Ivy Austin

Act I: Performing Artist
Act II: Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist at Artful Couples Therapy

Skill I honed in the theatre—active listening, trust-building, and authentic communication-are the basis of productive therapeutic relationships. At Artful Couples Therapy I focus on the specific needs of creative and performing artists. I offer clients my deep understanding of the stressors unique to artists. Whether pressures are related to auditions and self-esteem, gender constructs and body image, or the struggle to separate one’s personal identity from one’s work, I help artists gain clarity, manage reactivity, and communicate effectively. I view personal challenges through a systems lens, and provide a safe, non-judgmental space for individuals, couples, and families to explore issues and help implement solutions. Please scroll down for information about my therapy practice, followed by my experience in the theatre.

EDUCATION/TRAINING

MANHATTAN COLLEGE Master of Science in Marriage & Family Therapy COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY School of General Studies, courses in Post-baccalaureate Pre-med Program.
COLGATE UNIVERSITY Bachelor of Arts, Biology/Biological Sciences.
DIVORCE MEDIATION Center for Mediation & Training, New York
SUICIDE PREVENTION TRAINING The Samaritans of New York
EMOTIONALLY FOCUSED THERAPY K. de Bruin, Certified ICEEFT Supervisor and Trainer
KESTENBERG MOVEMENT PROFILE M. Johnson PhD, Certified KMP Analyst, Antioch University
TRAUMA SYSTEMS THERAPY Family Services of Westchester
GOTTMAN METHOD COUPLES THERAPY LEVEL 1 Manhattan College School of Health Professions

PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC EXPERIENCE

ARTFUL COUPLES THERAPY March 2024—Present
Owner and operator of online psychotherapy practice in New York State. LMFT treating individuals, couples, and families experiencing relationship distress. Specializing in couples therapy, and stressors impacting creative and performing artists. www.artfulcouplestherapy

MANHATTAN SCHOOL OF MUSIC February 2024—Present
Mental Health Counseling Staff. Psychotherapist providing treatment to conservatory-level undergraduate, masters, and doctoral students in classical, jazz, and musical theatre programs. I practice a systemic approach to mental health and wellness, both on-campus and remotely. Offer treatment to an international population of high functioning performing artists whose issues include, but are not limited to, stress, anxiety, depression, mood disorders, gender dysmorphia, cultural assimilation, eating disorders, short and long-term mental health issues, and medication management.

METROPOLITAN CENTER FOR MENTAL HEALTH January 2021–Present
Psychotherapist, and Supervisor. Provide services to individuals, couples, and families at non-profit outpatient mental health clinic licensed by New York State Office of Mental Health. OMH regulations and compliance upheld and maintained. Culturally competent diverse services to all ages and cultures. Risk assessment; crisis intervention; treatment planning and review; transfer and discharge planning. Experience with high-functioning patients, as well as those with psychotic disorders; mood disorders; geriatric stressors; food and financial insecurity; PTSD; and victims of domestic abuse. Supervisor of graduate-level interns earning clinical hours.

THE RELATIONSHIP SUITE New York, NY February 202–May 2020
Marriage and Family Therapist. Couples counseling and pre-marital counseling at private practice.

FAMILY SERVICES OF WESTCHESTER White Plains, NY August 2019—June 2020
Marriage and Family Therapy clinical intern. Treated individuals, couples, and families. NYS OMH regulations and compliance upheld and maintained. Active in all areas of therapeutic services including treatment of teenage residents in group home. Weekly training in Trauma Systems Therapy (TST).

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE RELATED TO PERFORMING ARTISTS

STRESS DISORDERS: Master’s thesis. Manhattan College Riverdale, NY. The Effect of Stress on Psychological Vulnerability in Women in the Performing Arts (2020). Study included 55 NYC adult female performing artists working in professions including, but not limited to, actor, singer, dancer, and musician. The relationship between level of stress and psychological vulnerability in the study was found to be significant, suggesting that stress has an impact on one’s susceptibility to emotional and/or physical disorders. Findings suggested that mental health clinicians continue their efforts to understand and be sensitive to the myriad stressors encountered by arts professionals and offer more accessible and affordable services to the performing arts community.
EATING DISORDERS: Manhattan College, Riverdale, NY. Anorexia in Ballet Dancers (2020). Social, psychological, biological, and genetic factors contribute to the etiology of anorexia nervosa in young dancers. But the most damaging factors of all are cultural and environmental. Western culture prizes thinness for young girls and women, where it is seen as a highly valued achievement. An exploration of how the ballet environment takes this to a crippling extreme.
EXPRESSIVE ARTS: Manhattan College, Riverdale, NY. Getting Personal with Vocal Psychotherapy (2020). Research on Vocal Psychotherapy, a relatively unknown subset of music therapy, developed and practiced by Dr. Diane Austin, DA, LCAT. Examination of “globus sensation,” the feeling of a lump in one’s throat, due to a cricopharyngeal muscle spasm, which experts believe may be caused by psychological stress. Discussion of the impact of stress on vocal performance.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE
YESHIVA UNIVERSITY, FERKAUF GRADUATE SCHOOL OF PSYCHOLOGY Bronx, NY August 2023—Present Adjunct Professor. Courses in Foundations of Marriage and Family Therapy Theory, and Assessment & Treatment Planning. Supervisor of graduate level interns earning clinical hours at Parnes Clinic.
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY (AAMFT) New York, NY 2022. Test preparation instructor for clinicians studying for the Association of Marriage and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards (AMFTRB) MFT National Examination.

