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Fran Sillau<\/strong> (HE\/HIM\/HIS) is a multidisciplinary theatre artist with a disability and a member of the GLBTQIA community. Fran has worked professionally as a playwright, director, producer, education coordinator, teaching artist, arts administrator, grant writer, and inclusion consultant. He has been working extensively within the world of Theater For Young Audiences (TYA) for over twenty years.<\/p>\n Fran spent seven years collaborating with theatrical producer Deborah Denenberg (Dodger Productions and Big League Theatricals) on The Doll Maker\u2019s Gift,<\/em> a property for which he obtained permission from the author. He then assembled the creative team, co-wrote the book, and directed the world premiere at the Rose Theater in 2019. The Omaha World Herald said \u201cFamilies should flock to this one.\u201d He currently is working on his second collaboration with Ms. Denenberg, set for production in 2025. Fran is currently The Artistic Director of Trike Theatre in Northwest Arkansas.\u00a0 He is a past Aurand Harris Fellow with The Children\u2019s Theatre Foundation of America and a winner of The Access Grant from The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, where he is a frequent contractor.<\/p>\n Fran spent seven years collaborating with theatrical producer Deborah Denenberg (Dodger Productions and Big League Productions) on\u00a0The Doll Maker\u2019s Gift.\u00a0<\/i>Fran co-wrote the musical and directed the world premiere at the Rose Theater in 2019. The\u00a0Omaha World Herald<\/i>\u00a0said, \u201cFamilies should flock to this one.\u201d He is working on his second collaboration with Ms. Denenberg, the world premiere of\u00a0Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You,<\/i>\u00a0based on\u00a0The New York Times<\/i>\u00a0best-selling book by Sonia Sotomayor.<\/p>\n Fran served as the Director of Accessibility at The Rose Theater, where he is leading an expansion of the popular Every Single Child Program (a multi-layered program served an average of 35,000 students each year at more than 70 school buildings). The expansion\u00a0 developed production and residency programming for students in self-contained special education classrooms in the Omaha area. He also directs mainstage productions at the Rose; some of his credits include Shrek: The Musical<\/em>, Go,Dog.Go!<\/em> and the Omaha premiere of Hanna\u2019s Suitcase<\/em>.<\/p>\n He also serves as Executive Artistic Director of Circle Theatre, Omaha\u2019s theater for individuals of all abilities. Circle Theatre has produced several TYA plays. Under his leadership, the Circle co-commissioned\u00a0My Broken Doll<\/em>, a play based on the life of holocaust survivor Beatrice Karp and adapted by Ernie Nolan, and Over the River<\/em>, a play about friendship by Ellen Struve. Both plays recently toured the state of Nebraska. In December of 2016, Sillau directed a regional premiere of\u00a0A Charlie Brown Christmas<\/em>. This production incorporated American Sign Language, Shadow Interpreting, Audio Description, as well as actors with various physical and developmental disabilities. He is also currently developing new original TYA work for The Institute For Holocaust Education and Great Plains office of the Anti-Defamation League.<\/p>\n Fran currently serves as the United States representative to International Inclusion Arts Network, a program of The International Association of Children\u2019s Theatre Companies (<\/span>ASSITEJ). He is a proud board member of Theatre For Young Audiences, USA and The Children’s Theater Foundation of America. He holds an MFA specializing in directing and inclusion from Goddard College.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Fran Sillau (HE\/HIM\/HIS) is a multidisciplinary theatre artist with a disability and a member of the GLBTQIA community. Fran has worked professionally as a playwright, director, producer, education coordinator, teaching artist, arts administrator, grant writer, and inclusion consultant. He has … Continue reading