NEW YORK CITY: En Garde Arts has named Heather Cohn to be its new executive director. Cohn will join founder and artistic director Anne Hamburger in leading En Garde’s artistic and fiscal planning process, fundraising, community engagement, and board relations.
“I’m thrilled that Heather is moving into this new leadership position at such a pivotal moment for our company,” said Hamburger in a statement. “With her deep fundraising experience, organizational management skills, and commitment to artistry and community, she’s the ideal partner with whom to build a vital and sustainable future for En Garde Arts.”
Cohn previously served as the company’s development and community engagement director. Before joining En Garde Arts, she served as the director of development for Epic Theatre Ensemble for four years. She’s also worked with Disney Theatrical, New York Theatre Workshop, the Pearl Theatre Company, and Theatre Communications Group. Cohn is a co-founder and producing director of the Off-Off-Broadway company Flux Theatre Ensemble, where she has produced 28 full productions, including 17 world premieres. She has directed nine Flux productions, with playwrights including Gus Schulenburg, Erin Browne, Kristen Palmer, Kevin R. Free, and Johnna Adams. She served as assistant director to Austin Pendleton on Johnna Adams’s Gidion’s Knot. She has also directed with companies including Rattlestick, Lark Play Development Center, Cherry Lane, the EstroGenius Festival, and Planet Connections. She is a board member of the League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW) and serves as co-chair on the Task Force for trans inclusion. She was a member of the Producers’ LAB with WP Theatre and is a graduate of Vassar College, where she majored in Latin American Studies and spent time living in Cuba and Chile.
“I’m so grateful to Annie and the board for entrusting me with the opportunity to build on the extraordinary legacy of En Garde Arts,” said Cohn in a statement. “Together, we will advance our mission to create, produce, and present bold theatre experiences that reach across artistic, physical, and social boundaries.”
