About

mission.

Notch Theatre Company creates community-responsive cultural work to drive change around the pressing issues of our time, offering communities nationwide a platform to tell their stories and be their own change makers.

Our work engages populations that brick and mortar theaters are not reaching, personalizes important social issues for people on all sides of a conversation, raises awareness in a compelling way, drives change on a national scale, and prompts meaningful, lasting engagement at a grassroots level.

"Long ago, long ago. The simple things come back to us. They rest for a minute by our ribcages then reach in and twist our hearts back a NOTCH in our chest.”

- Colum McCann, Let the Great World Spin

more info.

Notch is a 501(c)(3) organization founded in 2017 out of an Embark Fellowship Award for Social Innovation in Entrepreneurship from the Swearer Center for Public Service, in partnership with the Jonathan M. Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship at Brown University.

Notch's work has been featured on HowlRound twice, including once in their Theater in the Age of Climate Change series, on Playbill, Monument Lab, Medium, OnStage Blog, Broadway World for our Wild Home program and our Anna Karenina project, in N Magazine, and by the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture.

"Paired with Ashley Teague’s inventive direction, this declaration of Notch Theatre Company’s visceral, scintillating point of view is a force to be reckoned with
as even the best of current day Broadway’s appeal to address modern themes pales in comparison.” -Natalie Rine, New York Associate Critic

Notch's programs and partnerships have presented at the Children’s Defense Fund Advocacy Conference, the National Performance Network's Conference, the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture's Citizen Artist Salon on Creative Strategies for Commemorative Justice, the Ubumuntu Festival in Rwanda, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, the Lewis Prize for Music's Institute, Chautauqua Institute, White Heron Theatre Company, Trinity Repertory Theater in partnership with Spectrum Theater Ensemble (a neuro-diverse company), Brown University, Live@Jacks in Denver, La Mama Studios in NYC and as an Anchor Partner at the Flea Theatre in New York, among others. Most recently Notch has been awarded a prestigious Map Fund grant and an NEA ArtWorks grant.

Click here to read our Anti-Racism and Anti-Oppression Community Guidelines

Before this I wouldn’t have thought I had any part to play in what
the government was doing; but today made me realize I do have a
voice, I can be heard. being able to come here and do the play was just truly a blessing."

– Roman Allen, High School Student, Sacramento, CA

artist advisory committee.

Arielle Julia Brown is a creative producer, social practice artist and dramaturg. Emerging from her work and research around U.S. slavery, racial terror and justice, Arielle is committed to supporting and creating Black performance work that commands imaginative and material space for social transformation. She is the founder of The Love Balm Project (2010-2014), a workshop series and performance based on the testimonies of women of color who have lost children to systemic violence. The Love Balm Project was developed and produced at cultural institutions throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and Atlanta. More recently, Arielle developed The DoubleBack, a site specific performance about three enslaved Black women in Providence RI while in residence at the Center for Reconciliation. She is also the founder and creative producer of Black Spatial Relics, a new performance residency about slavery, justice and freedom. Arielle is a co-creative producer on Remember2019, a performance and residency project based in Phillips County, Arkansas. Arielle’s work and writing on Black political performance has been published in the anthology Revolutionary Mothering: Love on the Frontlines, ARTS.BLACK and Public Art Dialogue among others. Arielle was a 2017-2018 Diversity and Leadership Fellow with Alliance of Artists Communities. Arielle was a 2019 Monument Lab National Fellow and has recently joined the team as a Performance Curator. She has recently served as both the Public Programs Developer at the Penn Museum and as a cultural planning consultant for the Penn and Slavery Project at the University of Pennsylvania. Recent dramaturgical credits include Grounds That Shout! And Others Merely Shaking (Fist and Heel Performance Group, Partners for Sacred Places and Philadelphia Contemporary) 2019 and SaltPepperKetchup (InterACT Theatre) 2018. She received her B.A. from Pomona College and was the 2015-2017 graduate fellow with the Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice at Brown University where she received an M.A. in Public Humanities. To learn more about her work visit her website at ariellejuliabrown.com

Aaluk Edwardson is a multidisciplinary artist who was born and raised in Utqiaġvik, Alaska as an Iñupiaq/Norwegian daughter in George and Debby Edwardson's family. She writes, sings, directs, acts and produces culturally-rooted collaborative art with communities. Learn more about the work she does at www.brightshores.org and www.creativedecolonization.org.

