BIOGRAPHY

Ren Rotante (previously Lauren Rotante) is an early career director, choreographer, educator, and playwright working in musical theatre and devised plays. Their work brings to life the authenticity of humanity through movement, dance, and music.

Ren's work as a director, choreographer, and playwright has been seen across the United States and around the world. She has worked with international companies Bavaria Performing Arts (Bavaria, Germany), and Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre (Brisbane, Australia), as well as in the United States with Perseverance Theatre (Juneau, Alaska), the Pittsburgh Playhouse (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), and Quincy Community Theatre (Quincy, Illinois). 

EDUCATION

Ren has a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Theatre Arts with a concentration in directing and a minor in dance. Throughout their time at Point Park, she assisted established directors on large scale musicals (Tomè Cousin, Mara Newbery Greer, and Todd Underwood), as well as directing her own independent musicals and devised plays. Ren was the Artistic Director of Bridges Theatre Company, a training ground for arts administrators from 2023-2024 producing one of the only fully student produced musicals on campus to date. They were awarded the Outstanding Theatre Student award in 2022, and represented Point Park as a national directing finalist at the 2025 American College Theatre Festival. 

DEVISED AND PHYSICAL THEATRE

As a devised theatre artist, Ren has received international training and created work around the globe. In 2024 Ren participated in Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre's Creative Entrepreneur Internship, learning skills in directing, non-profit arts management, marketing, suzuki and physical theatre. This culminated with the premiere of Blushing, a now award-winning production where Ren was one of the original devised theatre performers and the stage manager. Ren also trained in butoh dance with Dairakudakan Temptenshiki in Hakuba, Japan performing in Summer Prayer (2025). Ren's orignial work "SONDER: or the bus piece" a devised interactive physical theatre piece has been workshopped at the Pittsburgh Fringe Festival (2024) and in Zen Zen Zo's Work-in-Progress showings (2024). Most recently Ren worked on "This is Home" an original devised piece about military dependents in Bavaria, Germany. A proud military kid herself, Ren was commisioned to write work reflecting what home meant to military children based on devised sessions they led on base. Ren aims to continue devising around the world, creating art for the community by the community. 

MUSICAL THEATRE

In the musical theatre landscape, Ren Rotante has begun building a career as a director/choreographer and educator of the arts. She has worked with companies like Stagedoor Manor, Quincy Community Theatre, Alaska Theatre of Youth, and Perseverance Theatre both as a creative artist and guest educator. Ren has worked on familiar titles like Footloose (Dir/Choreo), Legally Blonde (Assoc. Dir/Choreo), Rent (Assist. Choreographer), and Ride the Cyclone (Choreo), as well as new works. She is currently choreographing "Come From Away"  at Quincy Community Theatre. 

TEACHING/ARTS ADMINISTRATION

Ren is a proud educator in the performing arts. They are the Development Associate at Alaska Theatre of Youth and, over last three years, worked on a plethora of productions as a director, choreographer, writer, and/or producer. Most recently their production of 13 Jr. was taken to the Junior Theatre Festival (JTF) West where the ensemble won Vocal excellence. Ren has also traveled around the country as a guest teaching artist working with companies like Stagedoor Manor (New York), Quincy Community Theatre (Quincy, Illinois), Perseverance Theatre (Juneau, AK), and Bavaria Performing Arts (Bavaria, Germany). They have taught collegiate masterclasses at Point Park Universtiy (Butoh Dance), and University of Alaska, Anchorage (Musical Theatre Dance), and studio classes at  Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Pittsburgh Musical Theatre, and Alaska Dance Theatre. An advocate for disability justice and inclusion in dance, Ren has a teaching certificate from DanceAbility international, and has taught dance classes within and around the Ddeaf and hard of hearing community. Teaching has become a large part of Ren's passion of theatre and dance, specifically helping students achieve what they didn't think was possible. 

PLAYWRIGHT 

As a creator, Ren's has been commissioned to write work and/or create Devised theatre projects, and has also written plays. Their work "Yes I Will Marry You, after I take a shower" was produced in 2026 by Big Idea Theatre Company (Sacramento, California), and is a selected work in the 2026 Valdez Theatre Conference (Valdez, Alaska). 

Their work plays with the line between theatre and dance creating movement based story telling devised with an ensemble. Audience members leave her works seeing an insight into the human experience and what life means to the ensemble. 

Prior to adopting the professional name Ren Rotante, their work appeared under the name Lauren Rotante. Credits, collaborations, and archival materials may still reference Lauren Rotante.

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES

2025 Wildwind Performance Lab Directing Fellowship Winner

KCACTF 2025 Stage Director and Choreographer Region 2 Fellow

Recipient of the 2024 Career Opportunity Grant from Alaska State Council on the Arts

Best Choreography: Pittsburgh Fringe Festival

KCACTF 2024 Stage Director and Choreographer Region 2 Finalist 

2022 Outstanding Theatre Student: Point Park University 

National Honors Society for Dance Arts: 2021 Artistic Merit National Finalist

ARTISTIC STATEMENT

As an artist, I create captivating movement and dance in commercial musical theatre and devised plays. My work utilizes the personal experiences of the artists involved to create pieces that are authentic of the human experience. I want audiences to leave my work with gratitude for the world around them. As a leader behind-the-table, I aim to uplift and actors and designers and create a platform for artists to reach their fullest potential.