Indie Theater Week, Uplifting NYC's Independent Theater Community, to Take Place This Summer

IndieSpace, the League of Independent Theater, and the 14Y Theater will present Indie Theater Week, a week dedicated to supporting and uplifting the independent theater community in New York City. Events will include the New York Independent Theater Honorary Awards Ceremony, an Indie Theater Convocation and Open House at the 14Y Theater, IndieSpace’s One Year Anniversary Celebration, and an Indie Theater Community Pool Party. 

In 2005 and 2008, Martin Denton of the NY Theatre Experience hosted two widely attended convocations, bringing together the NYC Off-Off Broadway Theater community – Events that along with other community organizers and organizations, such as the New York Innovative Theater Awards (created by Shay Gines, Jason Bowcutt and Nick Micozzi), helped redefine and brand the indie theater movement in New York City in the early to mid 2000s. Out of these convocations and organizations, the League of Independent Theater was born, along with the seeds of what turned into Indie Theater Week and a ground swell for a more unified “downtown” theater community. For more information on all of the events in #IndieTheaterWeek please visit www.14StreetY.org/IndieTheaterWeek.  

“This moment has a heavy and urgent energy to it,” said Randi Berry, Executive Director of IndieSpace. “The city is emerging from a very difficult three years and it's felt like for every step forward there have been three steps back. The indie theater community needs to be together. Celebrate the beautiful things that are happening and brainstorm together on what the next version of us looks like. IndieSpace is thrilled to partner with LIT and the 14Y Theater to enjoy and to commune, envisioning a brighter and bolder and more fortified future for indie theater makers in NYC.”

New York Independent Theater Awards Honorary Awards Ceremony  

Presented by the League of Independent Theater

Monday, June 26 | 7:00 – 10:00 PM 

Location: Brooklyn Art Haus 24 Marcy Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11211 

Tickets (FREE/$25 suggested donation): www.eventbrite.com/e/new-york-independent-theater-honorary-awards-party-presented-by-lit-tickets-627465124077 

On June 26, gather to applaud the tremendous resilience, boundless creativity, and enduring passion of Independent Theater Artists. During the party, Honorary Awards will be presented to outstanding contributors to our field, all nominated by their peers. They will toast the honorees and then dance the night away! Featuring performances by the incomparable Comedian and Actress Shalewa Sharpe; Physical Comedian, Clown, Dancer and Actor Mariko Iwasa; the multi-talented Michael Michelle Lynch; and an original song by actor/singer/songwriter Joanna Parson. This year's honorees include Chisa Hutchinson, Heather Olmstead, Kelley Nicole Girod, Brownstone Steps Entertainment, and Everett Quinton. 

Indie Theater Convocation & 14Y Theater Open House    

Hosted by the 14Y Theater with IndieSpace & League of Independent Theater  

Tuesday, June 27 | 7:00  – 9:00 PM  

Location: 14Y Theater 344 E 14th St, New York, NY 10003

RSVP at: www.14streety.org/TheaterOpenHouse  

A Townhall Conversation to connect indie theater makers, venues, support organizations and community members for a discussion on the current state of Independent Theater-making in New York City, post-pandemic. They invite all NYC based indie theater makers, venues, institutions and concerned community members to join in for an evening of solution minded and unifying conversation.  They hope that this will be the first of an ongoing series of dialogue and listening sessions as a community to help roadmap the models in which we need and want to work from moving forward. Light refreshments are to be served, along with a moderated short panel and then open floor dialogue.   

IndieSpace Anniversary Celebration 

Wednesday, June 28 | 6:30 – 9:30 PM 

Location: Culture Lab LIC 5-25 46th Ave, Queens NY, 11101 

Tickets ($15): http://bit.ly/indiespace-1-anniversary  

IndieSpace invites you to celebrate their first year as a combined organization with the Indie Theater Fund! They are hosting a super fun and casual Anniversary Shindig featuring music from the Brass Queens, artists from The Muse, a flash tattoo artist, a crowd-sourced music playlist, artist Scooter LaForge creating a live community collage commemorating IndieSpace’s ‘Paper’ Anniversary, and print-making, party games, and lovely people celebrating indie theater! Admission includes pizza, sides, dessert, and one drink ticket. There will be a cash bar available to purchase additional beer, wine, or soft drinks. 

Indie Theater Week Pool Party

Hosted by 14Y Theater

Saturday, July 1 |  5:00 – 8:00 PM 

Location: 14Y Pool, located in the 14th Street Y, 344 E 14th St, New York, NY 10003

Tickets (FREE; $10 suggested donation): www.14streety.org/TheaterPoolParty 

Kick off the July 4th weekend and close out Indie Theater Week by splashing into a retro-style pool party at the 14Y! Join them for music, floats, pool games and fun in their heated indoor pool.

All guests are required to register in advance for this exciting event. Please note that swim caps and proper swim attire are required for pool entry. Guests will have access to the 14Y locker rooms. Please bring your own towels and locks. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. 

IndieSpace was established in 2016 to disrupt the ongoing displacement of small theaters and to address systemic inequities in NYC real estate. In 2022, it merged with Indie Theater Fund, an organization focused on a new model for equitable funding for the indie theater community. By contributing a nickel per ticket from their shows to a pot of money for funding, the indie theater community could create a method of self-sustainability and could rethink philanthropy and the process of grant making. Through radically transparent and equitable grants, community resources and advocacy, the Fund supported hundreds of indie theater companies and thousands of individual artists.   

Since its founding, IndieSpace has: consulted with 70+ venues making real estate decisions, including The Tank, FRIGID New York, The Chain, The Wild Project, Wooster Group, and Classical Theater of Harlem; helped 18 organizations sign new leases; saved seven theaters from being closed or repurposed; created four real estate operation partnerships; walked one venue through the purchase of their new home. During Covid, IndieSpace supported over 50 venues navigating their leases by helping them stay open, and also provided over $1.5M in relief grants to the indie theater community. In 2023 IndieSpace opened the West Village Rehearsal Co-Op with HERE Arts Center, New Ohio and Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. This 99-year lease for $1 per year will serve over 1,500 artists per year. For service to the community, IndieSpace received the Ellen Stewart Award and a citation from the City Council of New York www.indiespace.org 

The League of Independent Theater advances public policy for the common good of indie theater artists to create a sustainable, equitable arts landscape that uplifts all New Yorkers. www.litny.org 

The 14Y Theater honors the edgy, diverse and rich history of innovative culture making in the East Village. Each year, we curate a provocative season of theater, dance, music and film from independent New York artists in dialogue with their residency program, LABA: A Laboratory for New Jewish Culture. The 14Y Theater supports the creation of new art and culture by supporting artists in their community, specifically by providing the space, time and resources needed to create new work. The 14th Street Y endeavors to be true incubators of artists and hopefully reduce the financial strain NYC independent artists feel in producing their work.

www.14streety.org/artsandculture

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