Signature Theatre Hosts Free TheatreFest NYC for Students Today

Signature Theatre hosts TheatreFest NYC today, August 30, from 12pm to 4pm at The Pershing Square Signature Center (480 West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues). This free open house is for students who are interested in learning more about New York's non-profit theatres.

During the event, attendees will have the opportunity to learn about upcoming seasons and productions, sign up for discount and affordable ticket programs, receive information about internships, win free tickets, and socialize with fellow theatre lovers.

Participating organizations include Signature Theatre, Ars Nova, Atlantic Theater Company / Atlantic Acting School, BAM, The Barrow Group Theatre Company & School, Classic Stage Company, Lincoln Center Theater, MCC Theater, The New Group, New York Theatre Workshop, The Pearl Theatre Company, Performance Space 122, Playbill, Playwrights Horizons, Primary Stages, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, Second Stage Theatre, Soho Rep, St. Ann's Warehouse and The Vineyard Theatre.

For more information, contact events@signaturetheatre.org.

Signature Theatre exists to honor and celebrate the playwright. Founded in 1991 by James Houghton, Signature makes an extended commitment to a playwright's body of work, and during this journey, the writer is engaged in every aspect of the creative process. By championing in-depth explorations of a playwright's body of work, Signature delivers an intimate and immersive journey into the playwright's singular vision. In 2014 Signature became the first New York City theatre to receive the Regional Theatre Tony Award®.

Signature serves its mission through its permanent home at The Pershing Square Signature Center, a three-theatre facility on West 42nd Street designed by Frank Gehry Architects to host Signature's three distinct playwrights' residencies and foster a cultural community. At the Center, opened in January 2012, Signature continues its founding Playwright-in-Residence model as Residency One, a first-of-its-kind, intensive exploration of a single writer's body of work. Residency Five, the only program of its kind, was launched at the Center to support multiple playwrights as they build bodies of work by guaranteeing each writer three productions over a five-year period. The Legacy Program, launched during Signature's 10th Anniversary, invites writers from both residencies back for productions of premiere or earlier plays.

The Pershing Square Signature Center is a major contribution to New York City's cultural landscape and provides a venue for cultural organizations that supports and encourages collaboration among artists throughout the space. In addition to its three intimate theatres, the Center features a Studio Theatre, rehearsal studio, and a public café, bar and bookstore. Through the Signature Ticket Initiative: A Generation of Access, Signature has also made an unprecedented commitment to making its productions accessible by underwriting the cost of initial run tickets through 2031.

Signature has presented entire seasons of the work of Edward Albee, Lee Blessing, Horton Foote, María Irene Fornés, Athol Fugard, John Guare, A. R. Gurney, David Henry Hwang, Bill Irwin, Adrienne Kennedy, Tony Kushner, Romulus Linney, Charles Mee, Arthur Miller, Sam Shepard, Paula Vogel, Naomi Wallace, August Wilson, Lanford Wilson, and a season celebrating the historic Negro Ensemble Company. Its current Residency Five playwrights are Annie Baker, Martha Clarke, Will Eno, Katori Hall, Quiara Alegría Hudes, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Kenneth Lonergan and ReGina Taylor. In addition to the Regional Theatre Tony Award®, Signature's productions and its resident writers have been recognized with the Pulitzer Prize, Lucille Lortel Awards, Obie Awards, Drama Desk Awards, and AUDELCO Awards, among many other distinctions.