Category: Class of 2026

Zoë Reed (they/them) is a proud native of Miami, Florida. Born to an immigrant mother from the Netherlands and a 1st generation Cuban Jewish father, Miami was the perfect place to cultivate their artistic upbringing. Zoë believes much of their grit and compassion comes from being raised in Miami – a melting-pot city where hard work and pride for one’s identity are valued above all else. While they got their start in Miami at their local JCC’s community theater at the ripe age of 8, before moving on to attend a performing arts high school New World School of the Arts, in Downtown, Miami – it wasn’t until attending Mason Gross that passion and pure love for acting now gained rigor and discipline. It is through work at Rutgers that they discovered their passion for devised work and theater as a means of activism. Zoë thanks Rutgers for instilling a sense of integrity into their work, gained through the invaluable insight from their mentors and teachers, as well as some of their Rutgers Theater Company credits: Laertes in Hamlet, Rivkele in God of Vengeance, Chorus in Orlando, Fool 2 in The Giant Void in my Soul, and Doctor/P.R. Member in We are Pussy Riot. Zoë is beyond thrilled to enter the industry and cannot wait to perform, consume, live and breathe art in every capacity possible for the rest of their life.

Hannah Coleman (she/they) was born in Miami, Florida, surrounded by sunshine. The start of her theatre career was in her living room with her grandma Esther. Every Sunday together they would create new ways to enact and invent stories, finding never ending amounts of characters through games of make believe. Over the next couple of years this elevated to performances with her cousin. Every family dinner and celebration would be filled with scenes and songs standing on table tops.

It wouldn’t be long before these passions would begin to be honed through training, leading Hannah to a performing arts high school where she would discover the future that this passion for story telling could bring her. Through her time and training at Rutgers, Hannah has begun to not only fall deeper into her love for acting, but explore devising and writing her own work as well. She hopes to make art filled with whimsy, weirdness, and that is deeply human.

Ellie DeMan (he/they) is from the Hudson Valley, New York. When not in the theater, he can be found composing his own folk music (he has taught himself six instruments) or running around the woods collecting sticks as he is an avid
and popular member of the online community: Sticknation. He is fascinated by the ways nature and storytelling interact. One day he hopes to fuse his love of music and nature into his own original theatrical work. His Rutgers Theatre Company credits include: Yankel (Jack) in God of Vengeance, Archduke/Archdutchess in Orlando, Fool 2 in The Giant Void in my Soul, and Pyotr in We Are Pussyriot.

Ashavari (she/her) is proudly from the great state of New Jersey. Her passion for theater came early in her life when she first performed with the South Asian Theater Festival. Since then she has followed her passion for exercising empathy with art. Finally, Ashavari found her way to Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, studying Meisner and having great opportunities like studying at the Shakespeare Globe in London. Some of her notable credits at Rutgers University include Dancing at Lughnasa directed by William Carden and Orlando directed by Chika Ike.
Ashavari also has had the privilege to study with the British American Drama Academy in their Midsummer at Oxford program. While living her best life in the UK, she was able to learn and expand her work and perform in Richard II directed by Geraldine Alexander. Ashavari is thrilled to be following her inspirations and adding new perspectives to the industry.

Ananda Danielle (she/her) is a Baltimore-native actress, poet, and interdisciplinary artist whose work exists at the intersection of movement, language, and storytelling. She has over 17 years of dance training in ballet, contemporary, modern, hip-hop, and Afro-Caribbean styles, approaching performance with the body as a vessel for narrative. Her love for acting began in TWIGS, a middle-school after-school program curated by the Baltimore School for the Arts, and expanded at Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts. She is co-founder and Director/Choreographer of N’Spirit Theater Company, where she develops work rooted in cultural memory and embodiment. Through N’Spirit, she directed and choreographed Everything a Black Girl Has Left Unsaid, an interpretation of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf, which received a Rutgers Collaborative Arts Grant. Her recent credits include her Off-Broadway debut in Riven as Wind Spirit, Mud Row (Regine), The Wolves (#25/Captain), and Titus Andronicus (Aaron) at Shakespeare’s Globe. She is committed to honoring lineage while creating space for those who follow and works as both instrument and creative force to make lasting cultural impact.

Born and raised in Augusta, Georgia, the arts were not an accessible outlet in Ja’Quan Spann’s (he/him) community. As a result, he threw himself into sports and developed an unrelenting work ethic that persists to this day. At sixteen years old, Ja’Quan finally found himself inside an acting
classroom and his soul knew that was exactly where he was supposed to be. He’s since discovered purpose in his desire to make sure everybody is afforded equal opportunity to explore the world of art. He believes that storytelling can be used as a way to heal, connect & empower. He gravitates toward stories that test human resilience and challenge perceptions. He is proud to be a Black artist who embraces his vulnerability and power. His Rutgers Theater Company credits include: Pussy Riot Or Everything Is P.R (Sergei), Mud Row (Davin), Three Sisters (Ferapont). Other credits include: The Games Afoot (Felix), Frankenstein (De Laney/ M. Frankenstein), The Bridges of Madison County (Charlie). Ja’Quan is dedicated to empowering his community and paying tribute to his predecessors, while simultaneously forging his own
path.