Vineyard Theatre Welcomes New General Manager, Director of Production and Miranda Family Fellowship Recipient

Vineyard Theatre has announced two new senior staff members joining the Vineyard team: Alma Malabanan-McGrath will join full-time as General Manager on January 4 and Corrine Livingston as Director of Production on December 19.

Malabanan-McGrath recently served as the first-ever general manager at the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival in Garrison, NY. She is returning to Off-Broadway where she spent fourteen years as Director of Operations at the New 42. Malabanan-McGrath was selected following a national search in partnership with Karena Fiorenza of Animo Consulting. Livingston joins the Vineyard Theatre from The Public Theatre where she served as Audio Supervisor in addition to ten years of production at Long Wharf Theatre.

Managing Director Suzanne Appel and Artistic Directors Sarah Stern and Douglas Aibel share, "We are thrilled to welcome Alma and Corrine to the Vineyard team. They are remarkable theatre professionals who bring experience, leadership and creativity to their roles. At a time when our field is navigating major necessary changes, the talent and diverse perspectives of our senior staff strengthen our institution and our ability to support daring artists and to produce their work at the highest level."

Vineyard Theatre has announced the company's newly named Miranda Family Development Fellow, in partnership with the Miranda Family Fund, and its inaugural recipient, Shania Benjamin. The Vineyard's fellowship program launched in 2018 in development, and launched an artistic fellowship in 2021. The program will expand to include year-long fellowships in Marketing, Production and Finance and Administration by 2025. This school-to-career program provides training and work experience with a full time salary and benefits to early-career arts administrators from historically underrepresented groups, seeding the field with young people who reflect the full diversity of our city. The program supports the transformation of the industry by eliminating the need for unpaid internships as a prerequisite for employment.

Alma Malabanan-McGrath

(she/her/hers) is a first-generation Jersey-based Filipina American who proudly grew up in New York's Hudson Valley. She has spent more than twenty-five years administratively and operationally supporting the tri-state performing arts community in a number of arts administrative and arts education roles, from teaching artist to theater operations specialist. Alma has most recently been the first-ever general manager at the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival in Garrison, NY wherein she developed the position's role in the producing team to support their future growth; established rehearsal infrastructure at their new home to support the creative processes in their inaugural season, and beyond; and stewarded ongoing workplace practices and Board training to support their anti-racism journey to being an institution of inclusion. Prior to HVSF, Alma was the general manager at Two River Theater in Red Bank, NJ for four years under John Dias and Michael Hurst and for fourteen years, the director of operations at the New 42nd Street, where she oversaw the operations and capital improvements of the company's 84,000 square foot premier performing arts facility in the heart of Times Square. Over the span of her career, she has been committed to establishing consistent administrative practices to maintain stable and supported operational infrastructure, while actively working to create workplace practices that promote dignity and belonging. At one time, she made a living as a professional pastry chef. She does it all for her Scottish husband Dave and their 16-year-old daughter Ailish.

Corrine Livingston

(she/her/hers) is thrilled to join the leadership team at the Vineyard Theatre as the Director of Production. With over 20 years of professional theater experience, she brings with her a background as a technician, designer, mentor, educator, and manager. In her most recent role as the Audio Supervisor at The Public Theater, she transformed the audio department into a well-respected leader in the industry, known for their professionalism, teamwork, and education. Prior to her time at The Public, she spent 10 years at Long Wharf Theatre, where she was a trusted collaborator on production teams, participated in renovation projects, and was quickly promoted to the head of her department. Corrine is most proud of her work to recruit and promote women in audio and other production departments, and in the diversity and retention rate of her team and crews. She looks forward to working with the staff and artists at the Vineyard to bring many more new works to life. Corrine is a Baltimore native and a graduate of Syracuse University.

Shania Benjamin is the Miranda Family Fund Development Fellow at the Vineyard Theatre where she supports the theatre's fundraising, development and special events. She has a Bachelors' degree in Psychology and a minor in ASL from the University of Vermont. In college, she worked on the University's Program Board and managed special events for the university's student body. She was also the President of the Women of Color Coalition cultural club. In high school, Shania was a part of the 20,000 public school students who saw Hamilton on Broadway through a program sponsored by the Rockefeller Foundation, which ignited her love of theater. Now, in a full circle moment, she is now a Fellow for the Miranda Family Fund. She also is a researcher at the University of Vermont and is an organizer for the Children's Defense Fund. She was born and raised in Queens, New York.

