The Sokoloff Arts Foundation (501c3) is a non-profit cultural institution elevating community leaders at the intersection of arts, media, civics, social justice, and small business in New York City.
Sokoloff Arts advances equity by building accessible and affordable space for public assembly, creativity, and conversation.
SAF Creative Fellows & Residents are creating work that is inclusive, enterprising, and visionary.
SAF's application-based program is part fellowship, part space grant, and part creative home: offering these pioneering industry leaders the ultimate creative freedom to serve and grow their communities at SAF's landmark cultural space, Town Stages.
SAF Recipients are granted a full year of world-class space, resources, and peer-to-peer support to elevate their important work.
2020 SOKOLOFF ARTS CREATIVE FELLOWS
Town Stages is proud to announce the 2020 slate of recipients of the third annual Sokoloff Creative Arts Fellowship Program
ADAM ODSESS-RUBIN
FELLOW
Adam Odsess-Rubin (He/Him) is a theater artist, community organizer, and the founder and Artistic Director of National Queer Theater (NQT). With NQT, he is the co-creator and lead producer of the Criminal Queerness Festival, which has been recommended by The New York Times, The Advocate, and Thrillest. He has worked with New York Theatre Workshop, Keen Company, Dixon Place, International Rescue Committee/Artists Striving to End Poverty, IRT Theater, Theaterlab, The Guthrie, and American Conservatory Theater. From 2016-2018, Odsess-Rubin served as personal assistant to AIDS Memorial Quilt Founder Cleve Jones, the protégé of Harvey Milk. B.A. UC Santa Cruz. M.A. NYU Steinhardt.
ADEFOLAKUNMI ADENUGBA
FELLOW
Fola is a student in the Masters of Art - Art Business program at Sotheby’s Institute of Art. She is currently working on a project named ISE-DA with George Kofi Prah, a platform for young Black collectors, creatives and visual art enthusiasts. She completed her Bachelor of Business Administration with a double major in Art History at Emory University, where she received the Emory NAACP Presidential Image Award, the Goizueta Business School Campus Leadership Award and a Graduating Woman of Excellence Award. She was also inducted into the Class of 2017 Senior Honorary. Fola has previously worked as a management consultant and interned at art institutions such as the High Museum of Art and the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC.
ADRIANNA MATEO
FELLOW
Adrianna Mateo is writing her eponymous pop album while preparing for center-stage engagements at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (violin concerto written for her, original cadenza), Rockwood Music Hall (original songs), and the Metropolitan Opera (acting). She has opened solo for Alicia Keys, performed her songs for more than 40,000 people at MCU Park, sung on MTV and the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, recorded at Grammy Award- and Top 40- talent hub Jungle City Studios, and acted on HBO's “Succession.”
AIMÉE GARCIA
FELLOW
Aimée's writing began where her voice ended. After years of acting on stage at the University of Michigan and on-screen, Aimée's voice mysteriously faded to a whisper for almost a year and a half. It is during this time that her first play, The Portrait of Mrs. Hopper, was born. This was around the same time that Aimée became curious about her roots and contention in dialogue around immigration today. Her work celebrates the discovery of her metaphorical voice as a woman/artist/human being, and uses the recovery of her physical voice to make unsung heroes known. She could not be more honored or thrilled to be a Town Stages Fellow.
ALIE B. GORRIE
FELLOW
Alie B. Gorrie is an optimist, actor, and disability inclusion consultant. As an AEA actor, she has performed off-broadway, on tour, and in regional theatre. Alie B. Is the co-creator and producer of ABLE: a series, a doc-series discussing disability inclusion in the entertainment industry, currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Alie B. serves as a disability inclusion consultant, traveling to regional theatres, arts organizations, and universities, working to make the arts accessible for all. She is the founder of Songs for Sight, an organization helping young people with low vision live more independent lives.
AMY JO JACKSON
FELLOW
Amy Jo Jackson is an actor, kabarettist and glitter alien who has sung all over NYC, the country, and in international waters (thanks, Atlantis Cruises) in theatrical productions and as a solo artist. They love androgyny and upending expectations. Favorite acting credits include Alison in FUN HOME (SpeakEasy Stage), Ursula in THE LITTLE MERMAID (Ark Rep), Berthe in NYMPH ERRANT (Prospect), and THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF HEDDA GABLER with EPBB. AJJ was also the dialect coach on the Tony Award-winning Broadway production of KINKY BOOTS, as well as the first national tour and Toronto productions. They/them or she/her. @amyjojackson/amyjojackson.com
ANDI LEE CARTER
FELLOW
Andi Lee Carter (he/they) is a Brooklyn-based writer, director, and webseries/podcast producer. He is a recent graduate from the NYU Tisch Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program where he presented his thesis musicals: Pompeii: A Gender Explosion! and S.T.E.M. GRLZ! His first original full-length musical Rent A White Guy was dubbed “often very funny” by The New York Times. His musical work has been seen at many of New York's finest cabaret venues including Under St. Marks, the Duplex, Joe's Pub, and Feinstein's 54 Below.
ANDREA PRESTINARIO
FELLOW
Andrea is and actor and the Co-Founder of Ring of Keys, a national network of queer women and TGNC artists working in musical theatre. Performance credits include: Regional – Baltimore Center Stage: Fun Home (Alison); Weston Playhouse: Fun Home (Alison), Guys & Dolls (Sarah Brown); Asolo Rep: My Fair Lady (Eliza) dir. Frank Galati; A.C.T. San Francisco: 1776 (Martha) dir. Frank Galati; Paramount Theatre Aurora: RENT (Maureen), My Fair Lady (Eliza); Lyric Opera Chicago: Oklahoma! (Gertie) dir. Gary Griffin; Drury Lane Oakbrook: Gypsy (Louise); Writers’ Theatre: Oh, Coward!; Boho Theatre Company: Side Show (Violet – Jeff Award, Leading Actress). BFA – Ball State University.
ARIDY NOX
FELLOW
AriDy Nox is a multi-disciplinary black femme storyteller and social activist with a variety of forward-thinking creative works under her belt including the sci-fi operetta Project Tiresias (2018), the ancestral reckoning play A Walless Church (2019), and the afrofuturist ecopocalypse musical Metropolis (2019). AriDy creates out of the vehement belief that creating a future in which marginalized peoples are free requires a radical imagination. Their tales are offerings of radical imagination intended to function as small parts of an ancient, expansive, awe-inspiring tradition of world-shaping, created by and for black femmes.
ARPITA MUKHERJEE
FELLOW
Arpita Mukherjee is the Artistic Director and co-founder of Hypokrit Theatre Company and the Festival Chair for Tamasha. Recent: House of Joy by Madhuri Shekar (San Diego Rep), JUMP by Charly Evon Simpson (APAC), Maya by Cheeyang Ng and Eric Sorrels (Live & In Color), Citizen Scientist by Christina Quintana - CQ (Barrington Stage Company Playworks Weekend), Eh Dah? Questions For My Father by Aya Aziz (Next Door @NYTW), Elements of Change by Divya Mangwani (Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, UNICEF). She is a 2019 - 2020 SDC Denham Fellow, 2018 Eugene O’ Neill National Directing Fellow, 2018 - 2020 WP Theater Lab Member, alumni of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab, and 2019 Mabou Mines Resident Artist. Arpita is currently the book writer for Monsoon Wedding musical.
