2015/16 Annual Report
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2015/16 ANNUAL REPORT Damon Daunno and Lulu Fall in HADESTOWN. Photo by Joan Marcus Board of Trustees Dear Friends, James C. Nicola When we reflect back on the 2015/16 season, we are struck by the scale and scope of what we were able to ARTISTIC DIRECTOR accomplish together. We are humbled by the singular artists who created unforgettable theatrical events, the record-breaking number of actors and musicians who appeared on our stage, the visionary designers who Jeremy Blocker reimagined the potential of our theatre again and again, and the tremendous administrative and production MANAGING DIRECTOR teams responsible for bringing the work to life with such grace. We are humbled by the work we supported with our 2050 Fellowship, Mondays @ 3 Reading Series, and Summer Residencies’ work that asks probing questions Barbara Warner Howard CHAIR about the world in which we live by artists who bring their unique perspective to the most pressing matters at hand. And last, but certainly not least, we are humbled by the tireless work of our Board of Trustees, the Kelly Fowler Hunter dedication of our thoughtful patrons and funders, and the audiences who came from around the world to be a PRESIDENT part of our community on 4th Street. Allan S. Gordon Last season, we had the great privilege of working with some of our most cherished long term collaborators and VICE CHAIR some of the theatre’s most striking new voices. From Alpen heights to the depths of the underworld, each of the productions imagined a complete universe through which we could come to understand our own. FONDLY, Jack Bamberger VICE PRESIDENT COLLETTE RICHLAND took us from a mundane New England town to a village of fantasy as “Fritz” and Mabrelle visited the Grand Hotel Conclevista and were confronted by what lives inside us all. New York’s East Village Noel E. D. Kirnon was refracted through extraterrestrial Thomas Newton’s mind in LAZARUS as he reached for connection. RED TREASURER SPEEDO offered a world with a singular value: winning, asking the audience to consider both the impetus for such a value and the cost. And in a mythic America, HADESTOWN brought a reminder that even in a world out of Kathleen Yoh balance, the artist has a unique ability to offer hope and a vision for tomorrow. SECRETARY Off stage last year, NYTW engaged a management consulting firm, Dunch Arts, to facilitate the development of a Stephen Graham FOUNDING TRUSTEE five-year strategic plan. With the involvement and support of our artists, staff, and Board of Trustees, we created a thoughtful and thorough assessment of our current status and an ambitious plan for the future. This plan, which Ayad Akhtar was passed in January 2016, includes investments in infrastructure initiatives for the building and our technical Gail Bell resources, expanding our artistic programming, increasing compensation for artists and deepening the resources Claudia Caffuzzi available to develop their work, establishing a Director’s Institute designed to explore and better support the role Barbara Cutler of the director in the modern American theatre and the addition of a fifth production to our season. The plan also Ellen Fleysher includes the launch of a comprehensive campaign in our 40th Anniversary season to improve and expand our Janet Harckham physical plant and to ensure that NYTW continues to be a home for visionary theatre makers and adventurous Hans Humes Susan Peterson Kennedy audiences for the next 40 years. The 2016/17 season marks the first full year of the plan, and includes adding Bokara Legendre new positions in our Development, Finance, Artistic, and Marketing departments to increase internal capacity Andrea Miller and support our ambitious expansion. Furthering our investment in the future, NYTW welcomed three new Board Anthony E. Napoli members during the 2015/16 season: Susan Petersen Kennedy, founder of Riverhead Books and former President Heather Randall of Penguin Group U.S.; Nicholas White, Publisher at The Daily Dot; and Ayad Akhtar, Pulitzer Prize-winning Scott Shay playwright whose NYTW debut, THE INVISIBLE HAND, premiered during the 2014/15 season. Brian Vollmer Nicholas White At its core, theatre is an act of community and an act of creation. As we look toward an uncertain future, we are Doug Wright heartened by the committed, diverse communities who uphold the value of theatre and come together to make New York Theatre Workshop possible. James C. Nicola Jeremy Blocker Artistic Director Managing Director 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS MISSION AND HISTORY 4 15/16 SEASON PRODUCTIONS 5 ARTIST WORKSHOP 10 EDUCATION INITIATIVES 13 PUBLIC PROGRAMS 14 2016 SPRING GALA 15 SUPPORTERS 16 NYTW BOARD & STAFF 20 3 Shaina Taub, Lulu Fall in HADESTOWN, Photo by Joan Marcus David Bowie and Ivo van Hove working on LAZARUS, Photo by Jan Versweyveld MISSION & NEW YORK THEATRE WORKSHOP HISTORY provokes, produces and cultivates the work of artists