Anna Loren
Anna Loren
Actor, Director, Theatre Maker and Teaching Artist
Anna gained a Masters Degree in Ensemble Theatre from Manchester University (2015), supported by an international scholarship.
Biography
Loren has particular interest in postcolonial feminist theatre and uncovering suppressed female narratives through her work. She was a finalist in the 2020-2021 Queensland Premier’s Drama Awards for her play, COMFORT, which addresses the realities of so-called ‘comfort women’ in Japan-Occupied Burma. In 2020 Loren received Playwriting Australia’s Erin Thomas Playwright Fund, for her play titled, 22. Currently in development, the play is an intergenerational meditation on motherhood. In 2019, Loren was chosen to participate in Playlab Theatre’s Incubator Program and was supported by the Regional Arts Development Fund to attend the Arteles New Course Residency in Finland, under the mentorship of Dr. Margi Brown Ash.
Loren was interim Artistic Director for Brisbane’s heartBeast Theatre 2016-2017. She has taught and directed for The Rose Bruford Youth Theatre, NCS The Challenge and the Drama Club (London), as well as The Actors Workshop, NIDA Open and Speak Up Studios (Brisbane).
Ad Astra Plays
Upcoming Plays
Past Plays
Other Plays
Fictional Females Anonymous (Get Over it Productions)
Staging the Nation, A Game of Chaos (Theatre N16)
King Lear, Beauty is Difficult, Oberon (heartBeast Theatre)
Sex and God (Cuts & Grazes)
Carve (Goat Track Theatre)
Normal (Trinity International Playwriting Festival).
Training
2022 - Stage to Screen, Screenwriting, Stephen Lance and Diya Eid
2019 - Directing Masterclass, Catarina Hebbard
2014 - Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance, MA Ensemble Theatre
2008 - The Actors Workshop, Diploma of Acting, Film and Television
Representation
Ego Management
Reviews
Kramer’s wit and wisdom mean that this could never be a drab play – and, especially in the first act, parts of the script are bitingly hilarious – but without the New York humour and pace, it could labour and confuse. That is never an issue with such a bright cast, masterfully directed by Michelle Carey and Anna Loren.
Beth Keehn - Stage Whispers | Read full review
Ad Astra have staged The Normal Heart in a simplistic and slick style, directed by Michelle Carey and Anna Loren. The cast, led by experienced actor, Gregory Wilken as Ned Weeks, are confident and compelling.
Lilian Harrington - Absolute Theatre | Read full review
The performance had the effect I was hoping for. It commanded me to sit on the edge of my seat watching two actors, Anna O’Hara and Peter Crees, fall into chaos on stage.
Meredith McLean - XS Entertainment | Read full review
Undoubtedly, the strongest moments were those between Anna Karenina (Anna O’Hara) and Vronsky (the talented and energetic Jason Ward Kennedy) as they play out their tragic tale at the mercy of their tragic times.
Sonny Clarke - AussieTheatre.com | Read full review
Awards
Queensland Premier’s Drama Award.
As the richest playwriting prize in the country, the Queensland Premier’s Drama Award demonstrates to Australian artists how highly valued theatre is in the cultural life of Queensland.
The Award provides both recognition for excellence in playwriting, as well as offering finalists a rigorous script development program. It is open to playwrights with an unproduced play they believe will speak to Queensland audiences today.
Anna Loren was a finalist in the 2020-2021 awards.
Erin Thomas Playwright Fund
This fund commemorates playwright Erin Thomas’ optimism, her creative talent and further her generous contribution to the arts by helping emerging writers to pursue their dreams. In 2020 Anna Loren was one of six emerging playwrights from regional or remote areas to be supported to work with a dramaturg or director for eight hours.