Emilie Whelan is a director, performer, and arts organizer. She is currently an MFA candidate in directing at UC San Diego. In 2006, Emilie moved to New Orleans and helped establish social-political theater company Cripple Creek Theater Company. She has performed in and directed over twenty of their community-organizing performances since 2006, including The Cradle Will Rock, The Lily’s Revenge, Clybourne Park, We Won’t Pay! We Won’t Pay!, Balm in Gilead, The Madwoman of Chaillot, Enemy of the People, Waiting for Lefty, and Alfred Jarry’s Ubu Roi trilogy performed over the course of three Mardi Gras seasons. New Orleans music collaborations include Aurora Nealand, Ratty Scurvics, and Valparaiso Men's Chorus. In 2010, Emilie became the Performance Coordinator of the New Orleans Fringe Festival, presenting an international carnival-centric festival of over 70 performances each year. She is the co-founder The DISTILLERY Artist Residency housed at the Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans. She is a proud member of the Ubuntu Theatre Project housed in Oakland. She has trained with ensembles Hand2Mouth, TEETH, and Pig Iron. She is an alumni of Lincoln Center’s Director’s Lab and a current member of the Network of Ensemble Theaters. She is also a former third grade classroom teacher.
