NEW YORK CITY: Signature Theatre has named Beth Whitaker their interim artistic director. Whitaker has served as the company’s associate artistic director since 2006.

“Beth is an invaluable member of the the Signature family, with deep institutional knowledge and unerring creative instincts,” Signature’s board of trustees president Douglas E. Chittenden said in a statement. “We couldn’t be in better hands headed into a stellar 2024-25 season.”

Whitaker has been with Signature since 1999 and is also a professor at the Juilliard School. She will take over while Signature searches for a successor to former artistic director Paige Evans. Evans stepped down in June after leading the company since 2016.

Founded in 1991 by James Houghton, Signature Theatre aims to be an artistic home for storytellers. By producing several plays from each resident writer, Signature continues its deep dive into their bodies of work. As of 2022, its budget was around $12.7 million.