American Artistic Innovation Fund

MISSION

To protect the future of American artistic innovation by subsidizing access to the most affordable model for technical rehearsals.

The Fund is designed to achieve a significant economy of scale to lessen the immense costs of technical rehearsals, ultimately ensuring that making new work can cost less in an already stressed funding environment. Subsidizing a low-cost, high-impact solution will greatly relieve the financial burden of innovation on American artists creating work. Furthermore, the Fund will positively impact the budgets and strengthen the quality of work for American presenting institutions, large and small.

AMERICAN ARTISTIC INNOVATION IN CRISIS

Moving work from studio to stage has become an insurmountable obstacle for US-based artists, and piecemeal solutions have become exorbitantly expensive and unpredictable.

There is no shortage of American artistic ingenuity, but contemporary performing artists universally and urgently need time to experiment with design and technology.

Technical rehearsals are the most expensive period of the creation process, carrying costs comparable to those of presenters, but without levels of public engagement to attract similar revenue stream. This problem threatens to undermine the creative potential of the entire performing arts ecosystem: artists, presenters, and audiences.

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LUMBERYARD Technical Rehearsals

FROM STOPGAP TO SOLUTION

The American Artistic Innovation Fund has a goal of raising $2.5M annually. At scale, this will subsidize 30 technical rehearsals each year, making it a true high-impact, low-cost solution that our field desperately needs.

After supporting the design and technical components for 60+ NYC premieres and investing $10M in the construction of a flexible, purpose-built, state-of-the-art facility 101 miles from NYC, LUMBERYARD is now seeking new partners beyond our own annual investment to provide a long-term solution upon which artists and presenters may rely.

LUMBERYARD is the only place in the country specifically designed for technical rehearsals for American performing artists. The Fund represents the best chance to comprehensively solve this problem and financially benefit the entire field.

Support the Fund here.

For more information, please contact Adrienne Willis at willis@lumberyard.org or 212.587.3003.

Technical Rehearsals @ LUMBERYARD include:

24 hour access to the performance space with schedule determined by visiting company
$10K development fee
$10K equipment rentals (over and above LY inventory)
All overhire technical crew and LUMBERYARD production staff
On-site housing for up to 23 (laundry and housekeeping)
Company Management
One hot meal a day (lunch or dinner at the discretion of company), grab n’ go breakfast
Video and Photo Documentation
Public presentation/workshop (unreviewed)
Local transportation
Available dramaturgy
Available production and design consultation a year prior to engagement

“The American system of condensing tech periods forces designers and production personnel to preemptively over design to try and avoid any surprises during the load in and (usually very brief) tech periods of new productions. Yes, proper technical rehearsals off site, in an adequate space, with staff and equipment, costs money. And yes, there is not a tradition here of significant government support as there is in many other countries. But the benefit of this process results in considerable savings to presenters with less waste when productions arrive.”
-Chris Buckley, Production and Performance Facility Consultant

“Being here at LUMBERYARD was really instrumental for us. We came here, and we didn’t have a piece. We had the music, and we had Lucinda’s choreography, but that was it. We really built the piece here.”
-Maya Beiser, Cellist

“It astounds me that we could ever have thought that we could do a piece of such ambition – with all of the technical needs – that we could do it without such a residency – that would have been naïve on our part. LUMBERYARD made this piece possible.”
-Bill T. Jones

“LUMBERYARD is singular. ...LUMBERYARD gives opportunities to work not just on the script or at our computers writing, but actually writing on our feet; writing in some form of what the final production will look like that just opens up whole worlds of development and will inspire future writing. It’s been a remarkable time up here.”
-Rachel Chavkin

“I’ve never had a technical residency, so I don’t know what that would do and neither do the audiences who see my work. So I’m missing out and so are they.”
-Raja Feather Kelly

“One of the country’s most robust residency programs… The residency, which lasts one or two weeks, is designed to offset the tight schedules of many New York theaters, where companies frequently have just one or two days to work with lighting and sets before presenting a brand-new piece.”
-New York Times, 2016

“LUMBERYARD supports New York City artists through the development of new productions, with a focus on the integration of the final technical and design elements.”
-Playbill, May 2019

“I’ve never had a technical residency, so I don’t know what that would do and neither do the audiences who see my work. So I’m missing out and so are they.”
-Raja Feather Kelly

“LUMBERYARD supports New York City artists through the development of new productions, with a focus on the integration of the final technical and design elements.”
-Playbill, May 2019