Marianna Bassham CV

EDUCATION 

Brandeis University, Waltham, MA Master of Fine Arts in Acting, 2002 

Macalester College, St. Paul, MN Bachelor of Arts in Theater, 1998 

THEATRE EDUCATION EMPLOYMENT HISTORY 

Boston Conservatory at Berklee, Fall 2019- present (Timothy Espinosa)

-Assistant Professor of Theatre, instructor for Musical Theatre Senior Acting and Contemporary and Musical Theater Sophomore Acting; Actor’s Toolkit, Senior Musical Theater Audition Technique and Pop/Rock; MTAI (summer pre-college program course on Shakespeare).

Northeastern University, Fall 2016, Summer and Fall 2017, Spring 2019, Fall 2019 (Scott Edmiston, Antonio Ocampo-Guzman)

-Visiting Part Time Lecturer, instructor for Acting II for 3 terms, an upper level acting class.  Psychophysical acting approaches (Grotowski, Viewpoints) applied to the texts of modern scenes and modern monologues ; instructor for Introduction to Acting for 3 terms, a course for non-theater majors, using contemporary scenes

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Spring 2018, Spring 2023 (Anna Kohler)

-Adjunct Faculty, instructor for Introduction to Acting.  Viewpoints, Laban, Stanislavski, and many other methodologies, culminating in final paired projects based on scenes from Chekhov’s The Three Sisters.

Emerson College, Spring 2016, Fall 2017, Summer 2020 (Sarah Hickler, Lindsay Beamish)

-Affiliated Faculty, Instructor for Auditioning, Monologue and the Business of Acting, an upper level course for theater majors; Auditioning Technique, a class for BFA studio students.  Contemporary, Modern Classics, and Shakespeare explored through scenes and monologues; Shakespeare Class for Pre-College Summer Program

Brandeis University, Fall 2014 (Adrianne Krstansky)
-Adjunct faculty, instructor for course THA133 Modern Realism, an intermediate undergraduate acting class. Viewpoints, Grotowski, David Ball’s Backwards and Forwards, contemporary and Modern (all Anton Chekhov) scene study 

Worcester State University, Spring 2015 (Adam Zahler)
-Adjunct faculty, instructor for two sections of Acting 1, an undergraduate acting class. Grotowski- based physical work, contemporary scene study based in A Practical Handbook for the Actor 

Middlesex Community College, 2016 (Karen Oster)

-Shakespeare Workshop supporting their rehearsal process for a production of Much Ado About Nothing.  Introduction to verse, status, antithesis, and integrating language and physicality.

Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre, 2016 and 2018 (Susie Schutt)

-Monologue Study:  a 6 week adult education class for  monologue and auditioning development.

-Master class on scene study using Hedda Gabler and A Streetcar Named Desire as source material

-Workshop on acting Shakespeare with summer intensive students (pre-high school)

Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, Boston, MA 2014 (Steven Maler) 

-Master class on auditioning and the business of acting. 

Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 2013, 2015 (Adrianne Krstansky)
-Guest artist: visited Acting For the Camera class, discussed the business of film acting. 

-Guest Lecturer, Shakespeare on Film-- taught a full class introducing students to analysis and acting approach of Shakespeare’s text

Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Somerville, MA 2011- 2013; 2016 (Lindsay Williams)
-SWAT (“Shakespeare’s Words and Tactics”) Teaching Artist. Taught exercises and scene work to physicalize and demystify Shakespeare’s language in high schools including Boston Day and Evening School, Cambridge Rindge and Latin, Somerville High School, and many others. 

Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 2002
-Teaching Assistant, Movement (Susan Dibble)
Assisted in an undergraduate movement class. Leading warmups; mask work, mask construction. 

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS 

Actors’ Shakespeare Project (Chris Edwards)
-Resident Acting Company member 2010-present
-Artistic Associate 2013-17. Maintaining communications between RAC and artistic director, organizing in-house readings, maintaining and updating company policies and documents, participating in season planning and company casting, and serving on committee for the appointment of a new artistic director 

UNION MEMBERSHIPS 

Actor Equity 

Screen Actors Guild 

AWARDS (nominations and wins)

2009 Elliot Norton award, outstanding actress: Blackbird (Speakeasy Stage)
2010 Independent Reviewers of New England (IRNE) award, outstanding actress: Blackbird, Reckless (Speakeasy Stage) Little Black Dress (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre)2

011 Norton nomination, outstanding actress: The Hotel Nepenthe (Actors’ Shakespeare Project), In the Next Room, or the Vibrator Play (Speakeasy)
2011 Elliot Norton award, best ensemble: The Hotel Nepenthe (ASP)
2014 Norton and IRNE nominations, outstanding actress: The Cherry Orchard (ASP) 

2016 IRNE Award, outstanding actress, God’s Ear (ASP)

2017 Norton nomination, outstanding actress, Hand to God (SpeakEasy Stage)

2018 Norton nomination, outstanding actress, Constellations (Underground Railway Theater)

2019 Norton nomination, outstanding actress, Romeo and Juliet (Huntington Theatre Company)

2019 Norton Award, best ensemble, Small Mouth Sounds (SpeakEasy Stage)

2020 Norton Award, best ensemble, Sweat (Huntington Theatre Company)

2022 Norton Award, outstanding actress, People, Places, and Things (Speakeasy Stage)