The Vineyard recently extended the first show of their 40th season, Sandra by David Cale. Their next show, White Girl in Danger, a new musical by Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize recipient Michael R. Jackson and a co-production with 2nd Stage Theatre, is now on sale. Vineyard Theatre offers a generous loyalty program with early access and the best seats at the best prices to their full season through flexible Season Passes. More information at VineyardTheatre.org.

The Vineyard's 40th Anniversary Gala honoring Emmy and Tony Award winning actor Billy Crudup with celebratory toasts to Ken Greiner, Chair, Vineyard Board of Directors and Marcia Pendelton, President and Founder of Walk Tall Girl Productions, will take place on February 13, 2023 beginning at 6:00pm at Edison Ballroom (240 West 47th Street). The gala will include cocktails, dinner, an auction and live performance. The event will support Vineyard's 40th Season, and in particular its Good Neighbor ticket accessibility program, which provides free and low-cost tickets to thousands of New Yorkers each season, and its Fair Pay Initiative, a commitment to ensure that all Vineyard arts workers are paid a living wage. Gala performers will be announced at a later date.

About The Miranda Family Fellowship

The Miranda Family Fellowship program has supported over 100 social justice-oriented, emerging artists and arts administrators from underrepresented communities in various media including, but not limited to, theater, dance, tv/film, visual arts, and music. Over the course of two years, the Fellowship provides 1-to-1 support and networking opportunities for our Fellows before they become a part of the alumni community.

About Vineyard Theatre

Under the artistic leadership of Douglas Aibel and Sarah Stern, Vineyard Theatre develops and produces new plays and musicals that push the boundaries of what theatre can be and do. For nearly 40 years, The Vineyard has nurtured a community of fearless theatre makers whose work has expanded the form, the field, and the larger culture. Vineyard Theatre has transferred eleven shows to Broadway, seven directly after their acclaimed Vineyard premieres: Lucas Hnath's Dana H. and Tina Satter's Is This A Room (both New York Times Best Theatre of 2021); Paula Vogel's Indecent; Nicky Silver's The Lyons; Kander, Ebb and Thompson's The Scottsboro Boys; Bell and Bowen's [title of show]; and Avenue Q by Marx, Lopez and Whitty (Tony Award, Best Musical). In recent years, four additional shows launched at The Vineyard have been revived in their first Broadway productions: Paula Vogel's Pulitzer Prize-winning How I Learned to Drive; Lanie Robertson's Lady Day At Emerson's Bar And Grill; Becky Mode's Fully Committed; and Edward Albee's Pulitzer Prize-winning Three Tall Women.

From our home in NYC's Union Square, The Vineyard develops and premieres new plays and musicals which go on to be seen around the country and the world. Recently, Jeremy O. Harris' play "Daddy" (2019) received its London premiere at the Almeida; Ngozi Anyanwu's Good Grief (2018) and David Cale's Harry Clarke (2017) were recorded by Audible; Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' Gloria (2014), a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, transferred to Chicago's Goodman Theatre; Paula Vogel's Tony Award-winning Indecent (2016) aired on PBS's "Great Performances" and was one of the most-produced plays nationwide in 2019; and Colman Domingo's Dot (2016) is being adapted into an AMC series. The Vineyard's first major digital work, Lessons in Survival, was named one of the top theatrical experiences of 2020 by the New York Times and has been viewed by audiences in more than 40 countries.

The Vineyard's Paula Vogel Playwriting Award, Susan Stroman Directing Award, and Colman Domingo Award provide residencies to early-career artists and our education programs serve over 700 New York City public high school students annually, culminating in Developing Artists' REBEL VERSES Youth Arts Festival. The Roth-Vogel New Play Commission is awarded annually to a mid- to late-career playwright to create and develop a new play with The Vineyard. Our work and artists have been honored with numerous awards including Pulitzer Prizes and Tony Awards, and the company is proud to be the recipient of special Drama Desk, Obie, and Lucille Lortel Awards for artistic excellence and support of artists.

Vineyard Theatre's leadership includes Artistic Directors Douglas Aibel and Sarah Stern and Managing Director Suzanne Appel.

For more information visit: www.vineyardtheatre.org

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