Lecturer
MFA in Performance and Pedagogy from Texas Tech University
618-650-2773
ayatayl@siue.edu

Ayanna Marie Taylor is a performing artist, director, and educator originally from St. Louis, MO. Her journey began at the age of eight, starring as the Fairy Godmother in Cinderella the Musical. She earned her BA in Theatre - Performance with a Musical Theatre Minor from Mizzou and her MFA in Performance and Pedagogy from Texas Tech University. At TTU, she worked extensively with new play development and devising, and presented her self-written solo performance, Moving: A Black Woman’s Love Story. She holds a Theatrical Intimacy Education’s Best Practices Certification and received the American College Theatre Excellence in Acting Award for her role in Rites of Spring (Devised). Her directing and intimacy choreography credits include Murder on the Orient Express, A Better Place in the DSA, Sweeney Todd, The Wolves, and Mud. She is pleased to make her directing debut at SIUE and thanks her family, friends, and mentors for their continuous support.