Artist Statement
I have spent more than 25 years saying yes to the story.
Theatre found me early and has never let me go — not because the life is easy, but because I believe, without reservation, that live storytelling is one of the most essential things human beings do for one another. It is how we make sense of grief and joy, how we practice empathy, how we dare to see ourselves in someone we thought was nothing like us. That belief is what gets me on the road, into company housing, and back on stage night after night.
As a performer, I am drawn to complex women — women who are difficult, contradictory, funny, flawed, and ferociously alive. I want to find the humanity in the character the audience isn't sure they're supposed to like. I want the person in the last row to lean forward. The work I am most proud of lives in that uncomfortable, illuminating space where a character stops being a role and starts being a reckoning.
Directing, for me, is an extension of the same impulse. I am most interested in putting stories on stage that ask something of their audience — plays that crack a room open and leave people talking in the parking lot long after the curtain comes down.
But theatre has never been, for me, only about the stage. It is about the community that gathers around it. As an arts administrator and educator, I have spent years working to make theatre more accessible — to young people, to underserved populations, to anyone who has ever felt like the arts weren't meant for them. That work is not separate from my artistic practice. It is my artistic practice.
Storytelling is the oldest human art. Long before there were stages or scripts or seasons, there were people gathered around a fire, passing something vital from one generation to the next — not just technique, but a way of seeing the world. I take that tradition seriously. I was shaped by artists who gave me their time, their hard-won knowledge, and their faith that I had something worth developing. That debt does not get repaid — it gets passed forward. When I work with young and emerging artists, I am not simply teaching craft. I am participating in an unbroken chain of apprenticeship that stretches back to the very beginning of what it means to be human. The torch was handed to me. Handing it on is not optional — it is the whole point.
I am a working actress from Birmingham, Alabama, and I carry that identity with me everywhere I go. The American regional theatre is where the real work happens, where artists grow, where communities are served, where new stories get their first breath. I am committed to it — as a performer, a director, a teacher, an administrator, and an advocate — for as long as it will have me. See you at the theatre!
I have spent more than 25 years saying yes to the story.
Theatre found me early and has never let me go — not because the life is easy, but because I believe, without reservation, that live storytelling is one of the most essential things human beings do for one another. It is how we make sense of grief and joy, how we practice empathy, how we dare to see ourselves in someone we thought was nothing like us. That belief is what gets me on the road, into company housing, and back on stage night after night.
As a performer, I am drawn to complex women — women who are difficult, contradictory, funny, flawed, and ferociously alive. I want to find the humanity in the character the audience isn't sure they're supposed to like. I want the person in the last row to lean forward. The work I am most proud of lives in that uncomfortable, illuminating space where a character stops being a role and starts being a reckoning.
Directing, for me, is an extension of the same impulse. I am most interested in putting stories on stage that ask something of their audience — plays that crack a room open and leave people talking in the parking lot long after the curtain comes down.
But theatre has never been, for me, only about the stage. It is about the community that gathers around it. As an arts administrator and educator, I have spent years working to make theatre more accessible — to young people, to underserved populations, to anyone who has ever felt like the arts weren't meant for them. That work is not separate from my artistic practice. It is my artistic practice.
Storytelling is the oldest human art. Long before there were stages or scripts or seasons, there were people gathered around a fire, passing something vital from one generation to the next — not just technique, but a way of seeing the world. I take that tradition seriously. I was shaped by artists who gave me their time, their hard-won knowledge, and their faith that I had something worth developing. That debt does not get repaid — it gets passed forward. When I work with young and emerging artists, I am not simply teaching craft. I am participating in an unbroken chain of apprenticeship that stretches back to the very beginning of what it means to be human. The torch was handed to me. Handing it on is not optional — it is the whole point.
I am a working actress from Birmingham, Alabama, and I carry that identity with me everywhere I go. The American regional theatre is where the real work happens, where artists grow, where communities are served, where new stories get their first breath. I am committed to it — as a performer, a director, a teacher, an administrator, and an advocate — for as long as it will have me. See you at the theatre!
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Exciting Developments!
Individual Artists Fellowship 2026 Cohort
Alabama State Council on the Arts
Oct 2025- October 2026
Thank you for supporting artists who call Alabama home!
Alabama State Council on the Arts
Oct 2025- October 2026
Thank you for supporting artists who call Alabama home!