BRANDON POWERS
FELLOW
Brandon Powers creates seamless visceral experiences at the intersection of theatre, dance, and technology across physical and virtual space. This year, he created interactive choreography for VR narrative Queerskins: ark (Intel Studios) and level designed a mobile AR game funded by Google. He has also collaborated on immersive installation, Frankenstein AI (Sundance Film Festival 2018), choreographing an AI-powered dance performance. Brandon is a graduate of Northwestern and staff member of Musical Theatre Factory leading director/choreographer programs. He has spoken about the intersection of arts and technology at Creative Tech Week, TCG National Conference, Verizon’s 5G Lab and Lincoln Center.
BRYANNA BRADLEY
FELLOW
Bryanna Bradley is a body based broad, notorious ballet class crybaby, and Queens native circa 1995. In July 2016, Bradley trained at The School at Jacob’s Pillow under the tutelage of Jawole Willa Jo Zollar (Urban Bush Women) and shadowed Camille A. Brown through her Black Girl Spectrum (BGS) program. Bradley premiered her dance work buck: an exploration of black masculinity in Nick Cave’s exhibit ‘Until’ at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA ) while scrambling to finish college. Bradley has performed for other artists like band Arc Iris, poet Danielle Legros Georges, and choreographer Mersiha Mesihovic/Circuit Debris
DARLENE ARRINGTON
FELLOW
Darlene "Niara" Arrington is a choreographer, touring dancer, author, and actress, residing in NYC. Recent successes include: a featured role in the upcoming film, Farewell Amor, directed by Ewka Msangi, her first international tour, a principal role in A Nation Grooves: A People’s History of Hip Hop, directed by Kambi Gatheshak (Off-Bdwy) and selected for the 2015 Mare Nostrum Elements: Emerging Choreographer Series. She has graced the stages of Lincoln Center, The New Victory Theater, MetLife Stadium, Staples Center, and danced alongside include Afro B., Remy Ma, Katrina Kaif, Salman Khan and more. In 2017, she published her first book, Mask Off; How to lead by Example without Perfection.
DENITIA ODIGIE
FELLOW
Denitia is an alternative pop artist based in Brooklyn, NY. Hailed as “the epitome of soulful,” by The Fader, the singer/songwriter/producer is known for her dreamy genre-melding style. Her work has been critically acclaimed by NY Times, The Guardian, Pitchfork, Stereogum, and more. Denitia’s newest solo album, Touch of the Sky, is a cinematic indie-pop ode to nostalgia and the alchemy of love. The album is a reflection on identity, love, youth, and self-evolution anchored in wide sonic soundscapes composed of layered vocals, dreamy synths, and guitars, and was released in conjunction with a short film paying homage to Rockaway Beach, the oceanside town that inspired the album.
DIANA OH
FELLOW
Diana Oh is a multi-genre performer and a creator of parties, installations, music, concerts, rituals, and other unboxable art. Oh is a Refinery29 Top LGBTQ Influencer and the Creator of The Infinite Love Party (an intentional, barefoot, potluck dinner, dance party, and sleepover for QTPOC and their Allies) which the New York Times calls “the joyous freedom to be yourself, whatever pronouns you use,” {my lingerie play} (ten underground performance installations in my lingerie staged in an effort to provide a safer, more courageous world for women, queer, trans, and non-binary humans to live in), CLAIRVOYANCE (an installation and concert series in Boston to center QTPOC magic), MY H8 LETTER TO THE GR8 AMERICAN THEATRE (The Public Theater), and ASIAN PEOPLE ARE NOT MAGICIANS (mic.com). Upcoming: The Tangy Tour
DUSTIN H. CHINN
FELLOW
Dustin H. Chinn is a Seattle native whose plays include SNOWFLAKES, OR RARE WHITE PEOPLE, the Ensemble Studio Theatre/Sloan Commission HERSCHEL: PORTRAIT OF A KILLER, and COLONIALISM IS TERRIBLE, BUT PHO IS DELICIOUS. He’s developed work with the Ma-Yi Writers Lab, Ars Nova Play Group, Ground Floor at Berkeley Rep Summer Residency Lab, A.C.T.’s New Strands Festival, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, University of Washington via a Mellon Creative Fellowship, SPACE on Ryder Farm, UMass at Amherst New Play Lab, UC Berkeley, and Vampire Cowboys.
FLORENCIA IRIONDO
FELLOW
Originally from Argentina, writer, performer, and producer Florencia Iriondo is currently a lyricist at the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop and founder and executive producer of LinkedIn original video series. Her productions have featured Oprah, Bill Gates, Tyler Perry, Gwen Stefani, Judd Apatow, and Jennifer Lopez, among others; previously doing TV programming at MTV/ Viacom and Sky TV. "Back Home," her original musical about identity and belonging, debuted by curation at a sold-out concert at Feinstein’s/54 Below. A staged reading was presented at The Players club. Her song-cycle “Who's Flo” was awarded by the Global Music Awards and the Hollywood Songwriting Contest. She holds a B.A. in Communications from Universidad Austral, has studied musical theater performance at Escuela Julio Bocca, and acting at Stella Adler Studio.
HALI KREMEN
FELLOW
Hali Kremen is a violinist whose mission is to make the classical arts a safer, more inclusive space for diverse people with diverse perspectives and human experiences. She looks to do so through alternative multidisciplinary performances of “vintage,” “classic,” or well-known older musics, queering operatic and golden oldies vocal narratives, bringing more embodiment, dance/movement/physicality, and audience interactivity into orchestral/no-words/instrumental performances.
HESTER LI
FELLOW
Hester was born in a family full of artists and has never stopped exploring the possibilities in life. From a Mechanical Engineer to an Engineering Economist, from IT to Finance, she thought she might end up as a project management professional outside the arts. But, unable to bury her dream of being a singer, she began planning concerts and events with small groups of friends in New York City. In 2019, she connected with prolific media professional, Brian Stollery over their shared passion: music. Together they envisioned a world where independent artists had the space to thrive and created LAUNCH. LAUNCH is a performing arts collective that offers 360 support to artists, bands, and venues.
