Dixon Place

'What began in 1985 as a literary reading space, a throwback to Paris salons, is now one of the city's most important and fiercely experimental artists' nests.' - The Village Voice

Dixon Place is a non-profit organisation founded in 1986 to provide a space for literary and performing artists to create and develop new works in front of a live audience. While other venues of its kind have since died off, or now only present established artists, Dixon Place remains at the heart of the New York experimental performance scene. Taking risks is crucial to the life of Dixon Place, its artists and audiences.

Dixon Place's primary commitments are to bring artists and audiences together through live performance to expand the understanding of the creative process and its final product, and to provide a supportive environment for emerging artists to present new work. Over the years, Dixon Place has successfully maintained its intimate atmosphere and unique environment while increasing its programming to fulfil the need for performance opportunities for the New York community of performing and literary artists. For these artists, the only way to experiment and test ideas is to perform them before an audience: to feel the reaction of a live group of people, without the pressures of production costs and premature press exposure.

In 1989, Ellie Covan, founding director, was a recipient of a Bessie, a New York Dance and Performance Award, for her service to the community; and Dixon Place received a Village Voice Obie Grant Award in 1990 and 1999. Additionally, in 1999, Dixon Place was awarded an Edwin Booth Award for Excellence in Theater. Open Channels NY, Inc. was founded in New York in 1982 by playwright Michael Slattery, director/composer Jim Fritzler, and performer/ director Ellie Covan, as an organisation dedicated to fostering the development of visual, literary, and performing artists. From 1982 to 1985 Open Channels developed and produced a number of experimental theatre projects. Through its sponsorship of Dixon Place, Open Channels provides a supportive venue for emerging and established artists to develop new work and seeks to build new audiences.

THE STAFF

Ellie Covan, Founder & Executive Director

Benjamin Soencksen, Business & Finance Director

Catherine Porter, Development Director

Tim Ranney, Marketing Director

Rob Lariviere, Technical Director

Katy Einerson, Artistic Associate

Wendy Berot, Marketing Project Associate

Kate Conroy, Data Management

Barry Rowell, Graphic & Web Design

Megan Cash, Logo Design

Dixon Place