Lauren Robinson Maher is an American actress as well as an internationally certified yoga instructor and therapist at the highest level through Yoga Alliance. She had established herself as a versatile actress in the entertainment industry with a varied body of work in film, television and theatre. Maher's work in film includes festival favorite The Decay of Fiction, award-winning romantic comedy Girl Play, Mind Forest, and James Ward Byrkit's science fiction thriller Coherence. She had also starred in numerous short films, including Solo Act, Century Game and Seafood Heaven. In her spare time, Maher is passionate about traveling, music, art, yoga and meditation. Lauren Maher is also a certified yoga therapist and has been teaching yoga since 2001, specializing in teaching yoga to cancer patients.
For the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Lauren Maher portrayed the wench Scarlett. She first appeared in the 2003 film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, then returned for the back-to-back sequels released in 2006-2007, Dead Man's Chest and At World's End. Maher appeared in the short film Tales of the Code: Wedlocked, first released in 2011 through the Pirates of the Caribbean: Four-Movie Collection.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Born in Boynton Beach, Florida, Lauren Maher often went to Walt Disney World.[1] Maher received her degree in theatre arts from Marymount Manhattan College in New York City. She had also studied theatre at the Lee Strasbeg Theatre Institute in New York City as well as Richmond College in London.[2]
Career[]
Yoga[]
Having started teaching yoga since 2001, Lauren Maher is an internationally certified yoga instructor and yoga therapist at the highest level through Yoga Alliance. A graduate of Loyola Marymount University's esteemed two-year Yoga Therapy RX program, she specialized in teaching yoga to cancer patients during and post treatment. She served as a yoga therapist for the Disney Cancer Center at Providence Hospital, WeSpark Cancer Support Center, and the Bella Vita, a residential eating disorder treatment center. Additionally, Maher maintained a private yoga therapy and Reiki practice, leads international yoga retreats, and is the Director of Teacher Training for Shakta Yoga's 200-hour teacher training program. She was passionate about making yoga accessible to everyone.[3]
Since 2001, Lauren Maher had been teaching in a variety of settings: hospitals, wellness centers, yoga studios and through her own private practice. She was also the staff yoga therapist at the Roy and Patricia Disney Family Cancer Center at Providence Hospital, and the director of Shakta Yoga's 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training.[4]
Lauren is certified in Kundalini Yoga through Yoga West, and is a graduate of Loyola Marymount University’s two-year Yoga Therapy Rx program, which focuses heavily on the anatomy and physiology of the musco-skeletal system and the common problems of the respiratory, cardiovascular, digestive, nervous, women’s reproductive and endocrine systems. In 2011, Lauren completed a Relax and Renew Restorative Yoga training with Judith Lasater. Lauren is currently studying the yoga sutras with Robert Birnberg.[4]
Lauren has studied with many of the foremost experts in her field, including Larry Payne, Guru Singh, Judith Lasater, Robert Birnberg and Shakti Kaur Khalsa. Additionally, Lauren is a certified Reiki practitioner and has trained in various schools of movement, including Tai Chi and Alexander Technique.[4]
Film, television and theatre[]
Lauren Maher at the premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End at Disneyland on May 19, 2007.