JANELLE LAWRENCE
FELLOW
Janelle Lawrence is a writer, composer, and lyricist. Their original musicals and operettas, SUBLIMINAL, 'TIS THE SEASON, and GROUP THERAPY, GOD KILLER (formerly MIXING MARX WITH MADNESS have been performed at theaters across New York City including: Club Cumming, Teatro La Tea, Joe’s Pub, and Dixon Place. They have been a resident at 92nd St Y Musical Theatre Development Lab (2017-2018): SPACE on Ryder Farm (2019) and the Barn Arts Hamilton Project. Janelle is the Artistic Director of Broad Views on Broadway, a non-profit Theatre Company dedicated to providing equal opportunity and representation of new theatre pieces and a Co-Moderator of Musical Theatre Factory’s Women/Trans/Gender Non-Conforming Roundtable. B.F.A. in Musical Theatre from Manhattanville College.
JASMIN RICHARDSON
FELLOW
Jasmin Richardson (Director). She made her directorial debut with Kirsten Childs poignant piece Bubbly Black Girl. Her most recent project was Tia DeShazor’s The New Black Leading Lady. As she continues her mission in telling stories that empower women of color, While still being authentically black and telling important stories, written and performed by people of color. Typically known for her refined performances as an actress, Broadway credits: Book of Mormon, Broadway in Gettin the Band Back Together. She played the methodical Nikki Marron on the First National tour of The Bodyguard.
JOLAUBI OSHO
FELLOW
Jolaubi Osho is the founder of the 501c3 organization, HERoines Inc. She obtained her Bachelors from Fordham University in Communications and Media Studies with a minor in Business Administration. Previously, Jolaubi worked for and assisted tech, marketing, and entertainment companies, including NYU’s The Human Project,Simone Smalls PR, Spotify, and currently, Universal Music. Through special events, content, and seminars HERoines Inc. encourages self-development and growth of women. Focusing on “the emphasis is on HER”, Osho developed and executed Instagram campaigns that garnered the support of celebrity ambassadors and women worldwide. In her free time, Jolaubi is a consultant in communication strategy.
JULIAN HERNANDEZ
FELLOW
Born in Clearwater, Florida, Julian currently performs comedy across the city. He writes and directs the web series jooby (described by Spirit Award winner, Antonio Méndez Esparza, as “The wonderful show with the deranged man”). Julian hosts a monthly show, jooby & friends, at Brooklyn Comedy Collective, is a member of the Commedia Company directed by Virginia Scott, and performs experimental works with Anna Lublina. He does other things too: laughs, pisses, etc. How can you describe the acts of a real human being doing their best?
follow him on social media
follow him in real life if you can.
JULIÁN MESRI
FELLOW
Julián Mesri is a New York-based Argentinean-American writer, composer, director, and translator who makes multi-lingual musical pieces in both the US and Latinamerica. Recent productions include the musical Steerage (Columbia Stages), The Gauchos Americanos (Teatro Extranjero, Buenos Aires), and the upcoming musical Telo (Signature Theater). His original production of Lope de Vega’s Fuenteovejuna at Repertorio Español won the 2013 Outstanding Production HOLA Award. He has served as Translator for both the Lark US/Mexico Exchange as well as for PEN World Voices. He is a Usual Suspect at New York Theatre Workshop, where he was a 2012-2013 Emerging Artist of Color Fellow. He was a 2010-2011 Van Lier fellow at Repertorio Español. He is currently pursuing an MFA in Playwriting at Columbia University, where he is the Dean’s Fellow.
KATE DOUGLAS
FELLOW
Kate Douglas is a theatre-music-plant person who is passionate about creating work that invites audiences to return from dissociation into embodiment. Her writing has been performed at The Met Cloisters, Ars Nova and The McKittrick Hotel and developed at SPACE on Ryder Farm, The Orchard Project, New Victory Theater, Rhinebeck Musicals, The National Theater Institute and the Writer’s Colony at Goodspeed. She is currently a 2019-2020 Dramatist Guild Fellow and a member of The Civilians R&D Group. Favorite conversation topics include old growth forests, quantum physics and Nancy Drew.
KRISTIN YANCY
FELLOW
Kristin Yancy is a performer, choreographer, and director based in New York. Favorite performing credits include Bliss (World Premiere), The Cher Show (Broadway Company), Summer, The Donna Summer Musical, (Broadway Company), Tommy (The Kennedy Center), Hostage (Ryan Heffington), Queen of the Night (Off Broadway), and West Side Story (National Tour). She is also the co-owner and an Artistic Director of MinuteZero, a theater production company that specializes in immersive, personalized, and site specific live art. She is the creator and director of The Microfiction Project, an ongoing series of movement-based video shorts.
LAURA WINTERS
FELLOW
Laura Winters is a playwright/screenwriter/actress. Full length plays include JUST THE MELODY (formerly BITING HANDS - Drama League Next Stage Residency, Princess Grace Award Semi-Finalist, Relentless Award Honorable Mention), GONZO (Barrington Stage Burman New Play Award Semi-Finalist, Rough Draft, Corkscrew Theatre Festival), EMERSON LOSES HER “MIAND” (Semi-Finalist in The Bechdel Test Festival, NY Winterfest, Dixon Place), and full-length children’s play, SPACE MISSION #5379: SAVING RACHEL, NEVADA (1st place winner of East Valley Children’s Playwriting Contest - production February 2020). Short films: SUGAR AND SAND and the forthcoming western DRIVEN (Candido Productions). BA Northwestern University.
LILI TORRE
FELLOW
Lili is an NYC-based theatre maker. She believes that at a time when empathy is more necessary than ever, theatre is an incredibly powerful art form that allows people the opportunity to connect to their most human selves. She is an actor and director who always aims to identify and share the magic that others have to offer, and who is especially passionate about developing new work. Lili is also the host of The Dreaded Question podcast, which features artists who have parallel careers or pursuits alongside their artistry.
MATTHEW J. SCHNEIDER
FELLOW
Matthew J. Schneider is a creative producer. He is the co-founder of Creative Endeavor Office with Carolyn D. Miller. Projects in development include REUNION, a brand of nostalgic, interactive concerts in immersive environments (Reunion ’69, Reunion ’85, etc.). Professional credits: a decade-long performance career; over twenty-five credits as dramaturg, associate, or director, including labs and workshops, Off-Broadway, National Tours, and Broadway. Professional memberships and associations include Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas, Lincoln Center Theatre Director’s Lab, Commercial Theatre Institute, and National Alliance for Musical Theatre. Alumnus of New York University.
MEI ANN TEO
FELLOW
Mei Ann Teo (she/they) is a queer immigrant from Singapore, a theatre and film maker who works at the intersection of artistic/civic/contemplative practice. As a director/devisor/dramaturg, she collaborates internationally across genres, including multi-form performance and music theatre. As a filmmaker, she recently directed short film Let Me Kill My Mother First, which screened at the Singapore Film Festival. Recent premiere SKiNFoLK: An American Show by Jillian Walker at the Bushwick Starr (NY Times Critic Pick, NY Mag Highbrow & Brilliant). Upcoming: Chronicle X by Nia Witherspoon at the Shed. They are the Producing Artistic Director of Musical Theatre Factory.