Vice Chair of Professional Division
Alabama Conference of Theatre (ACT)
Board of Directors
Alabama Conference of Theatre (ACT)
Board of Directors
Adjunct Theatre Instructor
Alabama School of Fine Arts
Acting for the Camera
Professional Prep/Senior Capstone
Coaching/Advising
Winter/Spring 2026
Alabama School of Fine Arts
Acting for the Camera
Professional Prep/Senior Capstone
Coaching/Advising
Winter/Spring 2026
Season '25-'26
THE WOLVES by Sarah DeLappe
Directed by Rachel Burttram
at Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham, AL
March 12-14, 2026
The Lindberghs, Solo and Together: An Origin Story by James R. Hansen
A reading at B.B. Comer Library in Sylacauga, AL
November 5, 2025
Dr. Hansen is the author of 16 books, including “First Man: The Life Of Neil A. Armstrong”, a two-time New York Times Bestseller and has been nominated twice for the Pulitzer Prize.
A reading at B.B. Comer Library in Sylacauga, AL
November 5, 2025
Dr. Hansen is the author of 16 books, including “First Man: The Life Of Neil A. Armstrong”, a two-time New York Times Bestseller and has been nominated twice for the Pulitzer Prize.
DANCINING AT LUGHNASA by Brian Friel
Directed by Rachel Burttram
at Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham, AL
October 2025
Interim Managing Director
GableStage in Coral Gables, FL
Six Month Contract July 2025- Dec 2025
Season '24-'25
APPROPRIATE by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
Directed by Bari Newport
Role of Toni
GableStage Theatre Company in Coral Gables, FL
January - Feb 23, 2025
48th Annual Carbonell Awards Nominee
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Female Role
Toni in Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at GableStage
"Top of the list is Rachel Burttram as Toni, the divorced, acerbic, alcoholic control freak of a sister trying to keep this assemblage temporarily operational. But what is amazing is that creature is played by the same actress who inhabited the upper-class heroine in GableStage’s A Doll’s House, Part 2."- Bill Hirschman Florida Theatre On-Stage
"Undoubtedly, acting does not get much better than this... the combative Lafayette family in southeast Arkansas comes vividly alive in all their toxicity. That is particularly the case with eldest sibling, Toni (a riveting Rachel Burttram). She shines in this production." - Aaron Krausse Miami Art Zine
Interview for Miami Herald with Michelle F. Solomon
Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Lead Female Role
Toni in Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at GableStage
"Top of the list is Rachel Burttram as Toni, the divorced, acerbic, alcoholic control freak of a sister trying to keep this assemblage temporarily operational. But what is amazing is that creature is played by the same actress who inhabited the upper-class heroine in GableStage’s A Doll’s House, Part 2."- Bill Hirschman Florida Theatre On-Stage
"Undoubtedly, acting does not get much better than this... the combative Lafayette family in southeast Arkansas comes vividly alive in all their toxicity. That is particularly the case with eldest sibling, Toni (a riveting Rachel Burttram). She shines in this production." - Aaron Krausse Miami Art Zine
Interview for Miami Herald with Michelle F. Solomon
The Cast & Crew of Appropriate
at GableStage
with Actors' Equity Association President/Actress Brooke Shields.
at GableStage
with Actors' Equity Association President/Actress Brooke Shields.
Mercedes-Benz Experience and Mercedes EQ Experience
Facilitator and Instructor of the Mercedes Benz Way
at Ross Bridge in Birmingham, AL and at MBUSI in Vance, AL
August 2024 - July 2025
Facilitator and Instructor of the Mercedes Benz Way
at Ross Bridge in Birmingham, AL and at MBUSI in Vance, AL
August 2024 - July 2025
Season '23-'24
THE GARMENT
by Audrey Cefaly
Directed by Cheryl Hall
Red Mountain Theatre's
7th Annual Human Rights Festival
in Birmingham, AL
Staged Reading
Sept 22, 2024
by Audrey Cefaly
Directed by Cheryl Hall
Red Mountain Theatre's
7th Annual Human Rights Festival
in Birmingham, AL
Staged Reading
Sept 22, 2024
THE HUNT FOR MILO GATTO
by Brendan Powers & Rachel Burttram Powers
Bequia International Theatre Festival
on the island of Bequia
Produced by John & Christine Burstein
Festival
Feb 1-13, 2024
by Brendan Powers & Rachel Burttram Powers
Bequia International Theatre Festival
on the island of Bequia
Produced by John & Christine Burstein
Festival
Feb 1-13, 2024
Rachel was a Peer Panelist for the Regional Emmy Awards for 2024.