From 2000-2005, Lauren Maher served as a co-artistic director and producer for WolfPack Production Company, a non-profit theatre company based in Los Angeles. During this time, she helped to produce numerous Shakespearean plays, as well as works by Sam Shepard and the Firesign Theatre.[2]
Maher has acted on the stage in New York, London and Los Angeles. Her work includes roles in "Romeo and Juliet," "Hamlet," "The Great White Hope" and Tony Kushner's "The Illusion." She also performed regularly with the Lonestar Ensemble, as well as having been seen on the stage in "Teechers," co-starring James Marsters.[2]
In film, Lauren Maher's work included Pat O'Neill's festival favorite The Decay of Fiction, Lee Friedlander's award-winning romantic comedy Girl Play, Mind Forest, and a supporting role in the horror film 33 Griffin Lane. She also starred in numerous short films, including Solo Act, Century Game and Seafood Heaven.[2] Maher had a role in 2013 science fiction thriller Coherence, directed by James Ward Byrkit.[5]
Pirates of the Caribbean[]
Growing up in Florida, Lauren Maher often went to Walt Disney World as a kid. The Pirates of the Caribbean ride was her favorite. Maher specifically remembered the red-headed wench that she had seen in the ride that she would eventually play on film.[1]
Lauren Maher portrayed Scarlett, one of Captain Jack Sparrow's favorite Tortuga wenches in the Pirates of the Caribbean series. Along with Vanessa Branch (Giselle), she first appeared in the 2003 film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Gore Verbinski. The characters Scarlett and Giselle were originally not supposed to have speaking parts in The Curse of the Black Pearl, until someone noticed that both Branch and Maher were quite capable actresses, so they ended up having speaking roles.[6] Following the unexpected success of The Curse of the Black Pearl, Maher returned for the back-to-back sequels, Dead Man's Chest and At World's End.[7][2]
Of the many fond memories Maher had, the one that stood out to her was when they left St. Vincent around 4am to take a speedboat to the set. It was pitch black when they left, but as they arrived into a beautiful bay, they were greeted by a gorgeous sunrise. "The water was calm, full of blues and pastels -- and then suddenly we saw the Black Pearl in front of us. It felt like we went back in time. It was one of those moments where you want to pinch yourself to make sure it was real."[1]
Vanessa Branch and Lauren Maher at the "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" World Premiere in Disneyland, Anaheim, CA.
When storyboard artist James Ward Byrkit asked screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio if they had an idea for a short film, they thought that Branch and Maher should have their own story and started writing Tales of the Code: Wedlocked shot in late 2006 with sets constructed at Walt Disney Studios that were fresh from shooting At World's End.[8] Byrkit believed that Wedlocked was a chance for the wenches to have their own wacky moment and hinted at a whole world of possibility between them, and that both Branch and Maher turned in leading lady performances.[9] Byrkit said that the best thing about the short was working with Branch and Maher, stating that they turned out to be great actresses, totally committed and game for anything. He thought the two actresses could be cast as leading women in anything and thought they could have their own spinoff TV series.[6] Despite it being worked on after At World's End wrapped filming, around early December 2006, Tales of the Code: Wedlocked wasn't announced until about a month after the release of the fourth film, On Stranger Tides, in 2011. Wedlocked first released through the Pirates of the Caribbean: Four-Movie Collection.
In 2013, Lauren Maher would join Vanessa Branch, Martin Klebba (Marty), David Bailie (Cotton), Kevin McNally (Joshamee Gibbs), and Lee Arenberg (Pintel) at the Chicago Comic and Entertainment Expo at McCormick Place on April 28, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois.[10][11]
Reflecting on the many aspects of working on Pirates trilogy and the short film, Lauren Maher had many fond memories of filmmaking. Having often went to Disney World as a kid, "The Pirates of the Caribbean ride was always my favorite, and it felt surreal and amazing to be playing Scarlett, the red-headed wench that I had seen in the ride as a child. What a thrill!" She thought the most amazing thing that happened as a result of making the films were the friendships that formed, having count many of the actors/creators involved in the Pirates franchise as some of her closest friends. Maher thought it was incredible to see the devotion and love of the fans, particularly getting fan mail from little kids who have seen the movies, "I love that these films have brought joy to so many people!"[1]
Appearances[]
- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl - Scarlett
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - Scarlett
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - Scarlett
- Tales of the Code: Wedlocked - Scarlett
External links[]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 User blog:J Fan/The Curse of the Black Pearl 20th Anniversary - Martin Klebba and Lauren Maher
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 POTC3 Presskit
- ↑ Lauren Maher on MindBodyGreen - MindBodyGreen.com
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Bio - Yoga - Breathe Deep yoga Serving Los Angeles
- ↑ Coherence - Rotten Tomatoes
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 As a creative renaissance man, writer-director James Ward Byrkit brings ‘RANGO’ and ‘PIRATES’ film to your screen - The Washington Post - Archived
- ↑ POTC2 Presskit
- ↑ POTC Interview with Jim Byrkit 2012
- ↑ Wedlocked - Jim Byrkit Director, Archived from the original on 2014-07-17.
- ↑ Slideshow: 16 Exclusive Celebrity Photos at C2E2 in Chicago - HollywoodChicago.com
- ↑ Follow the Redeye Geek at C2E2 (AND WATCH C2E2 LIVE ON-LINE!) - Chicago Tribune