BIO
Lauren Helpern is an award-winning set designer based in New York City. She designed many world premiere and critically acclaimed productions. Her work in NYC includes: 4000 Miles at Lincoln Center (Lortel Award), the Pulitzer Prize winner Disgraced at LCT3, Bad Jews and Skintight at Roundabout Theatre Company, Model Apartment for Primary Stages, and BUG at Barrow Street (Obie Award). She recently designed King of the Jews, which immersed the audience in a 1930s Polish cafe. Regionally, she has designed at Ford’s Theatre, The Geffen Playhouse, South Coast Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, Arizona Theatre Company, Pioneer Theatre Company, Huntington Stage Company, Portland Center Stage, Bucks County Playhouse, Cleveland Playhouse, Chautauqua Theatre Company, Anchorage Opera, and Actors Theatre of Louisville, among others. She designed the National Tour of American Girl Live! and several productions of Blue Man Group.
For video, Lauren has recently been working with stand up comics. Her first special was the production design for Ari Shaffir - Jew, which has 7.7 million views on Youtube. Recently she has worked with Jordan Jensen, Randy Feltface, and again with Ari Shaffir. She was a production designer for Janice Gunter: Ghost Hunter on WhoHaHa, an assistant art director on Sesame Street’s 50th Anniversary Celebration, and has worked in a number of art departments.
Along with her work in the entertainment industry, she has designed benefits, events and installations for a diverse group of clients ranging from wine tastings to lobby art. She decorated Journey, a NYC restaurant, and consulted on the Weill Cafe at Carnegie Hall. With business partner Faye Armon Troncoso, she started Butter Designs (www.butterdesigns.com); they have created designs for trade shows, conventions, and events.
She has a BA from Brown University and a MFA from NYU. She is a proud member of USA Local 829.
AWARDS & NOMINATIONS
LORTEL AWARD - 4000 MILES, 2012
OBIE AWARD - BUG, 2004
NYMF AWARD - Honorable Mention - BEND IN THE ROAD, 2013
HEWES AWARD nomination – 4000 MILES, 2012; THE DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL, 2011; NONE OF THE ABOVE, 2003
EDDY AWARD - BLUE MAN GROUP/LIVE AT LUXOR, 2000
BROADWAYWORLD SALT LAKE CITY AWARDS nomination - MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY, 2019
BROADWAYWORLD RALEIGH AWARDS nomination - MUSIC CITY, 2017
ROBBY AWARD (Los Angeles) nomination - SKINTIGHT, 2019
SELECTED SCENIC DESIGN
BROADWAY
VOICES IN THE DARK, Directed by Christopher Ashley, Longacre Theatre
OFF-BROADWAY
MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (upcoming), Directed by Dylan Diehl, Produced by Ensemble Shakespeare Company, The Flea
MRS. STERN WANDERS THE PRUSSIAN STATE LIBRARY, Directed by Ari Laura Krieth, Produced by Luna Stage, 59E59 & WP Theatre
KING OF THE JEWS, Directed by Alexandra Aron, Produced by Parkman Productions, HERE Arts Center
HARRY TOWNSEND’S LAST STAND, Directed by Karen Carpenter, Produced by Dennis Grimaldi, City Center Stage II
SKINTIGHT, Directed by Daniel Aukin, Roundabout Theater Company/Pels
SUNDOWN YELLOW MOON, Directed by Anne Kauffman, Ars Nova & WP Theater
A FUNNY THING…MEMORIAL SLOAN KETTERING, Directed by Trip Cullman, MCC
GHOST STORIES by David Mamet, Directed by Scott Zigler, Atlantic Theater Company
POCATELLO, Directed by Davis McCallum, Playwrights Horizons
THE LONELINESS OF THE LONG DISTANCE RUNNER, Directed by Leah Gardiner, Atlantic Theater Company
MODEL APARTMENT, Directed by Evan Cabnet, Primary Stages
BAD JEWS, Directed by Daniel Aukin, Roundabout Theater Company/Pels
CORE VALUES, Directed by Carolyn Cantor, Ars Nova
HIT THE WALL, Directed by Eric Hoff, Barrow Street Theater
BETHANY Directed by Gaye Taylor Upchurch, Women's Project at City Center Stage II
DISGRACED, Directed by Kimberly Senior, LCT3 at Claire Tow Theatre
4000 MILES, Directed by Daniel Aukin, Lincoln Center Theater/Mitzi Newhouse Theater
BUG, Directed by Dexter Bullard, Barrow Street Theater
LAS VEGAS
BLUE MAN GROUP/LIVE AT LUXOR, Directed by Blue Man Group, Luxor Hotel & Casino, NV
ALWAYS…PATSY CLINE, Directed by Sharon Rosen, Silverton Hotel & Casino, NV & Coronet Theatre, CA
NATIONAL TOUR