MIKA KAUFFMAN
FELLOW
Mika Kauffman (they/them) is a queer multi-hyphenate artist, primarily a director, musical writer, dramaturg, producer and performer working Off-Broadway, as well as a community organizer. Leading with empathy, they firmly believe in creating equitable, collaborative spaces for marginalized folx of all abilities, identities and expressions. They earned an MFA in musical theatre writing from Tisch and a BFA in acting from Towson University. They are currently developing a union for trans artists, the Trans Theatre Alliance and are a proud member of SDC and Ring of Keys.
NANCY SUN
FELLOW
Nancy Sun is a Chinese-American actor and writer based in New York City. Her notable Film / TV credits include Going in Style directed by Zach Braff, Showtime’s Homeland, TVLand’s Younger, and NBC’s The Slap. Inspired by her experience originating roles in such world premieres as Deborah Stein's Marginal Loss and Don Nguyen’s Red Flamboyant, she is now writing her own full-length plays and scripts. Her previous writing online has earned her a SXSW Interactive Award nomination and mention in the New York Times.
NOVEMBER CHRISTINE
FELLOW
November Christine holds a degree in Cellular Biology and Molecular Genetics from the University of Maryland, as well as a BM in Musical Theatre from the East Carolina University School of Music. An emerging playwright and composer, Ms. Christine produced her award winning musical MIRROR, MIRROR at the Planet Connections Festivity in New York, as well as the Hollywood Fringe Festival. November’s most recent writing project is her historical hip-hop drama, LEGACY THE MUSICAL, which won "Best of Fest" at the 2018 New York Musical Festival. November Christine is a proud recipient of the Anna Sosenko Trust Grant and the Artists' Patron Fund Gold Award.
RACHEL GITA KARP
FELLOW
Rachel Gita Karp makes rigorously-researched performances about politics and public policy. She's developed and directed new performances through The Drama League, Ars Nova, Irondale, Mabou Mines, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Flea, IRT, The Brick, Dixon Place, PlayPenn, New York Stage and Film, Incubator Arts Project, Women Center Stage, Barn Arts, and SPACE on Ryder Farm. Associate and assistant directing credits include productions on Broadway, Off-, and regionally, including the Tony-winning "The Waverly Gallery" and productions through Signature Theatre, The Mad Ones, Young Jean Lee's Theater Company, 13P, Woodshed Collective, and the Humana Festival. BA, Columbia; MFA, Carnegie Mellon. www.rachelgitakarp.com
REBECCA LOUISE MILLER
FELLOW
Rebecca Louise Miller is a writer and performer living in Brooklyn. She recently wrote and starred in One Day Home, an award-winning short comedy about a real-life mattress shopping adventure. Rebecca's plays have been performed around the world and can currently be found on the New Play Exchange. She's currently writing Catch and Release, a feature screenplay about a radicalized feminist who kidnaps and rehabilitates incels, and Plot Twist!, a give-no-f*cks guide to divorce and heartbreak. Rebecca performs stand-up around NYC, pontificates about dating and relationships for The Chorus, and is a mentor with Girls Write Now. rebeccalouisemiller.com
SHAKINA NAYFACK
FELLOW
Most known for her work as Lola on Hulu’s Difficult People, Shakina can now be seen in the series finale of Amazon’s Transparent, a “Musicale Finale” she also helped to write and produce with Jill and Faith Soloway. On Broadway: 24-Hour Plays, Red Bucket Follies. Off-Broadway: Masculinity Max at The Public Theater, Manuel Versus the Statue of Liberty (as Lady Liberty). Currently in development, her autobiographical glam rock odyssey Manifest Pussy; and Chonburi International Hotel and Butterfly Club, set to premiere at Williamstown Theatre Festival summer 2020 and JUNK, a rock opera conceived by the Swedish pop band Brainpool. Recognitions include the Lilly Award for Working Miracles, TRU Humanitarian Award, OUT 100, and two-time Drama League fellow. Founding Artistic Director, Musical Theatre Factory (www.mtf.nyc)
SUGAR VENDIL
FELLOW
Sugar Vendil is a composer, pianist, and interdisciplinary artist based in New York City. Her practice is rooted in rigorous discipline as a musician, and gradually expanded into performance that integrates music and movement. Her inspiration comes from observing and hyper-analyzing human behavior. Taking a non-narrative approach, her work aims to elicit raw meaning or emotion. Recent commissions and fellowships: National Arts Club and Sokoloff Arts fellow; commissions from Chamber Music America, American Composers Forum (ACF | Create), ETHEL Homebaked; and residencies at Marble House Project, Mabou Mines, Target Margin, and Yaddo.
SYDNEY BALOUE
FELLOW
Sydney Baloue is a writer, producer, performer and archivist who conducts oral histories of New York City’s ballroom scene. He worked as a Producer on HBO Max’s new voguing competition reality series, “Legendary” and he writes for Vice and The New York Times. Sydney made history as the first transgender man to win a voguing category at The Latex Ball in 2019, he is a member of the House of Xtravaganza and he is writing a book on New York City’s ballroom history. After completing a DAAD Fellowship in Berlin and a dual-degree masters at the Paris Institute for Political Studies and the London School of Economics, Sydney left his PhD at the University of Pennsylvania in 2018 to work in film and television as a way to share stories across continents, cultures and time.
TIA DESHAZOR
FELLOW
Tia DeShazor is an actor and writer. Onstage she plays barrier-breaking leading ladies and these strong female voices are reflected in her writing. She is a lyricist in the Advanced BMI- Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, She has written commissioned work for Prospect Theatre's Musical Theater Lab, Astoria Performing Art Center, and “Girlhood” the Musical. And this past September she produced a sold-out show of her own work - The New Black Leading Lady at TOWN Stages, featuring songs from musical comedies. She’s moving the inclusion conversation forward as the co-Founder of BOLD, and the AEA committee for Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity.
TIFF MCFIERCE
FELLOW
With audiences and listeners spanning over 4 million worldwide, Tiff McFierce is a sought after DJ, curator, editor and wellness advocate. The first woman and African American woman resident DJ of Madison Square Garden, top brands and clients call for Tiff McFierce for not only their musical needs, but to supply a vibe whether as a speaker, music director, or more with her charisma, well rounded knowledge of music and culture, and her activism. The new Aerie REAL Role model and board member of the Girls Mentor Girls non profit, Tiff uses her voice and platform to bring awareness to issues facing girls and women of color, and fights for change through her work in the community and in the industry. Connecting with health and wellness in a transformative Tiff combined music, movement and meditation to create an experiential wellness brand, Look IN vs Lookin’. Look IN is a safe space at the intersection between wellness and everyday life, offering tangible tactics, education and community through events to truly live well!
