Spotlight on Playwright/Singer Elaina Tamara

                                             ELAINA TAMARA PRODUCTIONS

PLAYWRIGHT/CHOREOGRAPHER/SONGWRITER/CO-DIRECTOR

Elaina always loved performing as a child. Anything artistic grabbed her attention and took her to places of creativity - from dancing, singing, writing poetry or short stories. As an early teen she sung in her father's jazz band performing at weddings and local events. Although her passion for performing came to a halt after marrying at the tender age of twenty - later divorcing and raising three sons - she still managed to keep her hands in the arts performing at talent events whenever possible.

When her sons became teens, she was able to pursue her craft more diligently and started performing in community theater plays such as Guys and Dolls and Ain't Misbehavin. But her favorite was The Wiz. She always had a special love for The Wizard of Oz and was ecstatic when she got the chance to perform in The Wiz in 1999 at Playhouse 22 in East Brunswick, NJ. While performing she distinctly remembers telling herself that one day she would write a play incorporating her personal journey of finding her way "HOME". 

She continued striving and gaining experience and in 2003 as she became the dance director for Common Ground Ministries in Elizabeth, NJ which lead them into the McDonald's Gospelfest as a finalist for two years in a row. She continued teaching dance and later started her own dance troupe.

In 2006 she decided it was time to start writing her very own play. Although the hustle of everyday life made it difficult to sit down and write as often as she wanted, she believed that if she continued whenever possible she would finish one day. In the interim, she decided to go back to her jazz roots embedded in her from her dad. She started her own jazz band in 2009 called Flip The Script, who she still occasionally performs with.

In 2010 she finally completed her play titled "HOME"  and was ecstactic to debut it at the Sayreville Main Street Theater in Parlin, NJ on October 8th & 9th, 2011. She is even more delighted it has become a family affair and her now adult sons have supporting acting roles in the play and her eldest son, Azim wrote and produced the featured rap songs. "Home" is now traveling to northern New Jersey and will soon be showcased in the summer of 2014. In addition, her first video "Away" off her self titled CD, can now be seen on youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DI0Z9rN9Mk&feature=youtube. 

Elaina's motto is "BELIEVE IN YOUR DREAM  It Is Never Too Late!!!!!"

Watch out people, this lady is not playing with it!! For more information on Elaina, visit http://elainatamara.wix.com or e-mail ElainaTamara@yahoo.com.