Originally from Columbia, Missouri, Ashleigh (she/fae) has called Orlando home since moving there with her family in 1994. She began her theatre education at Valencia College, transferring to the University of Central Florida thereafter. She then went on to earn her Master's Degree in Literary, Cultural, & Textual Studies with concentrations in Victorian and Gothic literature, psychoanalytic theory, and gender studies from UCF in 2015.

 

A playwright and member of The Dramatists Guild of America, Ashleigh was the recipient of a $5,000 playwriting grant from New Generation Theatrical for her play Qualia: a post nuclear play, presented at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in October 2019. Qualia has since been produced nationally in Orlando and Chicago.

 

Ashleigh is also a professional entertainment photographer and scenic artist. Her photography has been seen in The Washington Post, The Associated Press, The Orlando Sentinel, The Orlando Weekly, Watermark, and The Chicago Reader, among others. Her scenic design work has been featured in productions staged by Renaissance Theatre Company and Central Florida Community Arts Theatre since 2018.

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When she's not working, she tends a vegetable and flower garden in her backyard, reads high fantasy and horror fiction, and maintains a working knowledge of period-respective undergarments ranging from the early 18th to the early 20th century.

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A few random factoids:

• Ashleigh is a member of the AuDHD community, and is an advocate for neurodivergent inclusion, accommodation, and celebration, with special focus on ADHD and the Autism spectrum.

• She is an avid cemetery enthusiast.

• The first research paper she ever wrote was on Vlad the Impaler in 8th grade.

• Her favorite book of all time is The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi.