PlayMakers director keeps theater running

From an early age, Hannah Grannemann knew she wanted to be in the theater.

“I’ve been involved in the theater since I was 10 years old, and even then I knew I wanted to be an actor,” Grannemann said.

She’s succeeded — but not in the way she originally planned.

Grannemann currently serves as the managing director at PlayMakers Repertory Company, a job that consists of overseeing all administrative functions of the theater, including marketing, fundraising, finances and general box office activities.

“I often describe my job as being everything but the arts,” Grannemann said.

Grannemann graduated from New York University with a degree in theater, and pursued the business side of the stage while completing graduate study at Yale University.

While still at Yale, Grannemann had heard PlayMakers’ producing artistic director Joseph Haj speak at a conference and decided to apply to work with him.

“I knew right off the bat that she was the right one for us,” said McKay Coble, UNC faculty chairwoman and head of the department of dramatic art. “I just knew she belonged here.”

And today, Grannemann, who has held her position for nearly three years, works closely with Haj.

“Hiring Hannah is the smartest thing I’ve done since I have been here,” Haj said. “She is a terrific leadership partner and has done an amazing job for us here at PlayMakers.

“I’m pleased and honored to have her as my right hand.”

Grannemann said PlayMakers’ relationship with the University and Chapel Hill community also drew her to work here.

“I’ve always wanted to work in a theater that had close ties with the community,” she said.

PlayMakers is located on the edge of UNC’s campus, and dramatic arts undergraduates often take part in main stage productions — both onstage and behind the scenes.

In addition to her role at PlayMakers, Grannemann is heavily involved in the League of Resident Theatres, an organization of non-profit theaters across the country.

“Hannah is one of our rising stars,” said Susie Medak, managing director of Berkeley Repertory Theatre and president of the league.

Grannemann currently serves on the executive committee of the organization.

“In fact, PlayMakers has a great history of hiring smart, visionary management leaders,” Medak said.

Grannemann has been involved in LORT since she was at Yale, she said.

“She brings intelligence, a deliberative approach to problems, a capacity to clearly articulate issues and a dynamism that makes her a real stand out,” Medak said.

But Grannemann is also excited about her 6-month-old son, Elliot.

“I love being a mother,” Grannemann said. “Sometimes it’s a lot like sprinting in a marathon — balancing my new role as a mother and my job — but I find both so incredibly satisfying.”

While PlayMakers’ current production of “Angels in America” — a show that Grannemann said has been her favorite production yet — is receiving wide critical acclaim, Grannemann said one of her most important focuses is on students.

“A lot of people want to be involved in theater,” Grannemann said.

But Grannemann stressed that involvement in the arts doesn’t end at the footlights.

“It is a personal mission of mine to let them know that you can do so without being an actor, and I’m the perfect example of that.”

Contact the Arts Editor at arts@dailytarheel.com.