TREVOR LATEZ HAYES
FELLOW
Trevor Latez Hayes is an Actor, Playwright and Creative Entrepreneur. In 2018, he created the digital platform @blackboysdotheater; dedicated to the fostering of community and diversifying audiences Off-Broadway and beyond. Acting Credits: Last Stop On Market Street (Atlantic Theater Company), 125th and FREEdom (National Black Theater), Clover (La Mama), Hunting Season (Planet Connections). He has developed original work with Center for Performance Research, New Ohio Theater, Fresh Ground Pepper, La Mama, NYU Tisch, International Theater Workshop in Amsterdam. Graduated from NYU with a BFA in Acting and BA in Africana Studies.
TROY ANTHONY
FELLOW
Troy Anthony is a composer, actor, and director based in NYC. He has presented work at Joe’s Pub, 54 Below, Prospect Theater Company and the Musical Theater Factory (MTF). Commissions include the Atlantic Theater Company, The Civilians and The Shed. Troy has been seen in the Public Theater’s Twelfth Night and As You Like It, as well as Prospect Theater Company’s Tamar of the River. He leads the Public Theater’s Public Works Community Choir and focuses on the intersection between art and social justice at the DreamYard Art Center. He’s also a 2019-2020 MTF Maker.
ZACHARIAH EZER
FELLOW
Zachariah Ezer is a Brooklyn-based playwright whose work animates theoretical quandaries through dramaturgical forms. Selected plays include The Sprinkler, Blaxploitation, and Time to A Phantom. His work has been developed by The National Black Theatre, The Tank, American Lore Theater, The Lark, The Fade to Black Play Festival, The DC Black Theatre Festival, BUFU, The Workshop Theater, The Woodside Players of Queens, Merde, The Secret Theatre, and Ruthless Nightingale. Awards: The Olin Fellowship from Wesleyan University and Best Play from The Woodside Players of Queens 2019 Summer Play Festival. He is a member of The Tank’s LIT Council and the Dramatists Guild. Zachariah is an Honors graduate of Wesleyan University.
ZACH INFANTE
FELLOW
Zach Infante is an actor, writer and producer based in New Jersey. Their career began as an actor featured in Rick Linklater’s School Of Rock starring Jack Black. After receiving a BFA in Drama from Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, they’ve gone on to pursue producing and writing. Credits include: Film/TV: Carrie Pilby (Dir. Susan Johnson), Jeffrey (Dir. Nina Ljeti), GOTHAM, Alpha House, Theater: Kiss My Aztec! (Berkeley Rep/La Jolla Playhouse, book by John Leguizamo and Tony Taccone), Alice By Heart (MCC theater, written by Duncan Sheik, Steven Sater and Jessie Nelson), Fingersmith (American Repertory Theater, dir. Bill Rauch), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (TFANA, Dir. Julie Taymor)
ALTHEA STEVENS
FELLOW
Althea Stevens is a proud native New Yorker and a respected community advocate for the Bronx community. As a dedicated mother, she works hard to create a sustainable future for her child and for all children and families who live in under resourced neighborhoods. Althea began her career in civic service more than 15 years ago working for non-profit agencies that focused on giving a voice to the most vulnerable populations. She organized voting rights information sessions, led strategy workshops to address gang policing and created annual youth forums and community celebrations to bridge relationships between residents and neighborhood partners.
AMOY BARNES
FELLOW
Amoy Barnes has called Staten Island home since she was four years old. Watching her immigrant mother work two jobs to provide a stable home instilled a stellar work ethic that would drive Amoy’s success. Growing up, she was a hardworking student athlete and volunteer at St. Vincent's Hospital. Humbled by the network of support Staten Islanders provided for patients and their families, Amoy realized that serving the community was her purpose. After 12 years of serving at the State, Federal and Municipal level, Amoy believes that people deserve: service, transparency and dignity when interacting with government. She knows first hand, the endless potential of a well connected community committed to uplifting one another. As a City Councilwoman Amoy will make sure that Staten Island is in the room.
EMILY HARTFORD
FELLOW
Emily Hartford is a director, generative artist, performer, and puppet designer. She’s a Creative Partner with Flux Theatre Ensemble (one of “Eight Young and Mighty New York Theatre Companies,” Backstage). Emily co-leads Flux’s new work incubator, Core Work. Directing credits include the world premieres of Operating Systems by Corinna Schulenburg and Rizing by Jason Tseng (Flux Theatre Ensemble), Implied Consent by Sarah Elizabeth Grace (Access Theatre), and Ned Massey’s The Battles, a new musical (Gym at Judson). 2018 Puffin Foundation grantee. Member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Foundation Observership Class 2017-2018 and 2018-2019, and the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab.
NED MASSEY
FELLOW
Actor, award-winning songwriter, writer of musicals, recording engineer and music producer. He has played in front of paying audiences as large as 80,000 and as small as 3, traveled in tour buses, vans, and a beat-up Chevette that died in the middle of Ohio. He creates art with his partner, Em, and their cat, Miette. Miette hates harmonica, and the rehearsing of highly dramatic scenes, but otherwise she’s cool. SAG, Equity, Dramatists Guild, BMI Musical-Theatre Workshop.
IYVON EDEBIRI
FELLOW
Iyvon Edebiri is a Nigerian-American independent creative producer, company manager, and dramaturg hailing from Brooklyn, NY. Iyvon is the co-founder, Artistic Director and Host of The Parsnip Ship. Iyvon is a recipient of the Fulbright Scholarship, Gilman International Scholarship, and The DO School’s Future of Audio Entertainment Fellowship in Berlin. Iyvon was the recipient of the 2019 Mark O’Donnell Prize awarded by The Actors Fund and Playwrights Horizons for emerging, analogous theater artists. Iyvon has worked at Sundance Institute Theater Program and now currently works as an Associate Producer for ArKtype, and with The Public Theater’s Public Forum. B.A. Brandeis University. M.A. Baruch College (CUNY) Arts Administration.
KATY DONNELLY
FELLOW
Katy Donnelly is the Commercial Projects Lead for Business Lunch Productions and the Managing Director for The Parsnip Ship. She has spent time working with some of the biggest brands in media, helping them create content that pushes the envelope and represent themselves to the world. Katy has a passion for working in audio and media production, building environments to share stories. From upstate New York, Katy graduated from SUNY New Paltz and began her career in news and production management with WFNP and WGXC before moving to Brooklyn in 2015 and working with BLP to create commercial and creative content, and worked with The Parsnip Ship since 2017.
JACOB JARRETT
FELLOW
Jacob Jarrett is a New York City based composer/playwright. Writing credits include: Wonder Boy (Musical Theatre Factory ’20, NYMF’s Developmental Reading Series ’18, The Dare Tactic ’18), Normativity (Polyphone Festival ’17, NYMF ’16). Music direction credits include: The Elementary Spacetime Show (Associate MD, Powerhouse Theatre), Noise (Associate MD, The Public and Playwrights Horizons Downtown). Awards include: NYMF’s “Outstanding Emerging Artist” award, The Ira Brind School of Theatre’s “Excellence in Playwriting” award. Jacob is also currently a member of Musical Theatre Factory’s inaugural Maker’s Co-Hort and is studying composition with BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. Pronouns: he/him.
