Arena Stage

This article is about the theatre in Washington, D.C.. For the stage type, see Theatre in the round.
Arena Stage
Map
Address1101 Sixth Street
Southwest, Washington, D.C.
United States
Coordinates38°52′38″N 77°01′13″W / 38.8772°N 77.0203°W / 38.8772; -77.0203
Public transitWaterfront station (Washington Metro) Metrobus (Washington, D.C.)
OperatorMolly Smith, Edgar Dobie
Genre(s)American Plays & Playwrights
Capacity1,392
Construction
Opened1950
Renovated2008–2010
Years active1950–present
Website
arenastage.org

Arena Stage is a not-for-profit regional theater based in Southwest, Washington, D.C.[1] Established in 1950, it was the first racially integrated theater in Washington, D.C.,[1][2][3][4] and its founders helped start the U.S. regional theater movement.[5][6] Its theater complex was completed for the company in 2010; it is called The Mead Center for American Theater.

Since 1998 the theater's Artistic Director had been Molly Smith, who retired in July 2023.[7] The current Artistic Director is Hana S. Sharif.[1] The Executive Producer is Edgar Dobie.[8] It is the largest company in the country dedicated to American plays and playwrights.[9] Arena Stage commissions and develops new plays through its Power Plays initiative.[10] The company serves an annual audience of more than 300,000.[7][11] Its productions have received numerous local and national awards, including the Tony Award for best regional theater[12] and over 600 Helen Hayes Awards.[13][11][14]

  1. ^ a b Editors, American Theatre (2022-06-11). "Molly Smith to Retire from Arena Stage". AMERICAN THEATRE. Retrieved 2022-07-08. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  2. ^ Levey, Bob (July 29, 2016). "Zelda Fichandler, Arena Stage co-founder and matriarch of regional-theater movement, dies at 91". The Washington Post.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference :10 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ lainw. "Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater". Dumbarton Oaks. Retrieved 2022-07-15.
  6. ^ History, The Oscar G. Brockett Center for Theatre; Criticism (2020-08-04). "This Month in Theatre History". AMERICAN THEATRE. Retrieved 2022-09-12.
  7. ^ a b News Desk (2022-06-11). "Molly Smith to retire from Arena Stage in 2023". DC Theater Arts. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  8. ^ Wild, Stephi. "Recipients Announced For The Inaugural Victor Shargai Leadership Award". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2022-08-23.
  9. ^ Goodman, Mike (31 July 2019). "Fiercely Imaginative: Arena Stage at Seventy". Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  10. ^ Jones, Kenneth (December 28, 2011). "Part of American Voices New Play Institute Will Exit DC's Arena and Enter Boston's Emerson College". Playbill.
  11. ^ a b Fierberg, Ruthie (August 22, 2019). "What Makes Washington, D.C.'s Arena Stage One of the Most Impressive Historic Theatres in the Country". Playbill.
  12. ^ "Regional Theatre Tony". American Theatre Critics Association. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  13. ^ Editors, American Theatre (2019-05-15). "Arena Stage Tops the Helen Hayes Awards". AMERICAN THEATRE. Retrieved 2022-07-14. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  14. ^ "Arena Stage Receives 9 Helen Hayes Awards". The New York Times. 1991-05-08. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-18.