TDF's WENDY WASSERSTEIN PROJECT 2025 Celebration to Take Place in June

On Monday, June 2 at 5 p.m., TDF will host its annual Wendy Wasserstein Project ceremony at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College. Founded as Open Doors in 1998 by TDF and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Wendy Wasserstein, this unique arts mentorship program pairs top theatre professionals with NYC public high school students for a season of shows and conversation. This special celebration will open with a performance by Broadway star Kimberly Marable (Chicago, Hadestown, The Lion King).
 
“In our 27th year of the Wendy Project, we have expanded to 27 schools, and by 2026 we will be in 30 NYC public schools throughout the city,” said Ginger Bartkoski Meagher, VP of TDF Programs. “Our mentors and teachers continue to bring students to shows and explore the joy, empathy, humanity, and community that live theatregoing fosters. We’ve learned that the act of repeated theatregoing strengthens our bonds as a community, lowers depression, and improves physical and mental health. We’re thrilled that these young theatregoers experience those benefits and can continue their healthy habit of seeing live performances by using their free TDF Memberships. This group also gains exclusive access to deep discounts JUST FOR THEM! We welcome them with open arms to the theatregoing community.”
 
Wendy Wasserstein always said that theatregoing “is the birthright of every New Yorker,” and TDF’s Wendy Wasserstein Project operates on that belief. Every season, dedicated theatre and dance professionals mentor groups of eight underserved New York City public high school students, bringing each cohort to six performances on Broadway and beyond throughout the school year. Every outing is followed by a lively post-show discussion, and the students keep journals of their theatre experiences, which are reviewed by and discussed with their mentors. Through this personal and dynamic interaction, TDF's Wendy Wasserstein Project fosters a deep appreciation of theatre and an understanding of its relevance in the students’ lives.
 
In 2012, TDF's Wendy Wasserstein Project became the first arts education program to receive a special Tony Honor for Excellence in the Theatre. During the 2024-25 season, 34 mentors worked with 27 groups of students from NYC-area public high schools. To help continue their theatergoing journey, all participants received free TDF Memberships and access to a carefully curated and deeply discounted selection of shows.

The mentors for 2024-25 are:
Jane Abramson, creative development; Marc Acito, writer/director; Dede Ayite, Costume Designer; Victoria Bailey, former TDF Executive Director; Mark Brokaw, director; Stephen Cabral, Director of the TDF Costume Collection; Rachel Chanoff, producer/performing arts programmer; Dawn Chiang, lighting designer;  Dominic Colón, actor; Jill Cordle, stage manager; Derek DelGaudio, writer, interdisciplinary artist; Mindi Dickstein,  lyricist, librettist, and playwright; Joe DiPietro, playwright/book writer/lyricist; Scott Ellis, director; Peter Friedman, actor; Anne Hamburger, producer; Stephen Karam, playwright; Natasha Katz, lighting designer; James Lapine, writer/director; Robert Longbottom, director/choreographer; Aubrey Lynch II, dancer/choreographer; Kathleen Marshall, director/choreographer; Derek McLane, set designer; Ira Mont, stage manager, Caitlin O’Connell, actress; Mary B. Robinson, director; Luis Salgado, choreographer and producer; Leonardo Sandoval, dancer and choreographer, Dick Scanlan, writer, director, actor; Keith Randolph Smith, actor; Eric Ulloa, actor/playwright; Lillias White, actress and singer; Serena Wong, lighting designer; David Zippel,  lyricist/composer.
 
Participating schools for 2024-25 are: 
All Hallows High School, Bronx; Baccalaureate School for Global Education, Queens; Bronx Health Sciences High School, Bronx;  Brooklyn High School of the Arts, Brooklyn;  Cicely L. Tyson Community School of Performing and Fine Arts, East Orange, NJ; Community School for Social Justice, Bronx; Denzel Washington School of the Arts, Mount Vernon, NY; East Side Community School, Manhattan; Edward R. Murrow High School, Brooklyn; Fannie Lou Hamer Freedom High School, Bronx; Family Life Academy Charter Schools HS, Bronx; Flushing International High School, Queens;  Frank Sinatra School of the Arts High School, Queens; Gaynor McCown Expeditionary Learning School, Staten Island; High School of Economics & Finance, Manhattan; High School for Law, Advocacy and Community Justice, Manhattan; High School of Telecommunication Arts and Technology, Brooklyn; Knowledge and Power Preparatory Academy International High School, Bronx; Millennium High School, Manhattan; Pan American International High School, Queens; Renaissance High School for Musical Theater and the Arts, Bronx; Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts, Manhattan; Robert F. Kennedy Community High School, Queens; Science Skills Center High School, Brooklyn; Dr. Susan S. McKinney Secondary School of the Arts, Brooklyn; Talent Unlimited High School, Manhattan; Young Women’s Leadership School of Manhattan, Manhattan.
 

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