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PROFESSIONAL PERFORMING ARTS EXPERIENCE

THEATRICAL PRODUCING
• Commercial Theatre Institute. Certificate in Theatrical Producing, Tom Viertel. New York, NY
• SunnySpot Productions/SunnySpot Celebrations New York, NY 2014-2020 Director of Broadway Events with Tony Award-winning production company: customized Broadway material for private events; solicited clients; secured venues; executed contracts; cast and rehearsed actors; delivered and oversaw performances. Associate Producer: Live concerts and entertainment for professional stage.
• Miss Valentine: Theatre for the Heart New York, NY and Aurora, NY 2014-2020 Produced biographical play about Esther Howland, “Mother of the American Valentine,” in association with Wells College. Production received four awards from the Theatre Association of New York State TANYS): Meritorious Achievement in Ensemble Acting, Excellence in Costume Design, Excellence in Sound and Lighting Design, and Meritorious Achievement in Direction.
• World Financial Center Arts & Events New York, NY 1995-2001 Producer, Researcher, Writer, Director, Host of eight seasons of musical events in the Winter Garden at The World Financial Center in Battery Park City.

RADIO and RECORDING

• Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion and American Radio Company. Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) and National Public Radio (NPR) Performer in four seasons of live-on-stage weekly broadcasts in US cities abroad, with a radio listening audience of three million people. Actor in comedy sketches with Keillor and company; featured vocalist with The Coffee Club Orchestra

• Sesame Street Singer with The Muppets, Sesame Workshop, New York, NY
Extensive repertoire of recordings over the course of four decades of Sesame Street. Principal characters: Cereal Girl, Mariah Cowey, Gloria Esteworm, Hammy Swinette, Oinker Sisters, and more. Discography available on request

• Christmas at Rainbow Corner, a one-hour radio special distributed by NPR. New York, NY Performer; producer; music coordinator

• Her Funny Valentine: A Tribute to Lyricist Lorenz Hart, a one-hour Valentine’s Day radio special distributed by NPR. Washington, DC
Performer; producer; music coordinator

BROADWAY AND NEW YORK CITY OPERA (NYCO)

• They’re Playing Our Song, Robert Klein and Lucie Arnaz, directed by Chet Walker, Music Box
• Raggedy Ann, title role, directed by Patricia Birch, Nederlander Theatre
• Candide, directed by Harold Prince, NYCO, Lincoln Center
• Sweeney Todd, directed by Arthur Masella, NYCO, Lincoln Center
• Naughty Marietta, directed by Theodore Pappas, NYCO, Lincoln Center
• The Music Man with Bob Gunton, directed by Arthur Masella, NYCO, Lincoln Center
• South Pacific, directed by Gerald Friedman, NYCO Lincoln Center
• The Desert Song, NYCO, Lincoln Center

OFF-BROADWAY and TOURS

• Isaiah Sheffer’s Thalia Follies, The Thalia Theatre.
Contributing writer and performer in nine seasons of political/social satire
• In Your Face, NY! St. Anne’s Warehouse; Symphony Space
Principal singer and voiceover actor. With Soledad O’Brien, Roz Chast, Lily Tomlin
• They’re Playing Our Song. One of “the Voices.” 1st National Company; directed by Robert Moore
• Blame it on the Movies. A five-person musical revue about “The Reel Music of Hollywood” by Billy Barnes, directed by David Galligan. Off-Broadway at Criterion Center
• Hair. Crissy. National Company
• Rag Dolly. Raggedy Ann. Directed by Patricia Birch. Pre-Broadway run at Kennedy Center. Performed in Moscow in cultural exchange program sponsored by US and USSR. Subject of documentary film, Rag Dolly in the USSR

FILM and TELEVISION

• Grease 2. Feature film, directed by Patricia Birch
• High Strung. Feature film
• Aaron’s Magic Village. Animated feature film
• Animaniacs. Animated series. Stephen Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment
• The Tale of Peter Rabbit. HBO
• Doug. Animated series. Nickelodeon

CONCERTS and SPECIAL EVENTS

• Ira Gershwin: The Art of the Lyricist. Conducted by Rob Fisher. Carnegie Hall
• Radio Rhapsody. Conducted by Marin Alsop. Alice Tully Hall
• The Gershwin Symposium. Library of Congress
• Guest Artist Appearances: Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra; Austin Symphony Orchestra; Queens Symphony Orchestra; James Dapogny’s Chicago Jazz Band
• New York Historical Society: Hammerstein & Hart; DeSylva Brown & Henderson; Dietz & Schwartz; Irving Berlin
• Lyrics & Lyricists 92nd St. Y: Jerome Kern & Dorothy Fields; Irving Berlin; Broadway to Hollywood
• Wall-to-Wall Concerts at Symphony Space, broadcast live on WNYC: Stephen Sondheim; Leonard Bernstein; Richard Rodgers; Frank Loesser; Joni Mitchell; Irving Berlin

TEACHING EXPERIENCE IN THEATRE and VOICE

TEACHING ARTIST, SYMPHONY SPACE: Global Arts Program; Playwriting and American History; Theatre and Storytelling. 2012-Present.

NEW YORK SUMMER MUSIC FESTIVAL: Head of Vocal Faculty at conservatory-level music program for students ages 13-21. Courses taught in Vocal Technique; Musical Theatre Solo Performance; Song Styling; Commercial Voiceover. 2012-2015.

ADELPHI UNIVERSITY: Guest lecturer in Musical Theatre to BFA Candidates. 2012-2019.

LAGUARDIA HIGH SCHOOL OF MUSIC & ART AND PERFORMING ARTS: Master Class in Microphone and Recording Technique for Singers. 2014.