NINA ROY
FELLOW
Nina Roy is a film and theatre actor, director, and creator of new theatre. Directing credits: Queer Baby Jesus (Co-Creator/Director, Dixon Place), Wonder Boy (Associate Director, NYMF ‘18), T+C+R+J (Intimacy Direction, The Brick), The Music Man (Choreography, Youth Bridge Global, Marshall Islands), Ancient Future (Associate Movement Director, Polyphone Festival ‘18) and Edison (Movement Director, Edinburgh Fringe ‘17). Select Theatre credits: Stacy & Mia (The Tank), Eighth Palace (The Flea), Break (Team Awesome Robot, Normal Ave), Small Town Icons (PEA Fest), Brine (Dixon Place), Healing and Love (The Tank), An Evolution of a Sexual Bean (Self written, Prague Fringe Festival). Select Film Credits: Good Men (Mason Gross School of The Arts), Silicon Veil (Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema). NTI Fall ’16. BFA UArts ’17. Pronouns: she/her.
JULIA CAVAGNA
FELLOW
Julia Cavagna is an Argentinian teacher, actress and director based in the United States. She earned her Bachelor Degree at EMAD and trained at Belisario and Movement Theater Studio. On 2016 she was part of the program EMERGENCY (NYU) She co-founded Lampazo Group and Las Pibas Theater Company. In 2018 She founded Theater to the People with fellow theater artist, Kate Bell. TTTP: Home received a 2019 Brooklyn Arts Council Grant and will launch a new ensemble Spring 2020 at Brooklyn Arts Exchange. To have a collective approach to the different artistic expressions and cooperation is key for her.
KATE BELL
FELLOW
Kate Bell is a writer, theater artist, musician, and teaching artist based in Brooklyn, NY. She founded Theater to the People with fellow theater artist, Julia Cavagna, in 2018. TTTP:Home received a 2019 Brooklyn Arts Council Grant and will launch a new ensemble Spring 2020 at Brooklyn Arts Exchange. Recently, Kate’s plays have been read or produced in New York City by the One-Minute Play Festival at the New Ohio Theatre, Clutch Productions, and Park Avenue Armory (Education Department Space Grants). Outside of theater, Kate rocks out with her feminist post-punk band, Creek and Kills.
LARISSA MARTEN
FELLOW
Larissa Marten has worked as an actor on screen with INSTINCT (CBS); ON THE LINE (YouTube) and on stage with DRESSING UP FOR CIVIL RIGHTS (MoMA); KILL HAMLET (Signature Theatre); BOEING-BOEING (Majestic Theater); AS YOU LIKE IT & RICHARD II (Michigan Shakespeare Festival - BroadwayWorld Best Actor). As a writer, her plays have been developed and/or presented at the Kennedy Center, City Theatre, and Beckwith Theatre Company. Larissa is the Co-Director of Herd, a female-led community of sustainable entertainment makers. Through Herd, she tours nationally with I KILLED THE COW, a one-woman show using humor to discuss sexual assault.
LEIA SQUILLACE
FELLOW
Leia Squillace directs plays and facilitates processes that center community-building and radical humanization. She creates environmentally sustainable entertainment with Herd, a female-led community which she co-directs. Additionally she has developed new, feminist works such as GOOD KIDS (Naomi Iizuka), THE TROJAN WOMEN AT SANDY HOOK (Robert Schenkkan), and FAIR (Karly Thomas; Kennedy Center National Undergraduate Playwrighting Award). Leia has developed community engagement programming for Roundabout Theatre Company and Asolo Repertory Theatre and is honored to have contributed to the criminal justice reform efforts of the Broadway Advocacy Coalition, The Confined Arts, and the Prison Creative Arts Project.
A Year At Town Stages
"One of the greatest things you can do for an artist is give the gift of space, of a place to create. I am thrilled that I'm going to be able to call the gorgeous Town Spaces my home for the next year!" - Amy Jo Jackson
"As an interdisciplinary creator, I often feel I don't "fit in" to most Fellowship programs, but at Town Stages' I feel like I'm being accepted for my full dynamic self. I'm so excited to spend the next year at Town Stages amongst this diverse community." - Brandon Powers
"I am excited to have the opportunity to grow at a pace guided by my peers and superiors! And at a space that is incredible, flexible, and full of amenities!" - Janelle Lawrence
"I am thrilled to be a part of this cohort to foster this platform for trans artists WITH other trans artists and community organizers. In the coming months, we will be meeting at Town Stages to ensure that (in)visible trans artists are protected in NY and beyond. I am especially grateful to be utilizing Town Stages, given their radical push for inclusivity and equity across the board." - Mika Kauffman
"Herd makes sustainable entertainment. To do so takes innovation and collaboration, which is why we are excited to be Sokoloff Arts Fellows and collaborate with the female-led team at Town Stages. Because of their efforts and mission to advance equity in New York City, we know we have found a home where we can keep the entertainment quality high but the carbon footprint low." - Larissa Marten & Leia Squillace
"Having agency over my art is of the utmost importance to me. As a new Sokoloff Fellow, I'm so grateful to be joining a creative family that facilitates, rather than dictates, the expression of my artistic vision." - November Christine
"For the last few years, I've started straddling multiple forms and exploring new disciplines. It's been an exhilarating ride, but I've unfortunately had to give up applying to residencies and fellowships, because most of them want to see an artist's body of work reflect a long dedication to one single discipline. I feel so fortunate to have found a fellowship that took a holistic view of me as a creator and community member, and decided to invite me on board." - Rebecca Louise Miller
The 2020 Fellowship Cohort was curated by The Leadership Team at Town Stages, Our 2020 Residents, Executive & Young Professional Board Members.
2020 ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE at TOWN STAGES
Town Stages is proud to announce its 2020 Resident Artists
CHARLOTTE ARNOUX
RESIDENT ARTIST
Charlotte Arnoux hails from Marseille, France. She specializes in working as a director on new works and has a passion for working with kids, teens and young adults. She is the Managing Director of Katie Cappiello’s social justice theater school GoodCapp Arts and runs a coaching/casting/directing business. The films Charlotte has cast have gone on to festivals such as Sundance (Lockdown) and SXSW (Bodega). Her students can be seen on Netflix, Broadway, Amazon Prime, Disney Channel, and more.
ÉAMON BOYLAN
RESIDENT ARTIST
Éamon Boylan (they/them/theirs) is a New York City based director, creator, and composer whose recent and upcoming projects include "Soft Butter" (Ars Nova, Musical Theatre Factory), "Waafrika 123" (National Queer Theater), "Container" (dev. at WP/Public Theater, Rattlestick), "Pride Plays" (Rattlestick), "Memorial" (The Lark, LPAC), "and Through the Crack in The Closet Door" (Corkscrew), "Rooms" (BAM studio), and "The Rite of Spring" (American Theater Company/CORE Series). They have incubated work with resident artists at LCT3/Lincoln Center, Manhattan Theatre Club, BAM, the O'Neill, Joe's Pub, Clubbed Thumb, Birdland, Playwrights Horizons Downtown, Studio Theatre, NYU Tisch, IRT, Dixon Place, and elsewhere. A graduate of The University of Chicago, Éamon extended their studies in directing at The National Theater Institute and SDCF after completing independent research with Royal Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, and Folger Library Institute. They are a 2019 Trans Lab Fellow, a 2019-20 MTC Directing Fellow, member of The Ring of Keys, and a Resident Playwright at Lincoln Center Theater.
