Rachel Spencer Hewitt is an equity actor with an MFA in Acting from the Yale School of Drama. During her time at the Yale School of Drama, she received the Pierre-André Salim Award: The Pierre-André Salim Prize is awarded to third-year students at the Yale School of Drama whose artistry, professionalism, collaborative energy, and commitment to the community have inspired their colleagues, and who show distinct promise of raising the standard of practice in the field. She is a Baker Duncan Scholar and received her BA in Drama from Trinity University in San Antonio. In 2021, she was named one of five women to watch in theatre by Shondaland for her work with PAAL. Rachel’s professional acting repertoire includes Broadway (King Charles III), Off-Broadway (The Seagull directed by Max Stafford Clark, the New York premiere of A Civil War Christmas by Paula Vogel and directed by Tina Landau, and Peter and the Starcatcher at New York Theatre Workshop), extensive regional work (Shakespeare Theatre Company, Hartford Stage, Yale Repertory Theatre, Bay Street Theatre with director Michael Wilson, and more), international theatre, feature films, and more. Rachel is also the founder of Parent Artist Advocacy League for the Performing Arts (PAAL), a national organization that serves as a resource hub, community, and solutions generator for parents in the arts and the institutions who support them. Rachel’s work with PAAL has been mentioned in numerous publications, including The New York Times, Shondaland.com, American Theatre Magazine, Backstage, Hartford Courant, HowlRound Theatre Commons, WAMU for NPR News in Washington D.C, and the recently published book From Aphra Behn to Fun Home: A Cultural History of Feminist Theatre. On International Women’s Day in 2019, her organization PAAL was selected as one of ten “Changemaker” organizations invited to take the stage and present at Disney Theatrical’s Women’s Day on Broadway in New York City. PAAL created the first all-discipline, all-gender PAAL National Childcare Grant program for individuals and institutions that were distributed this year. She was one of the project leaders on the first-of-its-kind Radical Parent-Inclusion Project for the production of MOTHERS off-Broadway at The Playwrights Realm with Producer Roberta Pereira. Rachel has participated in national think tanks, on panels, and facilitated workshops on parenting in the arts at multiple gatherings, including the national TCG conferences, BroadwayCon, and Latinx Theatre Commons Annual Convening. Rachel’s professional acting work and contact can be found at RachelSpencerHewitt.com and her advocacy organization at PAALtheatre.com