MEET THE WANDER TEAM
ELI NEWELL (he/him/his) Creative Director - Eli is a Chicago-based creator from St. Paul, Minnesota. He has directed productions at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Raven Theatre and Strawdog Theatre Company. His newest work as a playwright Cold Town/Hotline premiered at Raven Theatre last Fall. Newell has served as an assistant and associate director on productions at Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare, Northlight Theatre, Windy City Playhouse, Emerald City Theatre, Raven, Haven Theatre and Strawdog. His Twin Cities credits include Guthrie Theater, Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, Children’s Theatre Company and the Playwrights’ Center. As a literary assistant, Newell has collaborated with writers Doug Wright, Michael Korie, David H. Bell and Dolly Parton. His current and upcoming projects include works with Chicago Immersive, virtually-based performance group the Site Collective, and Chicago-based human rights organization Unsilence. Newell received his B.A. from Northwestern University.
CLAIRE GLUBIAK (she/her/hers) Creative Writer - Claire is a playwright and arts administrator based in NYC, where she works as an associate producer for En Garde Arts. In September 2018, Northwestern’s regional ImagineU Theater presented an adaptation of Harold and the Purple Crayon that Claire co-wrote and produced. Her short play Lament was a finalist for Red Bull Theater's 2017 short play festival. Her play Willing was a semi-finalist for the 2019 National Playwrights Conference and the 2019 Princess Grace Awards Playwriting Fellowship. She holds a BA in theatre and a certificate in integrated marketing communications from Northwestern University.
JAMAL HOWARD (he/him/his) Creative Editor - Jamal is thrilled to work with this amazing team of artists and creatives and to make his Chicago Immersive debut! He was recently the Associate Artistic Director at Emerald City Theatre where he directed and choreographed Corduroy, Magic Tree House: Showtime with Shakespeare, and The Wiz. Jamal is also the Co-Artistic Director of New American Folk Theatre where most recently directed the world premiere of Scraps as well as Dirty Girl and Dark of the Moon. Love to his family and GM for giving him the courage to tell his story truthfully.
JEFFREY LEVIN (he/him/his) Sound Design - Jeffrey is a composer, sound designer, and musician based in Chicago IL. Jeffrey has contributed original music and sound designs for over 100 productions for many theaters locally and regionally. He has collaborated with Steppenwolf, Court, Northlight, Victory Gardens, Timeline, Steep, A Red Orchid, and many more. Regionally he has worked with Gulfshore Playhouse, Asolo Repertory, Hope Summer Repertory, and the Denver Center for Performing Arts. Awards and recognitions include ten Joseph Jefferson Award Nominations for Sound Design and Original Music and one win, Edes Award for Emerging Artists. Masters of Music DePaul University and Bachelors Columbia College. www.jeffreylevinmusic.com
EMMA FRANKLIN (she/her/hers) Operations Supervisor - Emma is a freelance theater manager who focuses on stage management and production management. Past stage management credits include: Regional: Dolly Parton's Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol: Red Tail Productions; The Tempest: Seattle Children’s Theatre; Ever in the Glades: The Kennedy Center. Chicago: Sugar in Our Wounds; First Floor Theater; The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane: Filament Theater. Production Management: Jewish Theatre Ensemble, Evanston Dance Ensemble. Film: What We Find in The Sea (Assistant Director). She currently calls Chicago home and is a graduate of the theatre department at Northwestern University.
VIA GREENE (she/her/hers) Assistant Operations Supervisor - Via is a sophomore at Northwestern University studying stage management. Recent projects include Legally Blonde (ASM) and Joni: Busy Being Free (SM). Many thanks to Barbara Butts, Dan Iwaniec, Angelo Merenda, and Mark Berry.
