Mosaic Theater Company of D.C. Announces Expansion of Staff and Unveils Special Event Series

Mosaic Theater Company of DC, the 2017 Helen Hayes Award-winning theatre for Outstanding Emerging Company, proudly announces an expansion of its senior artistic leadership team with the addition of Victoria Murray Baatin as Associate Artistic Director. The Mosaic Board has also recently elected Bill Tompkins as its Chair. Outgoing Board Chair Deborah Carliner, who has served Mosaic since its Inaugural Season, will continue to serve on the Board of Directors.
"I am thrilled that Victoria has decided to make Mosaic her artistic home," said Ari Roth, Founding Artistic Director of Mosaic. "Her multi-faceted experience within the field of arts, culture, and institutional building will undoubtedly prove to be a tremendous asset to Mosaic as we move into the next phase of our development as a company."

Baatin most recently served at the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the official arts agency for the District of Columbia. In this capacity she worked to develop and articulate the Commission's policy agenda and priorities and to formulate strategies that create opportunities for the Commission to advance these priorities. Prior to this, Victoria was with Americans for the Arts Action Fund where she spearheaded the national ArtsVote2012 campaign-a national initiative geared towards ensuring that the arts impact federal elections with a presence at both the Republican and Democratic National Conventions. Holding a Masters in Art and Public Policy from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and a BFA in Theatre Arts from Howard University, Victoria is an artist in her own right and has worked at many theatres including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Studio Theatre, Arena Stage, and LaMaMa in NYC. She is also an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

"I am very excited to join the team at Mosaic," said Baatin. "As both an artist and an administrator, I value theatre most when it is a catalyst for change and provides opportunities for communities to come together. These values are central to Mosaic's mission, and I look forward to reaching and engaging with new audiences."

One of Baatin's major responsibilities will be to oversee Mosaic's Workshop Series which will feature: Native Son, a stage adaptation of the Richard Wright novel directed by Psalmayene 24, a Helen Hayes-award winning director, on September 25; the DC debut of the Honest Accomplice Theater and their hilarious ensemble piece, The Birds and the Bees: Unabridged on November 27; Yoga Play, a satire of corporations and fitness trends written by Dipika Guha and directed by Mosaic Theater Associate Artist Jennifer L. Nelson on January 29; To Kill a King, a look at the 1968 sanitation workers strike written by Josh Ford, directed by KenYatta Rogers and staged at the Hill Center on March 12; and a special event trilogy called The Till Trilogy, written by Ifa Bayeza and occurring on June 12, 18, and 25, 2018.

"The workshop series is designed to be an incubator for new ideas and a forum to support bold voices," said Serge Seiden, managing director and producer at Mosaic. "Victoria and I worked intensively together at Studio Theatre, where she developed her own strong artistic vision and dedication to supporting the local arts. I am confident she will be an ideal leader for our Workshop Series, and a great mentor to young artists and staff."

Complementing the hire of Baatin is a new chair of the Mosaic board of directors. Bill Tompkins is president of William Tompkins Associates, a consulting firm specializing in providing advice on strategic planning and operations. Previously, he successfully led businesses in two Fortune 1000 companies at the C Suite level (The Washington Post and Eastman Kodak). He holds a MBA from Harvard Business School.

Mosaic has also added two illustrious directors to its season roster. Mark Brokaw, a Broadway veteran whose work has included the recent revival of Roger & Hammerstein's Cinderella and the lauded After Miss Julie, will direct the American premiere of Paper Dolls after directing several workshops of the play with music prior to its world premiere at the Tricycle Theatre in London three years ago. Paper Dolls will begin previews March 29, 2018, will open for the press Tuesday, April 3, is written by Philip Himberg, and is based on the internationally acclaimed documentary by Tomer Heymann, Mosaic Theater has received enhancement support for the project from film and music producer Stanley Buchthal. MarK Wing-Davey, who has directed at major theatres across the country (including Mad Forest at Manhattan Theatre Club) and is the chair of graduate acting at NYU, will direct The Vagrant Trilogy, opening on June 11. Wing-Davey has previously worked with Vagrant Trilogy playwright Mona Mansour on The Hour of Feeling (part one of the trilogy) at The Actors Theatre of Louisville. Run dates for the season finale have been pushed back one week with previews beginning June 6, 2018, a new opening night of June 11, and a new closing date of July 1, 2018.

Other new staff members at Mosaic include: Mirvlyne Bryce, Development and Strategic Partnerships Manager; Megan Behm, Director of Marketing and Public Relations; Donna Hobson, Director of Publications and Electronic Assets; Mar Cox, Patron Services and Data Manager; Christopher Banks, Production Manager; Lina Khawaldah, Company Manager; and Rebecca Cohen (Development Associate).

The full list of opening nights for Mosaic's third season is as follows:

Monday, August 28, 2017: The Devil's Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith

Monday, November 6, 2017: Vicuna

Monday, November 13, 2017: The Real Americans

Monday, December 4, 2017: Draw the Circle

Monday, January 8, 2018: Queens Girl in Africa

Tuesday, April 3, 2018: Paper Dolls

Monday, May 7, 2018: Hooded, Or Being Black for Dummies

Monday, June 11, 2018: The Vagrant Trilogy

About Mosaic Theatre Company of DC
Independent, intercultural, entertaining, and uncensored, Mosaic Theater Company of DC is committed to making transformational, socially-relevant art, producing plays by authors on the front lines of conflict zones, and building a fusion community to address some of the most pressing issues of our times. Dedicated to making our theater a model of diversity and inclusion at every strata, on stage and off, Mosaic invests in the new as we keep abreast of our changing and challenging times to ensure that our theater is a responsive gathering space, all the while nurturing and producing art of the highest order. Visit us at mosaictheater.org.

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