NEW YORK CITY:  The Abingdon Theatre Company has announced  the appointment of Tony Speciale as its new artistic director. Speciale will succeed Jan Buttram, who has held the post for 22 years and is departing to focus on a career in playwriting.

“I am delighted to welcome Tony Speciale to the Abingdon family of playwrights, actors, designers, and other theatre professionals,” said Buttram in a statement. “It will be a joy to watch what Tony’s quick, talented and loving hands will create for this resilient company.”

Speciale, whose production of  The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey is currently running at the Westside Theatre Off-Broadway, is the founder of Plastic Theatre. His directing credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Classic Stage Company), Handbook for an American Revolutionary (The Gym at Judson), and Remembering Mr. Maugham (Clurman Theatre). His plays Delirium and The Secret Court (co-authored with members of Plastic Theatre) have been performed nationally and abroad.