After a nationwide search, the Arizona Theatre Company (ATC) board of directors has named David Ivers, most recently the artistic director at Utah Shakespeare Festival, as ATC’s new Artistic Director. Ivers will begin his new role on July 1.
Arizona Theatre Company’s current artistic director, David Ira Goldstein, will remain with the company until June 30 when his enduring 25-year tenure will officially come to end and he moves on to pursue new challenges and opportunities. He will become Artistic Director Emeritus.
“The search process, guided and organized by consulting and executive recruiting firm AlbertHall & Associates, was extensive and, ultimately, incredibly rewarding with the hiring of David Ivers,” said Arizona Theatre Company Board Chair Lynne Wood Dusenberry. “There were a number of truly wonderful candidates for the position, but David was clearly the right person to build upon David Ira Goldstein’s remarkable artistic legacy and guide Arizona Theatre Company to the next level of success.”
Ivers served as artistic director at the Utah Shakespeare Festival for seven years, having acted and directed in more than 50 productions with the company over 20 years.
During his tenure, Ivers, a native of San Rafael, Calif. who holds a Master’s in Fine Arts from the University of Minnesota, helped lead a $40 million facilities expansion that included two new theatres, a new rehearsal hall, costume shop and administrative offices. His tenure also was marked by a significant rebrand of the organization and several key initiatives, highlighted by the launch of the WORDS3 (cubed) New Play Development Program featuring the world premiere of Neil Labute’s How to Fight Loneliness in August, which Ivers will direct.
Earlier in his career, Ivers was Associate Artistic Director at Portland Repertory Theatre. He has appeared in productions at some of the nation’s top regional theatres and recently directed productions at The Guthrie Theatre, where he will direct Blithe Spirit in November, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, South Coast Repertory Theatre and Pioneer Theatre Company, among others. He also spent 10 years as a resident artist with the Denver Center Theatre Company, building more than 40 productions as an actor and director.
“Because of the richness of the cultural offerings and heritage in both Tucson and Phoenix, I’m humbled and excited about Arizona Theatre Company’s impact, contribution and potential as we start the next half century,” Ivers said. “ATC has been and should be the crown cultural jewel of Arizona and, though we bring great, thoughtful and quality theatre to two different communities, we serve the entire state.”
He joins ATC as it heads into the 51st season with a lineup chosen by David Ira Goldstein that includes Neil Simon’s Chapter Two, directed by Marsha Mason (Tucson: Sept. 9-30; Phoenix: October 5-22); The River Bride by Marisela Treviño Orta and directed by Kinan Valdez (Tucson: Oct. 21 to Nov. 11; Phoenix: Nov. 16 to Dec. 3); Man of La Mancha, book by Dale Wasserman, lyrics by Joe Darion, music by Mitch Leigh, directed by David Bennett (Tucson: Dec. 2-23; Phoenix: Jan. 11-28, 2018); Outside Mullingar by John Patrick Shanley (Tucson: Jan. 20 to Feb. 10; Phoenix: Feb. 15 to March 4); Low Down Dirty Blues, by Randal Myler and Dan Wheetman, directed by Randal Myler (Tucson: March 10-31; Phoenix: April 5-22); and The Diary of Anne Frank, dramatized by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, adapted by Wendy Kesselman, directed by David Ira Goldstein, a co-production with Geva Theatre Center of Rochester, NY (Tucson: April 21 to May 12; Phoenix: May 17 to June 3).
Season ticket packages are now available. Build-your-own subscriptions for 3, 4 or 5 play packages and Flex Passes also are on sale. Season-packages in Tucson range from $135 to $345 and in Phoenix from $135 to $435.
For more information, visit www.arizonatheatre.org or call the box office in Tucson at (520) 622-2823 or in Phoenix at (602) 256-6995.
