Member Spotlight: Dara Gold Makes Impact Through Law and Theater
June 09, 2021
Whether teaching English to children in Spain, interning on Capitol Hill, or participating in special education law and legislation clinics at her law school, Dara Gold has been a passionate advocate for learning. A graduate of the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law, Gold focuses on educational matters and due process concerns for children as an attorney at Moran & Associates. More specifically, her practice centers around a student’s right to a free, appropriate public education.
“Children and education have always been important to me,” Gold says. “My very first job was as a babysitter, and that turned into camp counselor and then assistant teacher. My mom was a teacher, and as I entered into the professional realm, being in education was the thing I knew best.”
Gold supports students’ educational needs by attending IEP meetings with parents, crafting a due process complaint, or advocating before the Office of Dispute Resolution within the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education.
The Stamford, Connecticut, native says there was no magic moment when she knew she was destined for a career in education. It was just her calling in life, much like theater. “I’ve been in love with theater since I was two years old and was a sheep in my preschool’s musical production of Noah’s Ark,” says Gold. After Gold took part in a theater intensive as an undergrad, she knew playwriting was in her blood. “There was this theater experiment where you had to write, act, produce, and advertise all within 24 hours. You’d sleep in the theater overnight. The whole experience was a blast for me,” she says.
Gold flexes her theater muscles as a playwright, director, and working actor. Her creative works have been featured in the Capital Fringe Festival, the District’s 48 Hour Film Project, and the Kennedy Center. Her work is an infusion of modern advocacy interwined with comedy. She seeks to stretch the conversation on equity, inclusion, and social justice into most of her projects.
Today, she is one of three cofounders of Too Much Damn “TMD” Theater, a wholly women-owned company in Washington, D.C.
TMD Theater is focused on creating shows inspired by women’s voices and executed by their participation in every aspect of theater. The company most recently completed Light the Way, a Women’s Theater Digital Conference, which immersed attendees in conversations around financial literacy, business strategies for creatives, fundraising, and character writing and development. Gold says she intends to hold the educational conference every year to bring together business communities and creatives. TMD Theater also strives to demonstrate theater’s unique and vital importance in the community because, after all, there’s never too much theater.
As Gold grows as an attorney, her theater skills will serve her well. “When you’re a theater person, you learn how to communicate and work with different types of people, so it’s helpful when talking to parents about different circumstances. It’s also helpful when talking to kids when I have the opportunity to do so. It is one of the most enjoyable experiences knowing that you can impact their daily lives,” she says.
June Phillips is a D.C. Bar member and founder of TrueBliss Television.