MOLLY POWERS GALLAGHER
RESIDENT ARTIST & BOARD MEMBER
Molly Powers Gallagher is Korean-born, Irish American-raised writer/actor, who is committed to telling stories that make people, particularly women, feel seen. Her screenplay DRIVING WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED, an original coming-of-age road trip dramedy, won a spot at the Athena Film Festival Screenwriting Lab and was recognized by the Academy Nicholl Fellowship, Austin Film Festival, and Sundance. Her plays have been commissioned by Urban Stages and developed and supported by The New Victory Theater, Sokoloff Arts/Town Stages, and The Growing Stage. Molly has also been seen performing on New York stages, plus in short films, industrials, and commercials. She is a current Resident Artist at Town Stages, where she also serves on the Board of Directors. After she achieves her artistic aspirations, she will be an alpaca farmer.
TESS HOWSAM
RESIDENT ARTIST
Brooklyn-based interdisciplinary artist, Tess Howsam curates and directs ekphrastic shows that blend theater, installation art, and performance. Howsam seeks to subvert theatrical expectations while building cross-disciplinary collaborations that offer visibility to marginalized artists and address issues of gender. Her installation work is rooted in story and collaboration, viewing art as a dialogue to address contemporary sociological, political, and environmental issues. Her installation Corseted Community was a part of an international exhibit Puentes - No Muros/ Bridges - Not Walls, (El Centro de las Artes de Querétaro (CEART) Querétaro, Mexico, March 2018/ Casa de Europa Mexico, San Miguel, Mexico, October 2018). She has worked as performer/director in a variety of New York venues including Arts@Renaissance, The Barrow Group Theater, Brooklyn Lyceum, Bushwick Starr, Dixon Place, Galapagos Art Space, Governors Island, HERE Art Space, Jimmy's no.43, Signature Theatre, Soho Playhouse, and The Living Theater. MFA-Interdisciplinary Arts: Goddard College, Washington, BA: Bard College, New York.
RACHEL LIN
RESIDENT ARTIST
Rachel Lin is an actress & writer based in Chinatown, NY. She is a member of Ensemble Studio Theatre, and a 2019 Town Stages Creative Fellow. Born in the UK, and raised in Brooklyn, she is also a proud alumnus of Stuyvesant High School and NYU's Tisch School of the Arts where she received her BFA in Drama. For five years she was a member of the resident acting company at the Flea Theater, where she produced SERIALS, a late night episodic play festival from 2015-2017. Theater credits include: "Women" at Hollywood Fringe (NY Times Critics' Pick), "Ajax" at the Flea (NY Times' Critics' Pick), "Caught" at St. Louis Rep, and "Egress" at Cleveland Play House. Her podcast, Upstage Left, where she interviews inspiring theater professionals, is available wherever podcasts are found.
ANNA LUBINA
RESIDENT ARTIST
Anna Lublina is an interdisciplinary performance maker and educator. Anna’s work has been presented at St. Ann’s Warehouse, Judson Church, the 14th St Y, Center for Performance Research, The Old American Can Factory, Dixon Place, The Brick, The Tank, The Pit, Vital Joint, Bread and Puppet Theater, and at the Communal Spaces Festival. Anna has been supported by fellowships and residencies such as the LABA Fellowship at the 14th St Y (2019-2020), the St. Ann’s Warehouse Puppet Lab (2018-2019), SDCF Observership (2019-2020), Undiscovered Countries Blast Off! Lab (2019), the Sokoloff Arts Fellowship at Townstages (2019), the Blueprint Fellowship by COJECO, an organization that supports the Russian-speaking Jewish (RSJ) community (2019), the Centre Droiteval in France (2019), the Barn Arts Collective in Maine (2018), and Azule in North Carolina (2018).
BENJAMIN MONIZ
RESIDENT ARTIST
Ben is a Brooklyn based Composer/Writer/Performer creating research driven work for live performance. He is also, sometimes, an actor and a pit musician, and a former member of the Barn Arts Collective in Bass Harbor, Maine. His work, lately, concerns America. What exists between our insistence in our own exceptionalism and the perpetuated transgressions that are woven into the fabric of our country? His latest project "It’s Been a Long Way, But We’re Here" is a documentary play examining the four year span of the Apollo Program, when America was simultaneously sending men to the Moon and Vietnam.
ZACH MORRIS
RESIDENT ARTIST
Zach Morris (Third Rail Projects' Co-Artistic Director) is co-creator of the immersive theater hits Then She Fell, The Grand Paradise, Sweet & Lucky, and Ghost Light at Lincoln Center Theater’s Claire Tow Theater. Zach's work includes site-specific performance, multimedia installation art and environments, and experiential performance. He is particularly interested in creating projects that place contemporary art and performance in non-traditional contexts. Zach has been honored with numerous awards, including a Chita Rivera award, two BESSIE awards, and was recently named as one of the 100 most influential people in Brooklyn culture by Brooklyn Magazine. His work has been presented nationally and internationally with the support of numerous grants, commissions, and residencies and he has had the pleasure of teaching, mentoring, and creating new platforms to support the work of artists both at home and abroad. Zach holds a BFA in Directing from Carnegie Mellon University.
TARA O'CON
RESIDENT ARTIST
Tara O'Con is an experiential artist, facilitator, and transformation coach specializing in building empathy and trust inside interactive environments, and supporting people as they create big empowering change in their lives. She draws from over a decade of experience as a choreographer and performer across many performance settings both independently and as a collaborating-artist with Third Rail Projects, as well as her certified training in Coaching for Transformation from Leadership That Works. In all of her work she brings a passion for thoughtful user experience and audience-centered design, and commitment to meeting people where they are and expanding what’s possible.
ALEX PARRISH
RESIDENT ARTIST
Alex Parrish (he/him) is a Queens-based composer, music director, orchestrator, and performer. Musical theater works include a choral a cappella musical “This Mortal Noise” (w/ Katelynn Kenney), “Vote!” (w/Laura Winters), “UltraViolet: A Super Musical” (w/Charlotte Arnoux), one-acts “Blood From a Stone” and “Zero Sum Game,” and a three-act film-to-stage adaptation in development. Also multimedia spectaculars, short films, and online content, and vocal, a cappella, and barbershop arrangements. Proud member of AEA and The Dramatists Guild, 2020 Resident at Town Stages, and graduate of NYU Tisch (BFA Drama) and BMI Musical Theatre Workshop.
