 20 years experience as a teaching artist, having worked within public schools and nonprofits including The New Group, Opening Act New York, Oregon Children’s Theater, Northwest Children’s Theater, and many more. She has also devised over 10 original productions with communities of all ages, including musicals; and directed over 15 new works including Eaten Voices, which won BEST PLAY in FESTIVAL in the 2012 Thespis Theater Festival in NY, receiving a $5,000 cash prize.
Raabe currently serves as the Co-Founder & Director of the Live Aloha Art Festival in Hilo, HI; works as a consultant with Scandiuzzi Krebs – a consulting firm for culture and community; and serves on the Board of the Latino Development Organization of WA. Raabe is a passionate advocate for racial and social justice – and this core value is reflected in her work. For example, she has taught and devised original works of theater in medium and maximum security prisons for the past decade – working with organizations such as Rehabilitation through the Arts, University Beyond Bars, and Latino Development Organization. She has also won multiple individual artist grants for her work at the intersection of art, food justice, and racial equity. She is currently working with collaborators in Hawai’i to produce a documentary – Art of Aloha about Hawaiian artists, economic resilience, and how arts can build a thriving community.
