Resident Ensemble Players (REP), the professional theatre company in residence at the University of Delaware, has named acclaimed director and arts leader Sarah Elizabeth Wansley as its new artistic director.

Wansley, an accomplished director of new plays, musicals and highly theatrical adaptations of classic works, joins the REP following her tenure as BOLD Associate Artistic Director at Northern Stage in White River Junction, Vermont. She previously served as artistic producer at Chautauqua Theater Company and was the inaugural recipient of the Cleveland Play House Artistic Directing Fellowship for Women. 

“We are delighted to welcome Sarah Wansley to the University of Delaware. Her artistic vision, leadership experience and deep commitment to community engagement make her an exciting addition to the REP and our College,” said Caleb Everett, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “I am especially excited for the ways she will mentor, challenge and inspire our students as artists, collaborators and storytellers.”

“Sarah brings an extraordinary breadth of experience as a director, artistic leader and educator, and we are thrilled for our students to have the opportunity to learn from her,” said Kimberly Schroeder, interim chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance. 

“She understands the tremendous history and accomplishments of the Resident Ensemble Players and the important place the company holds within our department and our community. We are excited for Sarah to honor that legacy while shepherding the REP into a new era, bringing her experience, curiosity and artistic vision to our students and creating even more opportunities for them to learn, collaborate and grow alongside working theatre professionals.” 

Wansley brings extensive experience directing both established and new work. Her recent directing credits include The Children, Vermont Farm Project, Constellations, Sweat, Spring Awakening, and Heisenberg at Northern Stage; Steel Magnolias at Weston Theater Company; and The Amish Project at PlayMakers Repertory Company. She has also developed and directed new work with organizations including Chautauqua Theater Company, New York Stage and Film, Ensemble Studio Theatre/Youngblood, La Jolla Playhouse’s Without Walls Festival, and Cleveland Play House.

Her work as an artistic leader has included a particular focus on new play development, collaboration and the cultivation of emerging artists. From 2016 to 2020, Wansley was a faculty member at Fordham University, where she taught directing and text analysis. She has also taught master classes for The Kennedy Center, the Drama League, Chautauqua Institution, Baldwin Wallace University and Case Western Reserve University, and serves as a guest director at Dartmouth College.

Wansley is an alumna of the BOLD Theater Women’s Leadership Circle, the Drama League Directing Fellowship, and Lincoln Center Directors Lab. She holds an MFA in directing from the University of California San Diego, where she studied under acclaimed Romanian director Gábor Tompa, and a BA in English literature, summa cum laude, from Columbia University. 

"I am thrilled to join the dynamic faculty of the University of Delaware Theatre and Dance Department and lead the REP into its next era,” says Sarah Wansley. “Working with a resident ensemble of artists is such a rare gift in the American theater. The combination of professionals working at the top of their craft and student artists creates uniquely fertile ground for innovative work and new producing models. I look forward to becoming part of the Newark community and expanding the REP's engagement with the University and the city."

Now in its 19th season, Resident Ensemble Players presents professional productions of classic, modern, and contemporary plays for audiences on the University of Delaware campus and throughout the region. The company connects professional theatre artists with the University’s academic community while providing students with opportunities to engage with working theatre professionals. REP productions are presented at the Roselle Center for the Arts and are priced to remain accessible to audiences of all ages.

Wansley joins the REP during its 26/27 season, which features August Wilson’s How I Learned What I Learned, Fireflies by Matthew Barber, Slow Food by Wendy MacLeod, and Gaslight, adapted by Steven Dietz. The season marks the REP’s 19th year of bringing professional live theatre to the University of Delaware and the surrounding community.

For more information about Resident Ensemble Players, visit www.rep.udel.edu.