Rogue Artists Ensemble Announces New Managing Director Darcie Crager

The critically acclaimed and award-winning Rogue Artists Ensemble is proud to welcome Darcie Crager on board as its new Managing Director.

Rogue Artists Ensemble differs from other theater companies in that it's run by a collective of multi-disciplinary artists and designers rather than by actors, writers or directors. By combining ancient storytelling techniques (music, dance, masks, puppetry) with modern technology (digital media, special effects and theatrical illusions), the Rogues cultivate a unique style of live performance unlike any other.

Darcie Crager is a Los Angeles-based theatre director and producer, a Founding Co-Artistic Director of Theatre Raw, and a founding producer and resident director of the southland company. Crager holds a Master of Fine Arts in Theater Directing from University of California, Los Angeles as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Theater Arts Management from Western Michigan University.

"I am thrilled to be a part of this driven group of artists at Rogue Artists Ensemble," says Crager. "I have admired this company for its unique vision towards original work since I first moved to Los Angeles, almost four years ago now, and I look forward to leading Rogue into its next chapter of development with Sean Cawelti, our staff, ensemble and Board of Directors. We have an extraordinary new season ahead!"

"It is exciting to have Darcie Crager join Rogue Artists Ensemble for what is shaping up to be our most ambitious year of programming in the company's history," says Sean T. Cawelti, Artistic Director and Founding Ensemble Member of Rogue Artists. "Darcie brings a fresh perspective and arts management experience from working at Cirque De Soleil and through receiving her MFA in Directing from UCLA."

Crager's recent directing work has premiered at The Hammer Museum, Barnsdall Gallery Theatre, The Zephyr Theatre, UCLA's Little Theater, and includes a workshop reading at The John F. Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and a recent production at Art Share L.A. with the southland company-the world premiere of The Gita and The Gun. She has previously worked with the Resident Shows Division for Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas, Kinetic Theory Circus Arts in Los Angeles and the Gilmore Theatre Complex in Kalamazoo, MI.

"The company is growing exponentially right now," says Sarah Kay Peters, Chair of the Board of Directors of Rogue Artists. "We needed a leader who could help steward us through this growth. Darcie is already proving a tremendous asset in these efforts. We are grateful to have her on the team."

Since 2002, the Rogues have created over a dozen original new works and collaborated with hundreds of artists and community members, and 2017 will bring one full production, three in-development works, and a remount and re-envisioning of one of their family shows-soon to be announced.

With all this creative work and collaboration ahead for the company, Crager's leadership and drive will bring a strong grounding to the energy of Rogue Artists Ensemble productions.

Past Rogue Artists Ensemble Hyper-theatrical productions include Zen Shorts, adapted from the book by Jon J. Muth, last seen in Tears of Joy Theater's 2015 season in Portland OR; Songs of Bilitis, commissioned by and work-shopped at the Getty Villa and later produced at the Bootleg Theater; D is for Dog, designated one of the to-rated productions of 2011 by Bitter Lemons; Gogol Project, adapted by Kitty Felde from three Gogol short stories (Los Angeles Times "Critic's Choice"; Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards for adaptation and design; LA Weekly Award for design); The Tragical Comedy of Mr. Punch, adapted from the graphic novel by Neil Gaiman (recipient of 3 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards); The Victorian Hotel by Angus Oblong; and The Story of Frog Belly Rat Bone, adapted from the book by Timothy Basil; and most recently Wood Boy Dog Fish adapted by Chelsea Sutton from the original The Adventures of Pinocchio (nominated for 6 stage raw awards and 3 Ovation Awards, winner of the Ovation Award Honor for Puppet Design).

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