ABOUT BRAYLON
Braylon is an award-winning director, performer, arts administrator, and teaching artist hailing from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Recent collaborations include Guthrie Theater, LyricArts, Phipps Center for the Arts, Children's Performing Arts, Loud Mouth Productions, and Burnsville Summer Theatre, to name a select few. He is a renowned Acting Coach & Educational Theatre Specialist. As an educational director, those Braylon has directed, taught, or coached have been seen on stage at the Jimmy Awards ® on Broadway, Guthrie Theater, Children's Theatre Company, © Hennepin Arts Spotlight Triple Threat, Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, Youth Performance Company, and many other professional, community and educational spaces. He is currently entering his second season as Education & Programming Manager at Children's Performing Arts, where he oversees the Department of Education, staff, teaching artists, serves as line-producer on the youth "mini-legacy" productions, and collaborates with the Production & Operations Manager on the overall Artistic Development of the company. An aspiring Artistic Director, he is immensely passionate about Regional Theatre Development and is proud to call the Twin Cities his home, with such a vibrant theatre scene. Recently, Braylon was officially elected into office to serve and represent Minnesota on the Theatre Arts & Speech Committee in the National Federation Of High School Associations. He is also on the Board of Directors for Minnesota Thespians, the MN branch of EDTA's National Thespian Society, the world’s largest honor society for middle and high school theater students. He is also on the Script Selection Committee for The Phipps Center For The Arts.
Braylon is an Associate Member of the Stage Directors & Choreographers Society (SDC) and has served as the Creative Director for BCS Summer Theatre for numerous summers. Under his creative direction, a highly acclaimed production of Hairspray took place, earning 7 awards out of 23 nominations from the Broadway World Regional Awards. This summer stock, based just north of the Twin Cities, provided a platform for Braylon to direct many shows. His body of work as a director across the state and region has consistently generated local recognition for his innovative approach and quality of production. As a cross-trained artist, Braylon has worked in a variety of capacities at all levels, such as High School, Collegiate, Community, Professional and Regional Theatre.
In regards to Directing, Braylon has worked on every type of show imaginable, but primarily focuses on contemporary drama, large-scale musicals, classical texts and original works. Additionally, Braylon holds a Teaching License in Theatre Arts, which he utilized as a full-time theatre educator prior to moving to being a full-time freelance director and Arts Administrator. Educational Leadership will continue to be a core aspect of his work and he continues to support emerging generations of artists while working collaboratively with other young artists. The most notable achievement within Braylon’s area of education expertise was when Braylon directed an adaptation of Qui Nguyen’s “She Kills Monsters” for the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) One Act Play Competition in January of 2025. The MSHSL is among the top competitions in the state of Minnesota for theatrical performances. Competitions are held in sixteen different sections, and ten to fifteen schools compete in each. After going through several rounds of judging by professionals in the field of theater, White Bear Lake Area High Schools’ production, which Braylon directed, earned first place in Section 4AA. It is noteworthy to mention this marked thirteen years since White Bear Lake Advanced to State. Furthermore, it is also worth noting this is Braylons third year with the program and demonstrates his commitment to mentoring students, developing their artistic skills, and creating new theatrical innovations.
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Braylon directing 'Miss Nelson Is Missing' at the Phipps Center in Wisconsin | Molly Jay Photography
Beginning with the Theatre Guild Program Director position at White Bear Lake Area High School for five years, the program has a well-deserved reputation among the Twin Cities metro area for producing quality theatre. In 2026, three of its students were named Triple Threat Finalists by Hennepin Theatre Trust, and one student was selected in the previous year. As the director/producer of numerous theatre productions at the high school, and the coach of hundreds of students in performance and theatre communication/administration, and as a private coaching artist throughout his career, Braylon has assisted numerous students in preparing for college-level theatre programs.
Many students whom Braylon has coached over the years have pursued post-secondary education in theatre arts at institutions including: University of Minnesota-Duluth, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, Normandale Community College, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Century College, and the University of Wisconsin-Eau-Claire, to name but a few.
One of Braylon's greatest accomplishments occurred during January 2025 when he directed an adaptation of Qui Nguyen's "She Kills Monsters" that earned first place in the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) One Act Play Competition. The MSHSL competition is considered to be among the most competitive and respected theatrical events in the state. It is composed of 16 sections with 10-15 schools from each region competing against one another. Following multiple rounds of adjudication conducted by theatre professionals from around the country, White Bear Lake Area High School's production of "She Kills Monsters," under Braylon's direction, received first place honors in Section 4AA, and will go on to compete for the title of best production at the State Tournament Festival. This marks the thirteenth time since 2008 that White Bear Lake Area High School has been represented at this event, and it was accomplished in Braylon's third year as part of the Theatre Guild Program.