Andrew Ballard

Teacher | Actor | Author

Teacher

Andrew’s work in education includes teaching theatre arts to high school students and serving as the program manager for New Voices for the Theater, a high school playwriting residency at SPARC, the School of the Performing Arts in the Richmond Community. Andrew holds a B.A. in theatre from James Madison University, and he completed a certificate in public relations and an M.Ed. in educational psychology—social foundations at the University of Virginia.

Actor

Andrew has appeared in numerous theatrical, film, and television productions on stages and film sets all across the country. Theatre credits include playing the dual roles of Orsino and Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night, Valentine in Arcadia, and many characters from classic children’s literature while on national tours with Theatre IV (now Virginia Repertory Theatre). Film and TV credits include roles in Sally Pacholok, Veep, and Mercy Street.

Author

Andrew began writing creatively in the performing arts, working on texts for performance. After a family friend lost her German Shepherd to long-term illness, Andrew’s sister Liz approached him with an idea for a picture book that would help people through the grieving process of losing a pet. This book became The Great Big Ark in the Sky. After writing the book’s text along with detailed illustration descriptions, Liz and Andrew found artist Lucy Koo, who took everything that was in their heads and transformed it into beautiful illustrations. The Great Big Ark in the Sky is published by Belle Isle Books, an imprint of Brandylane Publishers.