Rachel Ropella is a director, playwright, and theater maker from rural Wisconsin who roots her work in the pillars of discovery, resilience, and joyful care. Directing new works and reinterpreting the theatrical cannon with a campy, queer, feminist lens is her passion! As the Artistic Director and Co-founder of Minneapolis theater company, Melancholics Anonymous, she's spent the past four years directing and writing award-winning new works at the Minnesota Fringe. Her directorial debut at Edinburgh Festival Fringe received international praise and remounts at The Pen Theatre in London and Romania's DATFest. Rachel has assistant directed at Hartford Stage and at Portland Stage as a Directing/Dramaturgy Apprentice. She is an alumni of St. Olaf College, DirectorWorks, and the National Theatre Institute Advanced Directing program. She is proud to be an Associate Member of SDC.