Access Theater Expands Residency Program, Announces 2018-2019 Artists

Access Theater is thrilled to announce the theater companies and artists who will join the Access community as 2018-2019 Resident Artists. The seven theater companies that will be in residence for the full year are: The Anthropologists, The Navigators, Rat Queen Theatre, Square One Collective, Tiny Trip, Upstream Artists' Collective, and Puss Collective. The individual artists who will spend six months as residents at Access include: Ashley Griffin, James Kennedy, Minhui Lee, Noam Shapiro and Paulo K Tiról, Ran Xia, Susanna Wolk and Justine Gelfman, Ty Defoe and Tidtaya Sinutoke, and Valerie L Work.

The recently expanded Access Theater Residency Program, now supporting more artists than ever before, provides a home base for artists to develop their work without the pressure of deadlines and public showings, and builds on a long history of Access' unwavering commitment to fostering the work of independent emerging artists. Residents receive free and discounted space for rehearsals and performances along with administrative support and automatic acceptance into the Access Association Series, a creative co-producing arrangement for full productions.

Now entering its third year, the program has included many of New York's most exciting artists, such as Elevator Repair Service, who describe their 2016-17 residency as, "instrumental in the development of 'Measure for Measure,'" which went on to a world premiere at The Public last fall. 2017-18 resident company Thicket & Thistle spent much of their time at Access developing their original musical, "What's Your Wish?", which premiered at the New York Musical Festival this summer.

Says Artistic Director Taylor Norton, "Coming from the world of independent producing, I know how tough it can be to get a foot in the door and find space that allows you to dream big. So I'm thrilled that our residency program provides an inclusive community and welcoming home for these exciting artists. It is so gratifying to be a part of these artists' journeys, and to see what amazing things they go on to do after their time with us."

The 2018-2019 residency begins September 1, 2018 and lasts through August 31, 2019. To learn more about the residents, visit www.AccessTheater.com.

Since 1992, Access Theater has been a home to New York City's leading downtown artists. Its 25-year history is rich with the early works of then-unknown theater artists, including: Stephen Belber, Brian Dykstra, Tom McCarthy, Peter Dinklage, Amy Redford, Aasif Mandvi, Michael Hollinger, David Foley, and Bedlam. Other artists who have worked at Access Theater include Julie Taymor, Robert Woodruff, Moisés Kaufman, Ethan Hawke, Labyrinth, and Allan Ball. Access Theater leadership includes Jacqueline Christy (Executive Director), Taylor Norton (Artistic Director), and Chris Phan (Technical Director). Upcoming: Shakespeare in the Square presents A Midsummer Night's Dream as part of the 2018 Access Association Series, featuring wet pasta, mashed potatoes, and other "very tragical mirth!" until August 19, 2019.