Season '22-'23
Doll's House Part 2 by Lucas Hnath
Directed by Bari Newport
Role of Nora
Gablestage in Coral Gables, FL
Feb - March, 2023
Nominated for a Carbonell Award for Outstanding Performance in a Lead Female Role
"...But in a performance patrons should paste in the memory book, Rachel Burttram’s Nora is a masterpiece of energy, drive, imagination and an ever-spinning kaleidoscope of emotions." Bill Hirschman Florida Theatre Onstage
"Rachel Burttram paints an adroit portrait of a complex woman. She’s wide-eyed, calculating, manipulative, funny, sometimes cruel...Knowing he (Powers) and Burttram are happily married, watching them play Ibsen and Hnath’s unhappy duo is all the more impressive." Christine Dolan Miami Herald & ArtBurst Miami
Directed by Bari Newport
Role of Nora
Gablestage in Coral Gables, FL
Feb - March, 2023
Nominated for a Carbonell Award for Outstanding Performance in a Lead Female Role
"...But in a performance patrons should paste in the memory book, Rachel Burttram’s Nora is a masterpiece of energy, drive, imagination and an ever-spinning kaleidoscope of emotions." Bill Hirschman Florida Theatre Onstage
"Rachel Burttram paints an adroit portrait of a complex woman. She’s wide-eyed, calculating, manipulative, funny, sometimes cruel...Knowing he (Powers) and Burttram are happily married, watching them play Ibsen and Hnath’s unhappy duo is all the more impressive." Christine Dolan Miami Herald & ArtBurst Miami
God of Carnage by Yesmina Reza
Directed by Lisa K. Bryant
Role of Annette
Flat Rock Playhouse in Flat Rock, NC
Sept - Oct 2022
"Burttram sparkles in her FRP debut" - Pete Zamplas Tribune Papers
Directed by Lisa K. Bryant
Role of Annette
Flat Rock Playhouse in Flat Rock, NC
Sept - Oct 2022
"Burttram sparkles in her FRP debut" - Pete Zamplas Tribune Papers
World Premiere!
Public Speaking 101 by Mark St. Germain
Directed by Jim Frangione
Role of Milly
Great Barrington Public Theatre in Berkshires, MA
July 14 - 24, 2022
Public Speaking 101 by Mark St. Germain
Directed by Jim Frangione
Role of Milly
Great Barrington Public Theatre in Berkshires, MA
July 14 - 24, 2022
tiny_Theatre
Staged Readings
with Playwrights from around the globe
On FB LIVE
300 Episodes and counting...
On Camera...
Rachel is truly over the moon -- she landed the recurring role of Betty Grissom, wife of Mercury 7's Gus Grissom in Season 1 of The Right Stuff now on Disney+. The tv series is based on Tom Wolfe's 1979 novel by the same name which was later made into the iconic movie. Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Davisson and the team at Appian Way along with Mark Lafferty are among the Executive Producers. Check out which 7 episodes she will be in here at her IMDB page.
In the press...
"The Right Stuff: Fort Myers' Rachel Burttram blasts off in Disney+ Series" by Charles Runnells News- Press Oct 7, 2020
"The Right Stuff" astronauts to launch on Disney+ by Eric Raddatz Florida Weekly Oct 7, 2020
Grand Style: Rachel Burttram by Anne Reed Grandeur Magazine Nov 7, 2020
BETTYS by Nancy Stetson Florida Weekly Sept 30, 2020
"The Right Stuff" astronauts to launch on Disney+ by Eric Raddatz Florida Weekly Oct 7, 2020
Grand Style: Rachel Burttram by Anne Reed Grandeur Magazine Nov 7, 2020
BETTYS by Nancy Stetson Florida Weekly Sept 30, 2020
From Season '19-'20...
World Premiere 1st of a 11 production Rolling World Premiere with National New Play Network ALABASTER by Audrey Cefely Directed by Jason Parrish Florida Repertory Theatre Role of June Dec 17 - Jan 26, 2020 Fort Myers, FL Reviewed in the News-Press by Charles Runnells 
June in ALABASTER
by Audrey Cefaly
photo credit: Nick Adams
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A DOLL"S HOUSE, PART 2 by Lucas Hnath Directed by Chris Clavelli Florida Repertory Theatre Role of Nora March 17 - April 8, 2020 Fort Myers, FL Reviewed in the Wall Street Journal by Terry Teachout. 
Nora in DOLL'S HOUSE PART 2
by Lucas Hnath
photo credit: Bryelle Dafledecker
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Director's Chair...
