Brian Balcom
(Indianapolis, IN) – The New Harmony Project is pleased to announce the appointment of Brian Balcom to the role of Artistic Producer. In his new role, Balcom will collaborate closely with the Executive Artistic Director to enhance The New Harmony Project’s year-round offerings, including the renowned two-week writer’s conference, PlayFest Indy, and other Indianapolis-based programming.
"I am thrilled that Brian is joining the NHP staff as Artistic Producer,” states Jenni Werner, Executive Artistic Director. "He has an impressive track record of developing new plays and is passionate about supporting the careers of writers. I am looking forward to working with Brian to continue to expand and uplift The New Harmony Project's mission."
Balcom brings a unique perspective to his work, fueled by his experiences as a disabled, Asian-American director, and is passionate about creating inclusive and empathetic narratives in theater. He has previously been at the helm of numerous world premieres and involved in critical developmental workshops across the country at The Playwrights Center, Theater Mu, La Jolla Playhouse, and the National New Play Network Showcase. He has also served as a dramaturg for writers’ groups at Victory Gardens and The Lark. With an impressive background in theater direction and arts administration, Balcom is poised to make a significant impact on the organization’s programming and strategic vision.
ABOUT THE NEW HARMONY PROJECT
The New Harmony Project is a national arts organization whose mission is to nurture writers in the development of scripts and new stories that interrogate the complexity of hope. Through artist-centered programming, we care for artists so they can change the world. The organization was founded in 1986 when a group of theatre, film, and television professionals gathered to explore the trend in the entertainment arts toward exploitative and sensational material. They concluded there was a need to engage and support writers whose work sought a goal beyond mere entertainment, work that sought to empower and uplift. It was out of this meeting that The New Harmony Project was created.
The New Harmony Project boasts an impressive roster of past participants including Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson (Mexodus), Erika Dickerson-Despenza (Susan Smith Blackburn Prize winner cullud wattah, 2019 Princess Grace Award), Rajiv Joseph (King James, Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo), Robert Schenkkan (All the Way, The Great Society, Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winner), Theresa Rebeck (Bernhardt/Hamlet, NBC’s Smash, Seminar), Lee Blessing (Tony and Pulitzer Prize nominee, A Walk in the Woods), Anthony McCarten (Bohemian Rhapsody, The Theory of Everything, Darkest Hour) Steven Dietz (Lonely Planet), Donnetta Lavinia Grays (Where We Stand, Last Night and the Night Before), Vichet Chum (Kween, Bald Sisters, 2018 Princess Grace Award), James Still (four time Pulitzer Prize nominee, The Velocity of Gary), Meredith Stiehm (Emmy winner, Homeland, Cold Case), Danny Strong (two time Emmy winner, Empire, Lee Daniels’ The Butler), George Brant (Grounded, Marie and Rosetta), Idris Goodwin (Break Beat Play, How We Got On), Regina Taylor (Drowning Crow, Crowns), Anna Ziegler (Photograph 51, Actually), Dael Orlandersmith (After the Flood), Jim Leonard (Major Crimes, Dexter), Ngozi Anyanwu (The Homecoming Queen, Good Grief), Mark St. Germain (Freud’s Last Session, The Cosby Show), Matt Williams (Home Improvement, Roseanne), David McFadzean (Home Improvement, Roseanne) and Angelo Pizzo (Rudy, Hoosiers).
The New Harmony Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. For information on how to support this unique and worthwhile organization, please visit www.newharmonyproject.org.
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