The Drama League has announced the stage directors who will receive the fellowships, assistantships, residencies and programs collectively known as the Directors Project. The 30 honorees will be acknowledged at the previously announced Drama League Awards ceremony, which will be held on May 16 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom.
The 2025 Directors Project cohort, who were selected from over 1,100 applicants, includes Fran de Leon, Kevaughn Harvey and Yojiro Ichikawa (FutureNow Directing Fellowships, an immersion program which includes directing assignments at Chautauqua Theater Company); Melissa Mowry (Rose Directing Fellowship, a partnership with London’s Rose Theatre); Catalina Beltrán, Imani Mitchell and Alexis Woodard (Irene Gandy Stage Directing Assistantships, which pair early-career directors from historically marginalized communities with established directors); Zoë Adams and Irvin Mason, Jr. (second year of the two-year Drama League Stage Directing Fellowships, which includes a $100,000 award); and Morgan Green and Jess McLeod (continuing Drama League Television and Film Directing fellowships).
Also included in the group of honorees are individuals who will complete residencies at New York Stage and Film in Poughkeepsie: Emily Moler (Next Stage Director in Residence); Aileen Wen McGroddy (Beatrice Terry Director in Residence); and Keng S. Meateanuwat and Danica Selem (Special Project residencies).
The Drama League Film Fund, supporting Directors Project alumni as they direct filmed projects, will continue its support of Arin Arbus and Desdemona Chiang.
These fellows will be joined in October by the artists of the Drama League International Directors Summit, taking place in Sofia, Bulgaria, which comprise NJ Agwuna, Ioseb Bakuradze, Uršulė Barto, Maksima Boeva, Natalie Ester, Dima Levitskiy, Gwynn Macdonald, Stefan Prohorov, Agnė Pulokaitė, Lisa Rothe, Mei Ann Teo and Gosia Wdowik.
“The challenges artists and cultural workers are facing today are unlike any in America’s history,” said the League’s artistic director Gabriel Stelian-Shanks in a statement. “The 2025 Directors Project recipients share exceptional creativity, a strong point of view and a determined focus on a better future. It’s our desire to give them the resources and opportunity to make impactful, life-changing art for audiences. They offer their fellow citizens hope, inspiration and a path forward. We cannot wait to see their dreams become reality.”
Founded in 1916, the Drama League provides training, resources and mentorship to directors. In addition to Stelian-Shanks, the organization is led by executive director Bevin Ross.