TIDTAYA SINUTOKE
RESIDENT ARTIST
Tidtaya Sinutoke (ฑิตยา สินุธก) is a Thai born, NYC-based composer. Composition credits include: HALF THE SKY (5th Avenue Theatre's First Draft Commission), CLOUDS ARE PILLOWS FOR THE MOON (Yale Institute for Music Theatre, Kilroy's Honorable Mentions), HART ISLAND REQUIEM (The Civilians R&D Group, Polyphone Festival), and WATER IS LIFE (NYMF - How The Light Gets In). She is a recipient of the Composer-Librettists Studio at New Dramatists, Johnny Mercer Songwriter Projects, NYFA IAM Mentoring Program, Robert Rauschenberg Residency, EtM Con Edison Composer-in-Residence, Catwalk Arts Residency, Johnny Mercer Writers Colony, Yale Institute for Music Theatre, Theater MU's New Eyes Festival, Theater Latté Da's NEXT Festival, Sokoloff Arts Fellowship, Musical Theatre Factory's MAKERS Cohort, Jonathan Larson Grant, and Weston-Ghostlight New Musical Award. A proud member of ASCAP, the Dramatists Guild, and Thai Theatre Foundation. BM: Berklee College of Music; MFA: NYU.
JEFF TANG
RESIDENT ARTIST & BOARD MEMBER
Jeff Tang is a composer, lyricist, and creative producer investigating the history, creation, and perpetuation of cultural narratives through music and theater. His work has been seen and heard in New York, Chicago, London, Minneapolis, Berkeley, and La Jolla. Commissions include NYC's Leviathan Lab, Music Institute of Chicago, Theatre Latte Da in Minneapolis, NYU’s Grad Acting Write/Act Festival, and St. Ann's School. Alumnus of National Sawdust's Summer Labs Residency, the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, New Dramatists Composer-Librettist Studio, Prospect Theater Company's Musical Theater Lab, and the PlayLabs Festival. He is the Executive Creative Producer of Real Magic, founded with composer/bassist/vocalist Esperanza Spalding. MFA, NYU GMWTP.
WILL THOMASON
RESIDENT ARTIST
Will Thomason is an eclectic performer and theatre maker who uses his experience in dance, voice, acting, instrumental performance, and songwriting to tell stories examining our modern culture through a combination of chorded melodies, rich harmonies, and witty wordplay. Among his works, part of his song cycle “These Four Years,” was the inaugural concert at TOWN Stages thanks to generous support by Sokoloff Arts. A recipient of the ASTEP Kaffenberger Fellowship, he also enjoys working as a teaching artist in a variety of communities locally, nationally, and internationally
REBECCA VINEYARD
RESIDENT ARTIST
Rebecca Vineyard is a Brooklyn-based interdisciplinary performing artist and writer. Her solo autobiographical piece about being a white-passing half-Palestinian person, Ambiguously Olive, was developed through Undiscovered Countries' inaugural Blast Off! lab in 2017. Rebecca was a Fresh Ground Pepper BRB 2018 Resident Artist, participated in Undiscovered Countries’ Blast Off! In 2019, and served as literary manager for Crashbox Theater Company for several years. She was also featured on Fusion TV’s Peabody Award-nominated show, Sex. Right. Now. with Cleo Stiller. BFA NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Atlantic Acting School.
VANESSA WALTERS
RESIDENT ARTIST
Vanessa Walters is a Brooklyn-based director, performer and choreographer who collaborates on dance, film/video, and multimedia arts. Her multimedia project, Ripening has been featured at Lincoln Center, Tribeca Film Festival, Triskelion Arts, NADA Art Fair/Art Basel, Galapagos Art Space, FLICfest Dance Festival, Tribeca Cinemas Video Art and Experimental Film Festival, amongst others. She has been collaborating with Brian Gonzalez/Taxiplasm on Ripening since its inception. Vanessa specializes in creating specific, yet all-encompassing aesthetic worlds with visually striking moving images that connect us by accessing our individual and collective memories and fantasies. Walters was the lead choreographer and dancer for Fischerspooner for 11 years and toured with Gogol Bordello for two years. She collaborates with artist / director Marcel Dzama and is the show choreographer for TruTV’s “At Home with Amy Sedaris.”
EMMA ROSA WENT
RESIDENT ARTIST
Emma Rosa Went is a freelance theatre director. New York work includes: The Drama League, Playwrights Realm, Trans Lab at WP, The Tank, The Brick, Dixon Place, Access Theatre, LPAC Lab, and many other venues. Outside New York: Scranton Shakespeare Festival, Campfire Theatre Festival @ Boise Contemporary Theatre, Barn Arts Collective. Co-founder of The Renovationists. Recipient of: Drama League First Stage Residency 2019 (Beckett Without Beckett;) SDCF Observership 2017 (Measure for Measure, TFANA;) OSF FAIR Program 2015. Off-broadway/regional assisting: TFANA, Atlantic, Rattlestick, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Colorado Shakespeare Festival. Emma is an Associate Member of the SDC. BA Sarah Lawrence College.
JAMILA YOUNGSTEDT
RESIDENT ARTIST
Jamila is a dancer, Cyr Wheel artist, & choreographer. 2018 & 2019 Sokoloff Arts Fellowship recipient at Town Stages. Co-founder Tactile Movement Collective. TMC creates immersive experiences combining dance, original music, & tangible installations. Performance/company highlights: "Sentire" (TMC- Gowanus Ballroom & The Tank NYC), ZviDance (current apprentice), Nick Cave's "The Let Go"(Park Avenue Armory), Loren Royse&Co.(Jacob’s Pillow), Solo Cyr Wheel: "Daniel The Maestro Musical Revue" & Brooklyn BEAT Festival. Work by Merce Cunningham, William Forsythe, Iyun Harrison, & Christian Burns. Training highlights: B.F.A. Dance- Cornish College of the Arts. Interlochen Arts Academy, Royal Danish Ballet, San Francisco Conservatory of Dance.
THE LEADERSHIP TEAM at Town Stages
SUPPORTING WORK THAT IS ACCESIBLE, ETHICAL, PIONEERING, VISIONARY, AND ENTERPRISING.
Emilyn Kowaleski
Brandon Webster
Rainey Rowan
Staci Jacobs
Robin Sokoloff
Our Fellows & Residents are creators and industry experts in their respective fields. You may reach out direct under their profiles above. You can also contact us:
Call 212-634-7690 or email fellowship@townstages.com
Applications are closed at this time. Join our mailing list here, and we'll keep you posted.
Our Executive & Young Professional Board Members drive our mission to advance access & equity in New York City spaces. Reach out to ask how you can help spaces like our survive and thrive.
Call 212-634-7690 or email connect@townstages.com
Town Stages is a world-class 10,000 sqft event space centrally located in Tribeca with state-of-the-art amenities, and in-house cocktail bar.
Call 212-634-7690 or email connect@townstages.com