Stephanie Van Huss

has been a professional storyteller and educator for over 10 years. She holds bachelors degrees from Rutgers University in both Theater Arts and English Literature, as well as a Masters Degree in Education. Stephanie strategically uses storytelling to encourage reflection, empathy, and growth in people from all backgrounds and identities.

In her higher education career she has worked for Rutgers University - New Brunswick, Fordham University, Raritan Valley Community College, The College of New Jersey, and Rider University. This work has included formal course instruction, program coordination, advising, workshop creation and facilitation, and crisis management. Stephanie has hands-on experience in the areas of alcohol & other drug addiction and recovery; sexual assault and domestic violence prevention & outreach; religion & spirituality; social justice initiatives; building inclusive communities; and professional leadership development. She is currently an adjunct faculty member at Rider University’s Westminster School for the Performing Arts. 

Stephanie is an active Stage Intimacy Director and Choreographer throughout the United States. Her curriculum and practices for healthy stage intimacy have been used to choreograph and train participants in middle school, high school, collegiate, community, and professional performance art settings. She currently serves as a curriculum developer and educator with the New Jersey Center for Theatrical Intimacy.

As a freelance theater artist, Van Huss has professionally directed more than a dozen productions in the last 5 years. She is actively curating and directing an original verbatim theater piece created in partnership with the Middlesex County Center for Empowerment and coLAB Arts. This piece explores the experiences of survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence and the ways we can stage these events in a truthful, healthy, and life-giving way.

As a teaching artist she has worked with coLAB Arts, Fresh Theatre Arts, the Monmouth County Teen Arts Festival, and many individual school systems to bring theater education and professional development to K - 12 students and their teachers. Stephanie specializes in teaching socially-engaged art, storytelling, acting, stage management, producing, props mastery, set design, costume design, and sound design.

In her life as a producer, Stephanie Van Huss served as the Executive Director of ReThink Theatrical, a non-profit theater organization based in Middlesex county that provided free, professional-quality theater to the public for 8 years.