Mary Claire Branton

Mary Claire Branton holds a Bachelor of Arts in theatre from the University of Georgia and a Master of Fine Arts in acting from Brooklyn College. She trained in Chekhov and Stanislavsky with the Moscow Art Theatre and studied Anne Bogart’s Viewpoints at Columbia University.

Her directing work includes Waiting for My Growth Spurt at Atlanta’s Woodruff Art Center, written and performed by 12-year-old Jason David, and Kyle Jarrow’s A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant, which sold out two years in a row at Dad’s Garage Theatre and was named one of Atlanta’s top 10 shows by Creative Loafing.

Mary Claire has taught acting and directed productions across the U.S., working with casts of all sizes — including ensembles of nearly 100 children. Her creative approach blends adult and youth perspectives, often resulting in boundary-pushing, audience-specific work. She also led extracurricular drama programs in China at the Taihu International School and the International School of Wuxi.

A former editor and publisher of award-winning children’s books, she is a member of the Author’s Guild. Before focusing on theater full time, she worked as a ghostwriter in the true crime and inspirational nonfiction markets.