Check Out Hannah Warren’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hannah Warren.

Hi Hannah, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
The arts have always been very important in my life. I grew up in my dance studio, and as someone who feels my emotions very deeply, dance gave me another language through which to express myself. I danced my way through high school in Bakersfield and then apprenticed with the Jazz Tap Ensemble while an undergrad at UCLA, where I studied Psychology with a minor in Disability Studies.

During college, I took a class called “Autism in the Media,” where I was introduced to the HBO Documentary “Autism: The Musical” which profiles the work of Elaine Hall and the start of her nonprofit organization, The Miracle Project (TMP). The Miracle Project is a theater, film, social skills, and expressive arts organization for neurodiverse individuals, and upon watching the film, I knew I had to get involved. That afternoon, I reached out to TMP’s volunteer coordinator and signed up to be a volunteer co-actor in their program, wherein I would engage in the classes alongside the participants and model what it was like to take risks, laugh at my mistakes, and most importantly, be a friend. I later became a teaching artist with The Miracle Project and assisted with grant writing/fund development while in my Master’s program at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work.

At the same time, I had been serving neurodiverse families in a number of other capacities, including as an early intervention specialist, behavior and social skills interventionist, and project coordinator for a research lab at UCLA studying the psychosocial development of individuals with developmental disabilities. After completing my Master’s program, I moved to the Bay Area where I worked as a Clinical Social Worker at a crisis stabilization and residential treatment center for teens with developmental disabilities and mental illness, providing individual, group, and family therapy, in addition to case management and advocacy services. I had also brought The Miracle Project’s “Improv for Interaction” program to a nonprofit in the Bay Area called De Colores. I moved back to Los Angeles in January 2020 to become TMP’s Program Director & Clinical Supervisor and have been there ever since. I am extremely passionate about cultivating growth and celebrating neurodiversity through the arts and am very proud of what we do.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No. I have had to do a lot of work on myself in my teens and early adulthood to be fully capable of being of service to others. Having struggled with perfectionistic tendencies, I sought various strategies to establish “control” (which I have since learned does not entirely exist.) I developed an eating disorder when I was 15, and it took different forms for several years until I reached a point in which I needed to attend treatment in a partial hospitalization program during college. My relationship with food and with my body have come a long way, and I have since been able to establish a healthy mind-body connection that is nurtured by joyful movement and that itself nurtures my ability to be of service to others. However trite, the saying “You can’t pour from an empty cup” was pivotal in my recovery and remains a mantra I remind myself daily.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
As I mentioned, The Miracle Project (TMP) is a fully inclusive theater, film, expressive & performing arts organization for neurodiverse individuals and those with and without disabilities. We currently offer 19 virtual and in-person classes each week for individuals ages 5-65 and utilize an evidence-based methodology developed by our Founder (and my forever inspiration and mentor) Elaine Hall. TMP is committed to elevating the authentic voices, passions, and stories of neurodiverse individuals and do so by creating safe spaces where our participants – some of whom speak and others who type to communicate – can creatively explore different ways of expressing themselves. We also support our participants in developing original content in the form of musicals, songs, music videos, and poetry that educate the public about neurodiversity and challenge perceptions of what “disability” and “ability” really mean.

For those with disabilities, programs often focus on “correcting” behaviors, trying to get participants to fit into a world that sees them as “the other” – as not just disabled but unable. In contrast, The Miracle Project embraces those with disabilities for who they are and applies innovative arts curricula to creatively join their world instead of trying to force them to join ours. We have over 100 unique individuals enrolled in our Improv for Interaction Social Skills Program, Triple Threat Musical Theater classes, I Can Do That: Professional Acting for Film & TV classes, Express Yourself Class for Multi-Modality Communicators, Company Class, and Torah Together program. In addition to instruction in the various artistic modalities, we focus on building relationships, increasing self-esteem and self-expression, increasing fine and gross motor skills, social engagement, and communication. Because of the unique community TMP creates, participants often share that this is the first place they have ever made a friend or felt that they are accepted and that they belong. I am so grateful to Elaine Hall for creating this creative space where our participants feel safe enough to reveal their true selves.

As the Program Director and Clinical Supervisor, I am responsible for the growth and development of all programs, supervision of teaching artists, and clinical oversight of curriculum development and implementation, among many other responsibilities. As is true with employees at most nonprofit organizations, I wear A LOT of hats, and I work very closely with our Director of Operations, Juliane Hagn, to manage both day-to-day programming and navigate our continued transition from a fully in-person, fully virtual, and now, a hybrid organization with both in-person and Zoom classes. It is a privilege to be able to do work about which I am so passionate, and though my tendency for overwork is stressful at times, one thing makes it worth it – I love my job.

What makes you happy?
My body has always wanted to move, and I’ve noticed that, not surprisingly, my mental health is in a much better space when I am physically active. During the pandemic, I came across a gem of a yoga studio in Downtown Culver City called SoulPlay Yoga & Fitness whose outdoor classes became a lifeline for me. I decided to do a 200-hour yoga teacher training with them in the Spring of 2022, and currently teach four classes at SoulPlay (Yoga Sculpt, Slow Flow, and two Yoga Barre classes) before work and on the weekends. I strive to help my students intentionally cultivate the energy that best serves them by finding joy and meaning in movement. As we all have different experiences in our bodies, I encourage a playful practice where students can celebrate their strengths and see a path where they can become stronger/more agile without judging themselves on the way. Creatively expressing myself through movement makes me happy, and I love having the opportunity to help others tap into their joy at SoulPlay.

Contact Info:

• Website: themiracleproject.org
• Instagram: instagram.com/themiracleprojectlive/
• Facebook: facebook.com/MiracleProjectLive
• Youtube: youtube.com/@miracleprojectpage