Sam Khazai is a NYC-based artist who transitioned into theater following a career in counterterrorism and US foreign policy. He is interested in telling stories that allow people to show up as themselves. As founding member of Peydah Theatre Company in NYC, Sam is committed to challenging conventional narratives and empowering marginalized communities. He has appeared on Law & Order SVU (NBC) & Madam Secretary (CBS). Recent theatrical credits include Anna Karenina: a riff (Flea Theater), Tosca Tehran (Atlantic Theater), Echo & Narcissus (Flea Theater), & City of No Illusions (La Mama).

Ashley Walden Davis is the Founder and Executive Director of Unlock Creative LLC. Ashley is a proven leader, change agent, and visionary. Ashley has fifteen years of experience in nonprofit management and community-based arts business administration. She is driven by authenticity and a love of people. Ashley is based out of Georgia where she enjoys life with her husband and son. Unlock Creative is a social enterprise whose mission is to nurture, grow, and sustain Black creative leadership. We work strategically to hold human connection and design systems and structures where Black people and people of color thrive personally and professionally, both within organizations and independently. We center joy, love, racial, and cultural equity in all our programs and services. She holds an MFA in Producing from California Institute of the Arts and a BA in Theatre Studies from Old Dominion University. Some selected honors include the Association of Performing Arts Professional (APAP) Leadership Fellowship, Theater Communications Group (TCG) New Generations: Future Leaders Grant, and Cornerstone Theater Company Paula Altvater Fellowship. (unlockcreative.org)

Lisa Jai started acting in commercials at age three, which led to television, radio, animation, and film. Lisa is also an activist and has been awarded The Unsung Hero Award for her work on behalf of differently-abled actors. Some credits include Nora Ephron's debut film This is My Life, guest spots on TVs Twice in a Lifetime, T&T, Kung-Fu: The Legend Continues, My Secret Identity, and her beloved recurring Guest Spot on CBC's Mr. Dressup. Lisa began voicing animation as Isabelle in Babar at the age of five and can be heard as Wanda Li in the original series Magic School Bus. Also among her animation credits are, Childlike Empress in The Never Ending Story, Yoko in Timothy Goes to School, Becky in Lil' Rosie, and Ashley in Stickin Around, as well as Video game credits in Capcom's the original Resident Evil 2 as Sherry Birkin and Paula in Dinocrisis. However, the theater is where Lisa has really found her home since her first credit at Toronto's Young Peoples Theater in Jacob Two Two & The Hooded Fang (Ensemble/Prisoner). Lisa is an active union member of ACTRA Toronto and is also a published poet. She has performed in NYC, LA, Italy (Dario Fo's We won't Pay!), and Swaziland SA. A full scholar of The Stella Adler Academy in Los Angeles where she went on to act and produce for stage and film, garnishing a 2015 Ovation Award nomination for Best Acting Ensemble in The Vagrancy Theater's West Coast Premiere of Maria Irene Fornes What of The Night (Birdie). At this time, Lisa spends her days focused on theater and the arts, continues advocating for equal rights, and mentoring young artists- especially those of different abilities. Having lived with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis all her life, Lisa credits the arts and good people for her ability to live her best life, in peace.

Gabriela Saker is an actress, producer and writer, born in Cuba, and currently based in New York and Puerto Rico. She is the founder and artistic director of Teatro Público, a theater company seeking to contribute excellence, diversity and social transformation to the Puerto Rican theatrical landscape. She is a Creative Peacebuilder for the 2021 Cohort of The Peace Studio, and participated as actress and creator in the Ubumuntu Arts Festival 2019, in Kigali, Rwanda, in collaboration with Mashirika. She has also worked with Notch Theatre Company, The Acting Company, Repertorio Español and Tantai Teatro. She originated her role in José Luis Ramos Escobar’s Fear and Misery of the Third Millennium (2015), which she performed in Madrid, Barcelona and Santiago de Compostela. Her lead role in the short film Monserrate earned her the Best Actress Award at the Rincon International Film Festival 2018 and at the Lusca Film Festival 2020. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Literature from the University of Puerto Rico (UPR), and worked as a journalist for Puerto Rican top newspaper El Nuevo Día, covering politics, education and social justice. The Overseas Press Club awarded her an Honorary Mention for Best Human Interest Work in 2017, and her play The Eye of Powder won her First Prize in Playwriting in the UPR Literary Contest 2015. She is a current MFA Drama student at The Juilliard School in New York, where she also works as a Diversity Advocate and is founder and president of the Alliance for Latin American Students.

