Born in Queens, NY in the U.S, Meranda Flachs-Surmanek (they/them) is an interdisciplinary scholar-activist practicing people’s theater. As a facilitator, Meranda creates opportunities for people to perform differently with each other, on stage, in our organizations, and in civic life.

With Monuments Across Appalachian Virginia, Meranda works with grassroots organizers across nine communities to develop creative projects that bring neighbors together to dream and to uplift, commemorate, or rehabilitate cultural practices and stories targeted by policies of erasure.

Meranda is a 2023-24 Forefront Fellow with the Urban Design Forum. They work as a Co-Investigator with the University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine to understand the relationship between the arts and social isolation. They collaborate with the award-winning theater Pink Fang (formerly Ping Chong + Company) to create living history projects,.

Meranda is influenced by experiences in the EmergeNYC Fellowship, their work with Arts for Art / the Vision Festival, Nancy Agabian’s Creative Writing from Queer Resistance workshop, and other radical learning environments which help us unearth new truths about our shared world, and remind us how to hold freedom, joy, and beloved community all at once.  

Meranda is a graduate of New York University and Virginia Tech, where they obtained their Master’s in Urban & Regional Planning and Master’s of Fine Arts in Theatre for Public Dialogue focusing on the centrality of creativity in navigating complex social issues. Meranda is a Coach with the Center for Communicating Science, with a previous appointment as an Adjunct Instructor.

Past projects include the development of theatre programs that address moral injury and burnout with 1,000 healthcare workers at 20 hospital across the U.S. as a Lead Facilitator with The Clinic Performance, and Artist-in-Residence at Carilion Clinic.

Meranda’s Ashkenazi Jewish embodiment, white body, and working class upbringing impact their approach to organizing. 

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Meranda is a NEW AESTHETICS Fellow with Theatre Replacement and Visiting Fellow at Skidmore College's MDOCS Storytellers' Institute. They were a SU-CASA Artist-in-Residence with the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, Social Practice Artist-in-Residence with ProjectArt, Fellow at The Performance Project at University Settlement, EmergeNYC Fellow and Fellow with The Art & Law Program. Meranda is a graduate of the Training Institute for Artists and Administrators in Healthcare and Creative Aging hosted by The Creative Center at University Settlement. They have trained with the Anti Oppression Resource & Training Alliance (AORTA), Center for Artistic Activism’s Art Action Academy, the Center for Mind-Body Medicine, the Center for Performance and Civic Practice, Lifetime Arts, New York University's Art & Public Politics Department, and TimeSlips Creative Storytelling.

As a civic practice artist, Meranda’s work takes place in public space, hospitals, and community spaces. Meranda’s work has been presented with numerous cultural institutions, including: Abrons Arts Center (NY), Dixon Place (NY), Goggleworks (PA), Leslie-Lohman Museum (NY), Mitchell Art Gallery (EDM, AB, Canada), The Performance Project (NY), Play Perform Learn Grow (Thessaloniki, Greece), and Theaterlab (NY). Current projects are supported by Actors Theatre of Louisville and Kentucky Nurses Association; the Center for Communicating Science at Virginia Tech; the Institute for Creativity, Arts and Technology, and the Oncology Nursing Foundation.