Syracuse Stage Artistic Director Robert Hupp has announced an expansion of the senior artistic staff. As of Sept. 1, veteran New York based director Melissa Crespo will become the theater’s associate artistic director. Kyle Bass, who currently holds that position, will transition to a new role as the theater’s first resident playwright and will remain a member of the theater’s senior artistic staff.
“This evolution of our artistic staff is a win-win for Syracuse Stage and for our audience,” says Hupp. “Kyle’s voice has been central to our work for many years so it was important to honor his request to explore new models of association. I greatly value all that Kyle contributes to Syracuse Stage and, of course, we are thrilled to produce the premieres of his plays. We are delighted to create this new artistic space for Kyle and to hopefully be his artistic home for years to come.
Bob Hupp, Melissa Crespo and Kyle Bass in the Syracuse Stage lobby. (Photo by Brenna Merritt)
“Melissa brings an incredible breadth of experience to our organization and I am thrilled to partner with her to chart Stage’s artistic future,” Hupp adds. “I feel fortunate that she said yes to our invitation; her work will enrich all aspects of our theater.”
Crespo has directed three times at Syracuse Stage in recent seasons. In 2019, she directed the popular and successful comedy “Native Gardens,” which drew recognition from American Theater magazine. The entire creative team was women of color, a rare occurrence in professional regional theater and a first for Syracuse Stage, and it was a co-production among three theatres on the East and West coasts. This past season, Crespo directed the critically acclaimed two-character “I and You,” which was made available to patrons as video on demand. She is scheduled to direct “Yoga Play” in the recently announced 2021/2022 season. In 2019, Crespo directed a reading of a work-in-progress play by Larissa FastHorse as part of Stage’s Cold Read Festival.
“Syracuse Stage has always felt like an artistic home away from home,” says Crespo. “I am delighted to join Bob, Jill, and the whole staff to continue supporting the artistic growth and development of the vibrant Syracuse community.”
Crespo brings a wealth of experience to Syracuse Stage having directed plays, musicals and opera. She is also a playwright (her play “Egress,” co-written with Sarah Saltwick, will receive a world premiere at Amphibian Stage this year), and like her predecessor Bass, she is keen on promoting and developing new work. She has directed world premieres, including Charly Evon Simpson’s “form of a girl unknown.”
Melissa Crespo directed “Native Gardens” at Syracuse Stage in 2019. (Photo by Michael Davis)
“I owe my career to new work development and the trust of playwrights. I look forward to continuing to champion writers in my new position,” adds Crespo.
Crespo has also received numerous fellowships and residencies, including: Time Warner Fellow (WP Theatre), Usual Suspect (New York Theater Workshop), The Director’s Project (Drama League), Van Lier Directing Fellow (Second Stage Theatre) and the Allen Lee Hughes Directing Fellow (Arena Stage). She holds an M.F.A. in directing from The New School for Drama, where she is currently on faculty. She is also the editor of the online journal 3Views on Theater and was featured in the 2020 Broadway Women’s Fund “Women to Watch on Broadway.”
As Stage’s associate artistic director, Crespo will be a key partner with Hupp in the selection of the Syracuse Stage season and in the formation of the artistic teams who create the work. She will be central to the programmatic life of the theater and highly visible as a spokesperson for Stage in the community.
The newly created position of resident playwright is the latest of numerous administrative and artistic positions Bass has held since first joining Syracuse Stage in 1994. During Timothy Bond’s tenure, Bass became the resident dramaturg and helped select plays for each season and worked closely with Ping Chong on “Tales from the Salt City” and co-authored “Cry for Peace: Voices from the Congo.”
He was named associate artistic director by Hupp in 2016. In that capacity he has been at the forefront of Stage’s efforts to develop and produce new work. He initiated and continues to curate the Cold Read Festival of New Plays, now in its fifth year. An accomplished playwright, he wrote “Possessing Harriet,” which had its world premiere at Stage in 2018, and he will have a second world premiere with “salt/city/blues” to conclude the 2021/2022 season.
“Possessing Harriet” by Kyle Bass had its world premiere production at Syracuse Stage in 2018. (Photo by Michael Davis)
In addition, Bass devised and composed “Separated,” based on the experiences of Syracuse University student veterans in and out of the military, and two original pieces, “Carver at Tuskegee” and “Citizen James, or the Young Man without a Country” for Stage’s Backstory educational program. His theatricalized version of the 1965 debate between James Baldwin and William F. Buckley, “Baldwin vs. Buckley: The Faith of Our Fathers,” will be performed at Stage in September.
Away from Stage, Bass is an assistant professor in the Department of Theatre at Colgate University. He has written the libretto for the opera “Libba Cotten: Here This Day,” and he has written for Noh theater under commission by Theatre Nohgaku. He also worked with acclaimed visual artist and MacArthur Fellow Carrie Mae Weems on her theatre piece “Grace Notes: Reflections for Now,” which had its world premiere at the 2016 Spoleto Festival USA.
In its nearly 50-year history, Syracuse Stage has not had a resident playwright. In this new position, Bass will continue to work on new play development and commissions, while assisting Hupp in planning the theater’s artistic programming. He will also receive support and workshops in the development of his own work, officially making Syracuse Stage his artistic home.
“The title Resident Playwright officially names what Bob Hupp has always made so generously clear and possible: Syracuse Stage is my artistic home,” says Bass. “I am grateful for Bob’s belief in and support of my creative work during my time as associate artistic director. In this next chapter of my Syracuse Stage career, I look forward to working with Bob, Melissa and my entire Stage family of talented colleagues and collaborators as I continue to explore my playwriting craft and vision within the embrace and artistic life of our theater.”
“We are proud to acknowledge Kyle as our first resident playwright and to welcome Melissa as the first female artistic leader of Syracuse Stage,” adds Hupp. “I am excited to see how their work encourages us to make an even more engaging impact on the cultural life of Central New York.”
About Syracuse Stage
Founded in 1974, Syracuse Stage is the non-profit, professional theatre company in residence at Syracuse University. It is nationally recognized for creating stimulating theatrical work that engages Central New York and significantly contributes to the artistic life of Syracuse University, where it is a vital partner in achieving the educational mission of the University’s Department of Drama. Syracuse Stage’s mission is to tell stories that engage, entertain and inspire people to see life beyond their own experience. Each season 70,000 patrons enjoy an adventurous mix of new plays, and bold interpretations of classics and musicals, featuring the finest theatre artists. In addition, Stage maintains a vital educational outreach program that annually serves more than 15,000 students from 14 counties. Syracuse Stage is a constituent of the Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the American theatre, and a member of the Arts and Cultural Leadership Alliance (ACLA), the University Hill Corporation and the East Genesee Regent Association. Syracuse Stage is a member of The League of Resident Theatres (LORT), the largest professional theatre association in the country.