AMERICAN GIRL LIVE!, Directed by Gina Rattan, Produced by Mills Entertainment
REGIONAL THEATRE
BOB MARLEY’S THREE LITTLE BIRDS, Co-Directed by Randy White and Tuesdai B. Perry, Young People’s Theatre, Chicago, IL
PEABODY, Directed by Randy White, Young People’s Theatre, Chicago, IL
LOST IN YONKERS, Co-Directed by Marsha Mason & Rachel Alderman, Hartford Stage, CT
NICOLE CLARK IS HAVING A BABY, Directed by Morgan Gould, Humana Festival, Actors Theatre, KY
FLEX, Directed by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg, Humana Festival, Actors Theatre, KY
THE CANADIANS, Directed by Jaime Castaneda, South Coast Rep, CA
FENCES, Directed by Timothy Douglas, Ford’s Theatre, DC
SKINTIGHT, Directed by Daniel Aukin, Geffen Playhouse, CA
MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY, Directed by Julie Kramer, Pioneer Theatre Company, UT
MUSIC CITY, Directed by Mary Catherine Burke, Cape Fear Regional Theatre, NC
SEIZE THE KING, Directed by Jaime Castaneda, La Jolla Playhouse, CA
CURVE OF DEPARTURE, Directed by Mike Donahue, South Coast Rep & Studio Theatre, DC
CHAPTER TWO, Directed by Marsha Mason, Arizona Theatre Company, AZ
A FUNNY THING…MEMORIAL SLOAN KETTERING, Directed by Trip Cullman, Geffen Playhouse, CA
AT THE OLD PLACE, Directed by Jaime Castaneda, La Jolla Playhouse, CA
AN ACT OF GOD, Directed by Marsha Mason, Arizona Theatre Company, AZ
TIGER STYLE!, Directed by Jaime Castaneda, La Jolla Playhouse, CA
CAN YOU FORGIVE HER?, Directed by Peter DuBois, Huntington Stage Company
HOW WE GOT ON, Directed by Jaime Castaneda, Cleveland Playhouse, OH
BLUE MAN GROUP (Chicago), Directed by Blue Man Group, Briar Street Theatre, Chicago, IL
BLUE MAN GROUP (Boston), Directed by Blue Man Group, Charles St. Playhouse, MA
OPERA
SHULAMIT, Directed by Laura Alley Dietrich, JCC Manhattan, NYC
THE ITALIAN GIRL IN ALGIERS, Directed by Albert Sherman, Alaska Performing Arts Center, AK
DANCE
IT'S ALL RELATIVE, Directed by Tracy Straus, National Dance Institute, LaGuardia High School, NYC
NATIONAL DANCE INSTITUTE END OF YEAR CONCERT, Directed and Choreographed by Tracy Straus, LaGuardia High School, NYC
INDUSTRIALS AND EVENTS (see also www.butterdesigns.com)
GYMSHARK influencer event, Produced by Ominto, Southampton, NY
TYSON GROCERANT, Produced by Green Bear Group, Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center. IL
92ND STREET Y GALA 2007 - 2009, Directed by Jeff Martin, 92nd Street Y - Kaufmann Concert Hall, NYC
WORLD AIDS DAY - SECRET GARDEN, Directed by Stafford Arima, Manhattan Ballroom, NYC
WORLD AIDS DAY – PIPPIN, Directed by Gabriel Barre, Manhattan Ballroom, NYC
NOTHING LIKE A DAME 2001 - 2004, various Broadway theatres, NYC
TAMIFLU FLU MEDICATION LAUNCH, Produced by The Diamond Group, National Campaign
SELECTED FILM & VIDEO
PRODUCTION DESIGN
RANDY FELTFACE (@The Bell House, upcoming), Partnership Entertainment
JORDAN JENSEN (@Gramercy Theater, upcoming Netflix production), Directed by Eric Abrams, Partnership Entertainment
ARI SHAFFIR (@The Box, upcoming), Directed by Eric Abrams, John John Productions
ARI SHAFFIR - JEW (@Roulette, streaming on Youtube), Directed by Eric Abrams, Partnership Entertainment
123 SONOGRAPHY TRAINING VIDEOS (co-design with Faye Armon Troncoso), One Glass Video
OUR FAMILY'S WAY (co-design with David Gallo), Sesame Street
JANICE GUNTER: GHOST HUNTER (co-design with Faye Armon Troncoso), Directed by Luke H. Simmons, One Glass Video
MAKING A DIFFERENCE, Directed by Rick Meier, Merrill Lynch Video Network
3 CASH MANAGEMENT ACCOUNT COMMERCIALS, Directed by Bob Mirales, Merrill Lynch Video Network
CLEO'S DATE, Directed by Royal Miller, Power for Now Productions
ASSISTANT ART DIRECTION
DR. OZ (Production Design by Jason Kirschner), new set, ZOCO Productions
DREW BARRYMORE TALK SHOW PILOT (Production Design by Tom Lenz and Mel Lovric), CBS Television
POWER AFTERSHOW (Production Design by Tom Lenz and Mel Lovric), STARZ
NIGHT LATE PILOT (Production Design by Anthony Bishop), NBC Universal
SESAME STREET 50TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION (Production Design by David Gallo), Sesame Workshop
FBI (Production Design by John Mott), Season 1/episodes 17 & 18, Universal Television
THE NOT-TOO-LATE SHOW WITH ELMO (Production Design by David Gallo), Pilot, Sesame Workshop