About Sarah

Sarah Usary is a freelance stage manager based in the DMV and 2017 graduate of Shenandoah Conservatory at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia.

As a kid growing up in rural, western Maryland, I was always drawn to the community I found in the arts and the serenity I found in the woods near my home. My interest in stage management and theatre began in early high school when I joined the crew for Boonsboro High School’s production of Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull and instantly fell in love with the sense of community and purpose I found in working with the cast and crew.

Since then, I have earned my BFA in Theatre Design and Production from Shenandoah Conservatory and worked as a freelance stage manager throughout northern Virginia.

As a stage manager...

My goal is to create a safe and organized environment in which the artistic and technical teams can collaborate and create. I want to provide my cast and crew with the tools and atmosphere they need to feel comfortable, engaged, and ready to work. I make sure to create a clear line of communication with all of my collaborators to ensure that the process moves smoothly and efficiently.

A successful stage manager leads with care and effective communication.

As an adventurer...

When I’m not in the theatre, I can often be found backpacking through the Appalachian mountains. In the spring of 2017, I had the privilege to hike half of the Appalachian Trail from Springer Mountain, GA to my hometown, Boonsboro, MD. Over the years since, I worked on completing the rest of the AT, finishing of top of Mount Katahdin in Maine on September, 28, 2021. You can read about my journey and my future hikes on my Instagram and at LittleBugHikes.com.

“A period recourse into the wilds is not a retreat into secret silent sanctums to escape a wicked world, it is to take breath amid effort to forge a better world.” -Benton MacKaye, who first presented his idea for “An Appalachian Trail” in 1921