Irondale to Offer Free Admission for 2023 Season to Celebrate 40th Anniversary

Irondale, now celebrating forty years of artistically ambitious, cutting-edge theatre, will be waiving all admission fees for the entirety of their anniversary season, January-December 2023.

The decision comes as the organization renews its commitment to creating and presenting works both reflective and resonant of the times, while opening a dialogue with audiences to connect, communicate, learn, and advocate through theater. From educational programming that serves over 1,000 New York City children and teens each year, to workshops that bolster empathy and understanding between police and The Civilians they serve to large and small-scale productions throughout the season, this year's impact aims to create arts experiences for all, and makes The Space at Irondale a place of exploration for the entire Brooklyn community and its surrounding boroughs.

In addition to offering season-wide free tickets for the 2023 season, the organization is taking steps to shift the model of Irondale into a permanent public theater that offers free or pay-what-you-can tickets into its forty-first season and beyond. The organization is laying the groundwork to launch The Citizen Artist Campaign, a campaign to raise the company's first endowment by 2027 to sustain Irondale's ensemble of artists, support its education programs, establish permanent and extended free programming, increased internal capacity and administration, and improve infrastructure that offers needed technological and safety upgrades to the 160-year-old, 7,300sq ft church turned theater space.

"In four decades, we have built a family of citizen artists, of students, of peers, of spectators, of supporters, and of friends," reflects Terry Greiss, co-founder, and Executive Director of Irondale. "In opening up our doors and offering a full year of admission free theater, we extend our tremendous gratitude to our community. We will continue to be a space of exploration, education, inspiration, and inclusion," he continues. "We are one of the last few true ensemble companies around," adds co-founder and Artistic Director, Jim Niesen. "It's never an easy road, but we have a responsibility to put work on stage that is reflective of the world we live in today and to engage in the hard conversations of how we can use theater to make people think, feel, and demand a world that we want to live in," he continues. "We've got lots of wonderful things planned this anniversary year, and we can't wait to celebrate with you!"

Currently, the company's To Protect, Serve, and Understand workshop is underway and will offer public performances featuring local police officers and civilians on January 13-14. This will be the project's tenth cycle and is working in partnership with the New York City Police Department to use theatrical improvisation to build communication and empathy between officers and the communities they have taken an oath to protect and serve.

ABOUT IRONDALE

Located in the heart of the Downtown Brooklyn Cultural District, Irondale is the home of the Irondale Ensemble Project. It is a theatre ensemble, a performance think-tank and a collaborative laboratory for non-traditional artists. Irondale's unique and transformational space has gained much attention as a place for both established and emerging artists to premiere major projects and showcase developing work. The Irondale Ensemble Project was founded in 1983 by Jim Niesen, Terry Greiss and Barbara Mackenzie-Wood and is one of the longest established permanent ensemble theaters in the country. The ensemble has created over 60 Off-Broadway productions from intimate chamber productions of Shakespeare to company devised epic work. Irondale's learning programs provide high quality, cutting-edge workshops and school residencies designed to develop the artist in every human being