The Collective NY Announces The Appointment Of Sayra Player And Ross Degraw As Co-Artistic Directors

The Board of Directors of The Collective NY announces the appointment of Sayra Player and Ross DeGraw as the company's next Co-Artistic Directors, effective immediately.

The two replace outgoing Artistic Directors and Founding Members Kevin Kane and Robert Z. Grant. Grant will continue on as a member of The Collective NY's Board of Directors, while Kane's focus will shift to overseeing CollectiveNY Films. "It is thrilling to have two outstanding members of our company step up to lead us forward. Sayra and Ross see the excellence and the promise in the company we founded ten years ago, and they understand the responsibility to our mission to expand our own voice and to cultivate the unique and varied voices and stories that MUST be told" says Grant.

Player has been a member of The Collective NY's ensemble for 7 years, producing 4 of the company's productions and also serves on the board of The Actors Studio. She attributes her longstanding mentorship with Ellen Burstyn, Estelle Parsons and Elizabeth Kemp for solidifying her commitment to the powerful potential of female leaders in the arts. Player said of her new position as Co-Artistic Director: "New Yorkers are truth seekers. They want to see the kind of work we make. They don't want polite, safe, "deliver on a platter" theatre. They want rebellious truthful stories that speak to heart of our predicament and an experience that moves them. That's what we do."

DeGraw, also an ensemble member, has produced several plays in New York with FringeNYC, Theatre 167 and the 8 O'clocks Theatre, of which he was a founder. He brings extensive business acumen and strategic thought leadership into the role, having launched several thriving entrepreneurial ventures as well as enjoying success as a strategic manager for a billion dollar international distribution firm. DeGraw has said, "This company has spent the last 10 years laying the groundwork for some amazing theatre. It is THE company to watch in the future. It I am honored and humbled to be able to help bring the raw truth and spirit of The Collective to the larger NY community."

Plans for The Collective NY's 2018 season include a mainstage production in the Fall, the return of the hugely successful annual C:10 and release of The Collective:10 Play Anthology, Vol 5.

Founded in 2007, The Collective NY unites professional artists who share a responsibility to create work in the contemporary American Theatre that is emotionally truthful, socially relevant, and defiantly accessible. Founding Members include Mike Houston, Kevin Kane, Amy Schumer, Robert Z Grant, Brian Leider and Nick Marshall. Company credits include revivals of Ionesco's THE LESSON, McGuinness's SOMEONE WHO'LL WATCH OVER ME, and original productions 360, ME EQUALS THIS, HAPPY GIRL, Edward Allan Baker's LILA ON THE WALL, the Emmy-winning television show "Inside Amy Schumer" and the award-winning short films "Turtleface," "Uncle Silas" and "quick fix."

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