Jen Bender

Bender joins Paper Mill Playhouse directly from her role as a member of the musical theater faculty at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. Previously, Bender was Senior Vice President of Production and Development at The Araca Group in New York City. Prior to that, she served as the Director of Programming and Artist Services for the New York Musical Festival (NYMF), and as Resident Director for the Broadway productions of The Lion King and Avenue Q. She was the Assistant Artistic Director for Cirque du Soleil's Ovo for productions in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia, Taiwan, and Japan. Inspired by her work with The Lion King, Jen co-founded and served as the Artistic Director of Broadway in South Africa, leading a program that brought Broadway artists to work with children in need through a variety of arts disciplines in townships across South Africa. She's been a guest teacher at the Michigan State University, the BFA program at Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre, Camp Broadway, The Broadway Experience, The Artist's Crossing, Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, and served as Interim Education Director at the Vineyard Theatre.