Anne Sward Hansen

Anne Sward Hansen is an award-winning American actress known primarily for her work on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns.

Sward Hansen was born on December 9, 1950, in Bronxville, New York. She graduated with a BS in Theatre Arts and Speech from Emerson College and received her MA in Theatre Arts from the University of Miami. She joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1981.

She received the prestigious Irene Ryan Award at the American College Theatre Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D. C. She won 2013 Best Actress in the Filmed in Utah Awards for her portrayal of Blanche Crawford Sorrento in the web series Proper Manors. In 2005 she received the American Indian College Fund Lifetime Achievement Award at Lincoln Center in New York City.

Her film credits include independent film Brigham City, Sci-Fi thriller 95ers: Time Runners and 95ers: Echoes, Disney Channel’s Go Figure, and TV movies Not in This Town, A Loss of Innocence, and Johnny Tsunami. She also appeared in a few TV series: Touched by an Angel, Promised Land, Everwood, and Paris. She had a small role in the TV miniseries Perfect Murder, Perfect Town. In 2012 she appeared in a web series Pretty Darn Funny.[1]

Sward Hansen had small roles in the PBS documentaries American Prophet: The Joseph Smith Story (1999) and Trail of Hope: The Story of the Mormon Trail (1997).

She served three terms as president of the Utah Branch of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), sits on the SAG National Low Budget Committee, SAG Indie, and is the vice president of the Utah Branch Council.

In addition to acting, she also teaches and coaches. She is an adjunct instructor in the Theatre and Media Arts Department at Brigham Young University. She has taught at the University of Miami, Cypress College (California), and Utah Valley University (Utah). She also developed film acting course curricula for the Boys & Girls Clubs, Bureau of Indian Affairs Indian schools on reservations, and the Kellogg Foundation Fellows Leadership Program in Washington, D.C. She coached in Robert Collier’s Acting Studio in New York City, was Warner Brothers’ coach for Everwood, and coaches in Utah. She also offers an online acting class.[2]

Sward Hansen lives in Utah. She is married to Bob Hansen and they have one daughter.