Dawn M. Simmons named new artistic director at SpeakEasy Stage Company
The nonprofit theater company, which begins its 35th season this summer, said Simmons was chosen after a national search, aided by the
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'Dawn understands SpeakEasy. She embodies our mission, she's familiar with our audiences, and she has an exciting vision for how to move the company forward at an undeniably challenging time for the theatre sector,' said SpeakEasy executive director David Beardsley. 'Dawn is the ideal person to take up our artistic reins.'
Simmons is just the second artistic director at SpeakEasy, whose shows are staged at the Stanford Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts. In 2016, she cofounded the Front Porch Arts Collective, with Maurice Emmanuel Parent, as a way to advance racial equity in Boston through theater. (In addition to 'Ain't No Mo'', the Porch, as it's known, co-produced the SpeakEasy shows '
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Daigneault announced his intention to step down last summer. He praised the board's selection of a successor, saying, 'I am confident Dawn's exceptional talents will propel the company to even greater heights.'
For her part, Simmons said in an interview she has long admired SpeakEasy's determination to put on smart, provocative shows that challenge audiences, and she pledged to continue that tradition going forward.
'Paul built this. He wanted to put certain work into the world, to give opportunities to artists he loved who weren't getting those opportunities, and there's a kinship there with what the Porch has been doing,' Simmons said. 'This feels like a really lovely and logical next step. Being able to provide those opportunities with another organization is really exciting.'
Mark Shanahan can be reached at
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