Amanda Watkins serves as the Director of New Work at The Alliance Theatre where she is currently developing multiple plays and musicals. Amanda co-developed and directed Approval Junkie starring Faith Salie at The Hertz Theatre. This production was picked up by Audible Theatre and enjoyed a run at Minetta Theatre in NYC in Fall of 2021 before becoming available on Audible in 2022. Prior to her position at The Alliance Theatre, she was the General Manager of The Broadway Dreams Foundation, a nonprofit devoted to the mentoring and training of young adults in the Theatre Arts. Amanda served as EVP of Production and Development at The Araca Group in NYC for eight years where she worked alongside dozens of playwrights and composers developing new work. She was the Executive Producer on Broadway’s Disgraced, the winner of the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Drama by Ayad Akhtar as well as the 2010 revival of Ken Ludwig’s Lend Me a Tenor, directed by Stanley Tucci. Amanda was an actress on Broadway and throughout the regions for 15 years. She is a former member of The Broadway League and in 2004, she was recognized by the State of GA House of Representatives with a certificate of excellence in theatre. Her past teaching positions include an Adjunct Professorship at Marymount Manhattan College and a keynote speaker for the Commercial Theatre Institute, the Georgia Theatre Conference, the American Theatre Wing, and New York Film Academy. She holds a BFA in music theatre from Florida State University and an MA in Educational Theatre from NYU.
Amanda Watkins
Director of New Work
Amanda Watkins serves as the Director of New Work at The Alliance Theatre where she is currently developing multiple plays and musicals. Amanda co-developed and directed Approval Junkie starring Faith Salie at The Hertz Theatre. This production was picked up by Audible Theatre and enjoyed a run at Minetta Theatre in NYC in Fall of 2021 before becoming available on Audible in 2022. Prior to her position at The Alliance Theatre, she was the General Manager of The Broadway Dreams Foundation, a nonprofit devoted to the mentoring and training of young adults in the Theatre Arts. Amanda served as EVP of Production and Development at The Araca Group in NYC for eight years where she worked alongside dozens of playwrights and composers developing new work. She was the Executive Producer on Broadway’s Disgraced, the winner of the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Drama by Ayad Akhtar as well as the 2010 revival of Ken Ludwig’s Lend Me a Tenor, directed by Stanley Tucci. Amanda was an actress on Broadway and throughout the regions for 15 years. She is a former member of The Broadway League and in 2004, she was recognized by the State of GA House of Representatives with a certificate of excellence in theatre. Her past teaching positions include an Adjunct Professorship at Marymount Manhattan College and a keynote speaker for the Commercial Theatre Institute, the Georgia Theatre Conference, the American Theatre Wing, and New York Film Academy. She holds a BFA in music theatre from Florida State University and an MA in Educational Theatre from NYU.