Dear Friends of Wide Eyed,

You may be asking what we are up to these days, having not heard from us in a while. There are quite a few exciting things going with the company that I want to share with you.

For those of you who don't know me, allow me a brief introduction. My name is Tim Butterfield and I am the new Artistic Director for Wide Eyed Productions. Where's Kristin you ask? Have no fear, Kristin is still close at hand as Secretary on Wide Eyed's Board of Directors, after being accepted to the Directing Program at The New School for Drama. I have been a colleague and friend of Wide Eyed for the last several years. When approached about becoming Artistic Director of Wide Eyed Productions, I was thrilled to accept the opportunity. This is my third stint as a company's Artistic Director and Wide Eyed is quickly proving to be one of the more exciting artistic ventures of my life.

Some other personnel changes have occurred at Wide Eyed, as well. Justin Ness has stepped down as Managing Director of the company, and we are welcoming Shannon Stowe as our new Managing Director and Resident Choreographer. Shannon holds two Masters Degrees in the theatrical arts, has served in various administrative capacities for companies on the west coast and is thrilled to begin work with Wide Eyed. Justin will continue to be a member of the company and our board of directors, from his new home in Boise, Idaho.

Wide Eyed is also thrilled to announce Laura Maria Censabella as Wide Eyed's Resident Playwright for the 2012 season. Laura is the recipient of this year's Sloan Foundation Commission, has been awarded three grants from the New York Foundation for the Arts and has received writing fellowships from The New Harmony Project, Yaddo, the Virginia Center for the Arts and The Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference. Laura's short film Last Call can now been seen on Netflix as part of the compilation DVD entitled Second Sight: Cinequest Favorite Short Films, Volume II. Laura has written for HBO and several other networks and has won two Emmy Awards for her work in television. She has taught playwrighting at Columbia University, The Actor's Studio, The CUNY Graduate Center, Sarah Lawrence and presently teaches at the New School for Drama. Wide Eyed will be producing Laura's work in the spring for A Girl Wrote It 2012.

Yes, we are bringing back A Girl Wrote It! Last year's venture was such a success, both for the audience and artists, that we had to do it again. We have some very exciting playwrights involved this year. Watch for an announcement soon!

There are many more exciting new things and there will be further announcements coming soon. In the meantime, thank you for your continuing support of Wide Eyed Productions! It is because of our devoted audience that we are here today and can continue to bring you thought provoking and risk taking theater.

We are extremely excited about the season we are going to bring you and are looking forward to all the things to come!

Thank you,

Tim Butterfield
Artistic Director
Wide Eyed Productions