NEA Announces Ralph Remington As New Director of Theater and Musical Theater

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced today that Ralph Remington willjoin the NEA as the director of theater and musical theater as of March 15, 2010. Most recently, Mr. Remington was a city council member of the City of Minneapolis, representing Ward 10 from 2006 through 2009. Prior to that public service, Mr. Remington worked as artistic associate with Arena Stage in Washington, DC; producing artistic director and founder of the Pillsbury House Theatre in Minneapolis; and as an actor with the Guthrie Theater and Illusion Theatre, both of Minneapolis.

At the NEA, he will manage the NEA's grantmaking for theater and musical theater, as well as developpartnerships to advance the theater field as a whole, and lead large-scale theater projects such as the NEA's New Play Development Program."I am delighted to welcome Ralph Remington to the National Endowment for the Arts. His experience is simplyextraordinary. Ralph has worked as an actor, an artistic director, and an arts administrator at a wide range oforganizations. And he has also worked on, perhaps, the most dramatic stage of all: that of local politics," said NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman.

"Ralph is a leader who will bring together the fields of theater, community engagement, and public policy. Ralph knows that art works, and I look forward to welcoming him and his energy to the NEA.

"Mr. Remington added, "I am over-the-moon excited about the opportunity to help nurture the American theater atthis particular moment in time. Rocco has a strong vision regarding theater and musical theater, which I whollysupport, truly showing that art works."From 2001-02, Mr. Remington served as artistic associate and director of community engagement with Arena Stage, overseeing all of the company's outreach and education programs and a staff of 19. While at Arena, he ledthe Living Stage Theater Company, created and toured a theater movement piece called America: Work in Progress, and directed Dael Orlandersmith's critically acclaimed The Gimmick.

In the spring of 2002, Mr. Remington directed a well-received production of Amiri Baraka's Dutchman at the Source Theater in Washington. From October 2000 to May 2001, he was the executive director of the Media Artists Resource Center in St. Paulwhere he was responsible for fundraising and strategic planning and engineered a successful merger with the Independent Feature Project.In 1992, Mr. Remington founded Pillsbury House Theatre out of the settlement house tradition of communitycollaboration. Through 1999, he served as Pillsbury's producing artistic director, managing a $500,000 budget.

He also selected and oversaw a four-to-six play annual series; founded Breaking Ice, a touring multiracial, socio-political improv company for youth and adults; and created the Chicago Avenue Project where children write and perform original plays with professional actors. The program received a Coming Up Taller award in 2005.Presented by the First Lady on behalf of the President's Committee for the Arts and Humanities, Coming Up Taller awards recognize outstanding community arts and humanities programs that celebrate the creativityof America's young people. Mr. Remington received his bachelor of fine arts degree in drama from Howard University in 1984.

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