ALABASTER
by Audrey Cefaly
Virtual Reading with Women' s Theatre Festival
April 30, 2020
by Audrey Cefaly
Virtual Reading with Women' s Theatre Festival
April 30, 2020
THE WOLVES
by Sarah DeLappe
Reading at Florida Repertory Theatre
March 2, 2020
by Sarah DeLappe
Reading at Florida Repertory Theatre
March 2, 2020
THANK YOU!
Awards and Honors
2023 Carbonell Nominee
BEST OF 2021
BEST OF 2019 & 2018
2019 - Role of Truvy in STEEL MAGNOLIAS by Robert Harling at Florida Repertory Theatre
Photo Credit: Nick Adams
(seated)Amy Tribbey, Allison Campbell, Rachel Burttram, (standing) Sara Morsey, Patricia Idelette, Betsy Helmer
2018 - Role of Emily in DISGRACED by Ayard Akhtar at Florida Repertory Theatre
Photo Credit: Nick Adams
Mary Hodges, Amir Darvish, Rachel Burttram, Gregg Weiner
THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO VOTED!
Photo Credit: Nick Adams
(seated)Amy Tribbey, Allison Campbell, Rachel Burttram, (standing) Sara Morsey, Patricia Idelette, Betsy Helmer
2018 - Role of Emily in DISGRACED by Ayard Akhtar at Florida Repertory Theatre
Photo Credit: Nick Adams
Mary Hodges, Amir Darvish, Rachel Burttram, Gregg Weiner
THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO VOTED!
ARTSFUSE BEST THEATRE OF 2018
NEW ENGLAND/BOSTON
"The best show I reviewed this year was, surprisingly, produced in Bangor, Maine. Penobscot Theatre Producing Artistic Director Bari Newport orchestrated a nearly flawless production of Lindsey Ferrentino’s UGLY LIES THE BONE. The play centers on Jess (Rachel Burttram), a veteran recovering from multiple injuries suffered in an explosion while serving in Afghanistan. This powerful play examines the recovery process of injured veterans, probing the use of virtual reality as a means to heal profoundly injured soldiers. But what made the Penobscot Theatre production so memorable was Burttram’s brilliant performance, assisted by Kevin Koski’s wonderful make up and costumes."- David Greenham
Photo Credit: Magnus Stark
IN THE PRESS...
BIO...
Rachel Burttram Powers is an award-winning actress, director, teaching artist, and theatre administrator with more than 25 years of professional experience on stages across the United States. A proud member of Actors' Equity Association, she has built a reputation as one of regional theatre's most versatile and compelling performers, earning consistent recognition from critics and audiences alike.
Rachel's stage work spans venues up and down the east coast, including Actors' Theatre of Louisville (where she completed her acting apprenticeship in 1999–2000), Geva Theatre Center in Rochester, NY, Penobscot Theatre Company in Bangor, ME, Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, NY, Gloucester Stage in Massachusetts, Riverside Theatre in Vero Beach, FL, Barnstormers' Theatre in New Hampshire, The Hippodrome Theatre in Gainesville, FL, and City Equity in Alabama — as well as several stages in New York City, including the prestigious Actors' Studio. She is an 20-year member of the acting ensemble at Florida Repertory Theatre, named by Wall Street Journal critic Terry Teachout as one of America's top repertory companies.
Among her most celebrated roles, Rachel received Carbonell Award nominations for Outstanding Performance in a Lead Female Role — first as Nora in A Doll's House, Part 2 at GableStage (2023), and again as Toni in Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at GableStage (2025). Of her performance in Appropriate, critic Bill Hirschman wrote that "acting does not get much better than this," while Miami Art Zine called her "riveting." Her additional honors include BroadwayWorld Best Actress awards for Southwest Florida (2018 and 2019), Florida Weekly Best Actress recognition, and an ArtsFuse Best Theatre of New England citation for her work in Ugly Lies the Bone at Penobscot Theatre Company. She also co-wrote and performed in The Hunt for Milo Gatto (Bequia International Theatre Festival) & Who Killed Zolan Mize? for online audiences around the world.
On screen, Rachel landed the recurring role of Betty Grissom — wife of Mercury 7 astronaut Gus Grissom — in Season 1 of The Right Stuff on Disney+, an Appian Way/Leonardo DiCaprio production. She has also appeared in independent films, television, and national commercials, and served as a Peer Panelist for the Regional Emmy Awards in 2024.