Karishma Swarup (she/her) is a creator and actor from Kolkata, India who runs an Instagram page @talkyounevergot to create content about sexuality education. She earned her undergraduate degree in geology-biology from Brown University in 2019, where she acted in many plays and short films. She has taught comprehensive sex ed to high-schoolers in the U.S. and in India, and spent last year teaching science to middle schoolers in New York. When she’s not acting or teaching, you’ll find her hiking, baking or writing poetry.

Anita Marie Mayo Harrison is a community organizer and cultural worker from Marvell, Arkansas. In her work with the Boys, Girls and Adults Community Development Center, Ms. Mayo has put on events and co-led oral history projects that highlight the power of Black communities in the Arkansas Delta. She is a contributing author and producing partner on Black Cypress: a Phillips County Survival Guide and she recently completed Remember2019’s callin’ down the road residency. Additionally, Ms. Mayo gathers community members to research the Black musical legacies of Phillips County. She sometimes describes her work as community service and feels it is important to help others who cannot help themselves. Ms. Mayo is strong willed and determined, a wife, mother, grandmother and friend who hopes to be remembered as an intelligent, kind and giving human being.

board of directors.

Alexis Green - Chair EDIA Committee. Alexis is a professional actor and director living in Chicago. Originally from Phoenix, Arizona, she earned a BA in Theatre Arts from Arizona State University with a minor in Communication and later an MFA in Acting from Brown University/Trinity Rep. Since graduating, Alexis has travelled around the country acting and directing for various theatres. Most recently, she was awarded the Chason Directing Fellowship at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Alexis is currently the Administrative Coordinator for Organizational Consulting for artEquity.

Shannon Morzov is a filmmaker based out of Los Angeles. With her company Morzov Productions, Inc. she is currently working on a series of artists documentaries for the SFMOMA as well as consulting with Netflix on their publicity campaigns for original titles. She previously served as the General Manager of Hurwitz Creative where she produced content for the publicity/marketing campaigns for scores of titles including “The Hunger Games 1-4,” “Life of Pi,” “Prometheus,” “Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland,” and “The Fault in Our Stars.” A graduate of UC Berkeley, Shannon continues to work on her own films focusing on social justice issues.

J. Richey Nash - Treasurer. Johh Richey Nash is an award-winning actor, writer, and filmmaker with over 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry. He co-founded the Tidemark Theatre Company in New York City, serving two years as its co-artistic director and managing producer, as well as performing on stage. In Los Angeles, Mr. Nash created Tall Tales Productions, a film venture whose work includes the feature Hitting the Cycle co-starring Academy Award nominee Bruce Dern. He now resides in NYC where he continues to work as a freelance actor, director, and educator. Mr. Nash is a graduate of Princeton University and a former professional baseball player.

Sharon Lee - Board Secretary. Sharon is a long-time patron of the arts, Sharon has always felt passionate about making connections and community-building, which has driven her to become an active member of her South Los Angeles neighborhood where she currently serves as the President of the MOMS Club of West Adams. Prior to becoming a busy mother of three, Sharon worked in the entertainment industry, in both Film/TV as well as co-founding a music library with Hurwitz Creative. You can now find Sharon volunteering at her children's schools, organizing community events, advocating for those in need, binge-watching Netflix or eating dumplings.

Moira Squier - Board Chair. Ms. Squier is a writer and creative consultant working in film, print, theatre, interactive entertainment, and themed entertainment. She previously served as Director of Creative Content and Communications for the “Harry Potter” brand at Warner Bros. Prior to that role, she served as a corporate attorney and an in-house general counsel for eight years.

