Type Off-Off-Broadway Opened 1986 | Capacity 130 | |
Address 161A Chrystie StreetNew York CityUnited States | ||
Dixon Place is a theater organization located in New York City dedicated to the development of works-in-progess from a broad range of performers and artists. It exists to serve the creative needs of artists—emerging, mid-career and established—who are creating new work in theater, dance, music, literature, puppetry, performance, variety and visual arts.
Contents
Many well-known artists, including Ivy Baldwin, Blue Man Group, Laura Peterson, Monica Bill Barnes, John Leguizamo, Lisa Kron, David Cale, Jane Comfort, Risa Jaroslow, Penny Arcade, Katy Pyle, Peggy Shaw, Douglas Dunn, Deb Margolin and Reno, began their careers at Dixon Place.
Dixon Place offers 14 shows a week, 7–8 commissions a year, and more than 20 different programs across artistic disciplines, featuring work by more than 1,500 emerging and established artists each year. All artists presenting work in Dixon Place’s main-stage programs receive compensation, from work-in-progress showings to artists-in-residence and commissioned artists.
History
Dixon Place was founded in 1985 by Artistic Director Ellie Covan. After starting Dixon Place as a salon in her Paris apartment in the summer of 1985, Covan re-launched the endeavor in her East Village living room the following year. Her apartment was half of a storefront; she set up folding chairs for audiences and sold drinks and snacks to defray her expenses. After 5 years at the East Village location, Dixon Place needed to expand. In order to accommodate a growing audience, Dixon Place moved to a larger space on the Bowery in 1991. The loft also served as living space for Covan. Expanded programming, along with an increased staff and audience, prompted another move in 1999, when Dixon Place became the resident company at the Vineyard Theater’s 26th Street space. Success in this professional environment led to the decision to secure a permanent home. In 2002, in partnership with a dedicated Board and a forward-thinking developer, Dixon Place purchased an industrial space on Chrystie Street in Lower Manhattan. After a 6-year capital project, Dixon Place's state-of-the-art laboratory theater and lounge, featuring expanded amenities for artists and audiences and new earned income for Dixon Place, had its Grand Opening in December 2009.
Facility
In addition to a professional laboratory theater, the new space, designed by Meyer + Gifford Architects, includes numerous artist amenities The main-stage theater has column-free width for performance, as well as a sprung masonite floor, high ceilings, rigging points for aerial work, and state-of-the-art technical equipment. There is a separate rehearsal studio with a sprung marmoleum floor, and the spacious dressing room includes a private artist’s restroom and shower.
Dixon Place also includes a welcoming lounge. Set up as a for-profit subsidiary with a full liquor license, it is a new business model that subsidizes the theater's artistic programs. The lounge includes a gallery and a smaller stage that provides additional artistic outlets and day-time community space for educational programs and a meeting place for other organizations.
Programming
All of Dixon Place's programs have been developed out of a specific need that was not being met elsewhere.
Commissions
In 1994, Dixon Place began the Mondo Cane! Commissioning Program that supports 8 theater, dance and music creators annually by providing them with 1–3 months of workshop time, followed by 1–4 weeks of world premiere full-scale production performances. Mondo Cane! has offered commissions to such artists as The Civilians, The Debate Society and Sibyl Kempson. In 2015, Dixon Place will present world premiere commissions by James Godwin, Mark Dendy, Marga Gomez, Raja Feather Kelly, Victor Morales, ANIMALS, and Jessica Almasy.
Curated Series
Dixon Place offers over 20 year-round, curated programs:
Community Outreach (CECO)
Begun in 2000, the Cultural Education & Community Outreach Program (CECO) provides rare artistic opportunities for culturally under-served senior citizens and youth living in Lower Manhattan, at no cost to the participants. CECO has brought theater, writing, dance and film/video workshops to local youth in collaboration with such partners as Urban Arts Partnership, New Design High School, University Settlement, Tompkins Square Middle School and The School for Global Leaders; and to senior citizens, collaborating with Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE), Sirovich Senior Center and Bowery Residents Committee (BRC) Senior Center-Chinatown. With this program, Dixon Place has reached beyond the artist community to include the voices of low-to-moderate income young and elderly neighbors. The free workshops focus on performing, writing, movement, and music, culminating in public performances. This program enables the participants to experience artistic expression, discover their creative voices, develop their own theatrical works and perform in front of supportive audiences.
Awards
In 1990, The Village Voice awarded Dixon Place a special OBIE Award.