whose visions inspire and challenge all of us. Founded in 1979 by Stephen Graham, New York Theatre Workshop is dedicated to ensuring the robust and compelling presence of the artist in our society. This mission is manifested in three distinct but equally important focuses of activity: • producing an annual season of productions in our 199-seat theatre in Manhattan’s East Village; • inviting theatre-makers at all stages of their careers to participate in activities that allow them to gain support and exposure for themselves as artists as well as their individual projects; • encouraging and enabling our wider community to engage with the creative process. The work on our stage and in our workshop allows NYTW to develop and produce theatrical experiences that reflect and respond to the world around us and re-invigorate the artists and audiences we connect with each year. 4 2015/16 SEASON “John Collins’s richly layered production rises to the whirling, morphing challenge of Kempson’s remarkable script. I haven’t been SO BEWILDERED YET SO BY THE DELIGHTED IN AGES. NUMBERS: 4 STARS” –Time Out New York Susie Sokol in FONDLY, COLLETTE RICHLAND, COLLETTE RICHLAND, in FONDLY, Susie Sokol Joan Marcus by Photo FONDLY, COLLETTE RICHLAND 50,301 Total Audience “LAZARUS IS Members RIVETING MUSICAL THEATER LIKE NOTHING THAT HAS FALLEN TO EARTH BEFORE.” –Newsday 268 Performances LAZ ARUS in the 2015/16 Season Michael C. Hall in LAZARUS, Hall in LAZARUS, Michael C. Versweyveld Jan by Photo “Remarkable. A TAUT, INCISIVE DRAMA.” 16 - The New York Times Awards and Nominations Alex Breaux in RED SPEEDO, Breaux Alex Joan Marcus by Photo RED SPEEDO 84 Artists “HADESTOWN WILL BE Collaborated YOUR NEXT with for MUSICAL THEATER OBSESSION.” Productions –Vogue Nabiyah Be and Damon Daunno in HADESTOWN, in HADESTOWN, Daunno Be and Damon Nabiyah Joan Marcus by Photo HADES TOWN 5 “THIS IS A DREAM — one of the MOST ENTERTAINING you’re ever likely to have.” –The New York Times Greig Sargeant and Laurena Allan in FONDLY, COLLETTE RICHLAND, Photo by Joan Marcus Marcus Joan by Photo RICHLAND, COLLETTE FONDLY, in Allan Laurena and Sargeant Greig FONDLY, COLLETTE RICHLAND Sept 11 - Oct 24, 2015 Creative Team: Scenic Design and Additional Costumes by David Zinn By Sibyl Kempson Costume Design by Jacob A. Climer Created and Performed by Elevator Repair Service Lighting Design by Mark Barton Sound Design by Ben Williams Directed by John Collins Original Music by Mike Iveson A Co-Production with Elevator Repair Service Property Design by Amanda Villalobos Dance and Movement Coach – Katherine Profeta Stage Manager – Maurina Lioce 48 performances for 7,966 people ERS Producer – Ariana Smart Truman ERS Production Manager – David Nelson ERS Associate Producer – Lindsay Hockaday This inventive experimental play was an important step in ERS’ Cast: creative evolution, as it was their first collaboration with a living Laurena Allen – Mabrel Fitzhubert playwright. Sibyl and the ERS ensemble developed Fondly, Kate Benson – Winnifr’d Bexel Collette Richland over the course of five years, with significant Lindsay Hockaday – Joan Ham Hobhouse support from NYTW during their time as a company-in-residence. Maggie Hoffman – Miss Glynn Grills/ Face of the Ghost of Jesus Christ Mike Iveson – Father Mumbles/Hans-Pierre The play was selected as a New York Times Critic’s Pick and it Vin Knight – Colonel “Fritz” Fitzhubert/Peggy Gladys extended for an additional week of performances. April Matthis – Collette Richland/Dora Fitzhubert Greig Sargeant – Local Representative Wheatsun Kaneza Schaal – Velede Susie Sokol – Cat Butler/Clotilde Fondly, Collette Richland was made possible through Lucy Taylor – Empress Queen Patrice/RMR the generous support of the Jerome Foundation. Ben Jalosa Williams – Sailor Boy/the Krampus Sarah Willis – Cat Butler/Clotilde 6 L A Z A R US Nominated for 3 Drama Desk Awards 2 Lucille Lortel Awards 5 Outer Critics’ Circle Awards “Wild, fantastical, EYE- POPPING. A surrealistic tour de force.” - Rolling Stone Michael C. Hall and Sophia Anne Caruso in LAZARUS. Photo by Jan Versweyveld Nov 18, 2015 - Jan 20, 2016 Creative Team: Scenic and Lighting Design By David Bowie and Enda Walsh by Jan Versweyveld Directed by Ivo van Hove Costume Design by An D’Huys Video Design by Tal Yarden Inspired by The Man Who Fell to Earth by Walter Tevis Sound Design by Brian Ronan Choreography by Annie-B Parson Music Direction by Henry Hey Dramaturgy by Jan Peter Gerrits 70 performances for 13,533 people Stage Managed by James Latus Casting by Telsey + Company Longtime NYTW collaborator Ivo van Hove returned to East 4th Street to direct Cast: this new production by David Bowie and Enda Walsh, featuring songs specially Krystina Alabado – Teenage Girl 1 composed for Lazarus by Mr. Bowie, as well as new arrangements of previously Sophia Anne Caruso – Girl recorded songs. Nicholas Christopher – Ben Lynn Craig – Maemi Michael Esper – Valentine A massive undertaking, this was one of the largest and most expensive shows Michael C.