As a director, Rachel recently has helmed productions including The Wolves by Sarah DeLappe and Dancing at Lughnasa by Brian Friel, both at Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham. She continues to champion new work through her long-running tiny_Theatre staged reading series, now more than 300 episodes strong, featuring playwrights from around the globe.
Rachel's commitment to theatre education is equally distinguished. She currently serves as an Adjunct Theatre Instructor at Alabama School of Fine Arts, where she teaches Acting for the Camera, and Professional Prep. A dedicated teaching artist, she has led classes and workshops for diverse populations nationwide alongside her husband and fellow theatre artist, Brendan Powers.
Her breadth of arts administration experience encompasses roles as Interim Managing Director (GableStage, 2025), Associate Director, Director of Audience Development, Company Manager, Director of Education, Box Office Manager, Community Programs Director, and Fundraising Researcher. She has developed programming for communities at theatres across the country. Rachel currently serves as Vice Chair of the Professional Division on the Board of Directors of the Alabama Conference of Theatre (ACT).
In 2025–2026, Rachel was honored as a recipient of the Individual Artists Fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. She is an honorary member of the NAACP and the author of Diary of a Professional Actor, a blog chronicling life as a working actor in regional theatre, now in its second decade with an upcoming book launch anticipated fro later summer 2026!
Rachel's stage work spans venues up and down the east coast, including Actors' Theatre of Louisville (where she completed her acting apprenticeship in 1999–2000), Geva Theatre Center in Rochester, NY, Penobscot Theatre Company in Bangor, ME, Kitchen Theatre Company in Ithaca, NY, Gloucester Stage in Massachusetts, Riverside Theatre in Vero Beach, FL, Barnstormers' Theatre in New Hampshire, The Hippodrome Theatre in Gainesville, FL, and City Equity in Alabama — as well as several stages in New York City, including the prestigious Actors' Studio. She is an 20-year member of the acting ensemble at Florida Repertory Theatre, named by Wall Street Journal critic Terry Teachout as one of America's top repertory companies.
Among her most celebrated roles, Rachel received Carbonell Award nominations for Outstanding Performance in a Lead Female Role — first as Nora in A Doll's House, Part 2 at GableStage (2023), and again as Toni in Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins at GableStage (2025). Of her performance in Appropriate, critic Bill Hirschman wrote that "acting does not get much better than this," while Miami Art Zine called her "riveting." Her additional honors include BroadwayWorld Best Actress awards for Southwest Florida (2018 and 2019), Florida Weekly Best Actress recognition, and an ArtsFuse Best Theatre of New England citation for her work in Ugly Lies the Bone at Penobscot Theatre Company. She also co-wrote and performed in The Hunt for Milo Gatto (Bequia International Theatre Festival) & Who Killed Zolan Mize? for online audiences around the world.
On screen, Rachel landed the recurring role of Betty Grissom — wife of Mercury 7 astronaut Gus Grissom — in Season 1 of The Right Stuff on Disney+, an Appian Way/Leonardo DiCaprio production. She has also appeared in independent films, television, and national commercials, and served as a Peer Panelist for the Regional Emmy Awards in 2024.
As a director, Rachel recently has helmed productions including The Wolves by Sarah DeLappe and Dancing at Lughnasa by Brian Friel, both at Alabama School of Fine Arts in Birmingham. She continues to champion new work through her long-running tiny_Theatre staged reading series, now more than 300 episodes strong, featuring playwrights from around the globe.
Rachel's commitment to theatre education is equally distinguished. She currently serves as an Adjunct Theatre Instructor at Alabama School of Fine Arts, where she teaches Acting for the Camera, and Professional Prep. A dedicated teaching artist, she has led classes and workshops for diverse populations nationwide alongside her husband and fellow theatre artist, Brendan Powers.
Her breadth of arts administration experience encompasses roles as Interim Managing Director (GableStage, 2025), Associate Director, Director of Audience Development, Company Manager, Director of Education, Box Office Manager, Community Programs Director, and Fundraising Researcher. She has developed programming for communities at theatres across the country. Rachel currently serves as Vice Chair of the Professional Division on the Board of Directors of the Alabama Conference of Theatre (ACT).
In 2025–2026, Rachel was honored as a recipient of the Individual Artists Fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. She is an honorary member of the NAACP and the author of Diary of a Professional Actor, a blog chronicling life as a working actor in regional theatre, now in its second decade with an upcoming book launch anticipated fro later summer 2026!