Ashley Teague - President

Ashley Teague
Founding Artistic Director

Teague is recipient of the Embark Fellowship Award for Social Innovation in Entrepreneurship. While with Cornerstone Theater Company she developed and produced Talk It Out, which travels California creating community-engaged theater to change public policy around the school-to-prison pipeline crisis. As a creative content producer, Teague worked on such films as Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, Tyler Perry’s For Colored Girls, Paul Haggis’ The Next Three Days, Gus Van Sant's Promised Land, and Tina Chism’s Peeples. Most recent directing credits include Generation25 (Kigali, Rwanda), Anna Karenina: a riff (The Flea Theater, NYC; HB Studios, NYC; White Heron Theater, MA), Wild Home (Live@Jacks, Denver; Delicious Orchards, CO), Gruesome Playground Injuries (FSU/Asolo Rep, FL), The Language Archive (UNC/ Playmakers Rep), Capsized (Cherry Lane, NYC), Twelfth Night (Gallery Players, NY), FIT (La Mama Studios, NYC; Spectrum Theatre/ Trinity Rep, RI; White Heron Theater, MA), The Rehearsal (FSU/Asolo Rep, FL), CHQ Project (Chautauqua Theatre Co., NY), Scapegoat (Delta Cultural Center, AR), Invasion! (Brown University, RI), A Kind of Providence (AS220, RI), Willful (California State Capitol), Ajax (Theater of War Productions, CA). Teague has received numerous awards including Broadway World awards for Best Director/Choreographer and Best Musical. She has taught at RISD, UNC, FSU/Asolo Rep, Chautauqua Institute, Brown University and the University of Redlands. Her writing has been published in Bedlam Magazine and in HowlRound's Theater in the Age of Climate Change series. Current interviews with her can be found on Broadway World here and here as well as on Monument Lab. Portfolio images are on ashteague.com.

donors.

- Drew McCoy & Amy Aquino -
- Bill & Chloe Cornell -
- Jennifer & Matthew Rowland -
- Byron Gross & Ricky Tovim -
- Colin & Cathy Walker -
- Stuart & Susan Berton -
- Tali Pressman -
- Mauricio & Cindy Salgado-
- Bob & Toni Teague -
- Jody Wagner -
- Tracy Nayer -
- Sabrina Sikes Thornton -
- Kimberly & Clay Clement -
- The Common Sense Fund-
- Hurwitz Creative -
- Brown University/Trinity MFA Program -
- Look What She Did! -
- Enfamilia Inc. -
- JKW Foundation -
- SnackPass -

Fadwa Ahmed - Nephelie Andonyadis - Jonathan Atwood- Julia Atwood - Eric Baffour-Addo - Darin Anthony- Paula Bailey - Stuart Berton - Stephen Berenson & Brian McEleney - Andrew Borba - Marina Bousa - Janie Bullard - Alexis Chaney - Rachel Clausen- Curt Columbus in memory of Martha Lavey - David Copelin- Sarah Clare Corporandy - Kathryn Croyle - Michelle and Scott Danahy- Tyler Dobrowsky - Michele DeRosa - Warren Davis - Tommy Dickie - Rebecca Feldman - Chris Farah - Shelley Fidler - Randal Gillum - Joshua Gordon - Adeline Gorlin - Karron Graves- Alan Harlam - Richard Katzman - Nikki Hyde - Thomas Jones- Jessica Kahkoska- Jennifer Kennedy - Sandra Kimble - Larissa Kokernot - Alison Kracunas - Madeleine Lambert - Sharon and Harrison Lee - Michelle Lema - Jacqueline & Gene Lesser - Freesia Levine - Jake Loewenthal - Bill and Jan Mack - Taibi Magar - Henry Mailliard - Michael Mahoney - Sandy Mailliard to honor Gwen Kingston - Suzanne Maloney - Aleta Margolis - Christine McKay - Russell Meyer - Brian Mertes & Melissa Keivman - Jennifer Miller - John Miller - Susan Morrissey - Shannon Morzov - Patrick Mulryan - Matthew Nayer - Tracy Nayer - Caitlin O’Connell - Lee Osorio - Zeynep Ozakat - Charles Palen - Laura Payne - Katherine Pearl - Michael Perlman - Bruno-Pierre Houle - Av and Janet Posner - Alex Raby -Jim Recht - Dan Rogers - Mauricio & Cindy Salgado -Rayshaun Sandlin - Kelly Shea - Avital Shira - Stephen Siegel - Nicole Sills - Adam Smith - Moira Squier - Christopher Stahl - Daniel Stein - Karishma Swarup - Anne Taylor in recognition of Gwen Kingston - Patricia Terrell - Myron Tookes - Mark Valdez - Lucy Van Atta - Mary Vascellaro - Lara Vergnaud - Richard Waterhouse - Thomas Wahl - Bradley Wilson - RAISE NYC *

And our many generous donors who wish to remain anonymous.
* If you do not see your name listed above, it means we believe you've asked to remain anonymous. If this is not the case, please contact us so that we may honor your support.