Helene Kvale was born in Norway, grew up in San Francisco until she was eleven and then lived and worked in London. She received a BSc Econ Honors. from the London School of Economics, reading Anthropology and then gained her post graduate actor training diploma at The Drama Studio, London.
Helene is a screenwriter and theater director. She co-wrote the independent films Burning Blue (distributed by Lionsgate 2014) and When You're Not Looking (in development 2015). She translated A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen and co wrote The Parkville Project for Bated Breath Theatre Company.
She was the founding Artistic Director of Bated Breath Theatre Company in Hartford where she produced, conceived and directed Hunger, The Parkville Project and her translation of A Doll's House at the Gene Frankel Theater in New York. Helene regularly directs for The Connecticut Repertory Theatre including Big Love, Pride and Prejudice, Too Much Memory, The Skin of Our Teeth and Gut Girls. She also directed Marat/Sade for the D Series. Helene is an alumna of The Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab.
As an actor, Helene performed on the West End stage in Burning Blue (winner of 2 Olivier Awards), Life During Wartime, and To Kill A Mockingbird. She also starred in numerous regional and touring productions including The Secret Rapture, Roman and Marys, Diary of Anne Frank, Getting Out, Brand, Canadian Gothic, Sexual Perversity in Chicago.
Helene was part of the National Theatre Company playing Lady Anne opposite Ian McKellen in Richard III and in King Lear (Brian Cox) as well as Napoli Milionaria. At the NT Studio she played opposite Ray Winstone in Shift and in Gitta's Atonement, directed by Brian Cox. Helene has appeared in many television dramas including Prime Suspect 4, Soldier Soldier, Daddy's Girl, London Bridge, This Life, Deceit, Lovejoy, The Bill. Film work includes Tomorrow La Scala! (British Academy Award Nomination and Juried at the Cannes Film Festival), Talk and 5:45 (Winner Berlin Short Film Festival).
In 2003, Helene joined the faculty in the Department of Dramatic Arts at the University of Connecticut as Assistant Professor in Residence.
