“A Legacy of Virtuosity, Diversity and Community”
San Diego Repertory Theatre (San Diego REP) has announced that Sam Woodhouse will step down as Artistic Director in September 2022 after leading the company for 46 years. At the end of this season, San Diego REP will have produced 333 productions under Woodhouse’s leadership – more than 50 of them were world premieres. For decades, Woodhouse has positioned the REP as a national leader in areas of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, with over 50% of the artists onstage being BIPOC artists.
Woodhouse shared “The time is right for me to step aside and help the company find a new artistic leader who represents the contemporary zeitgeist. I look forward to meeting a successor who can lead the REP into a glorious future as a 21st century theatre company.
The values of virtuosity, diversity and community have for decades inspired me to go to work each day.
I want to recognize the contributions of several of the many fellow travelers who have shared these values. There have been scores of partners along the way that gave extraordinary talent and treasure and creativity to our efforts to build a theatre for the people of San Diego.
Let me share a shout out of gratitude to D.W. Jacobs, who co-founded the company with me in 1976 and whom I worked side by side for over 20 years; to Jennifer Hankins who served as the President of the Board of Trustees for nearly a decade; to Dawn Moore who also served as President of the Board for nearly a different decade; to Larry Alldredge, who devoted his considerable talents and resources for 13 years as a dynamic and growth-oriented Managing Director and especially generous donor.
Also to Todd Salovey, who joined the company in 1990 and quickly rose to the role of Associate Artistic Director while founding the spectacular Lipinsky Family Jewish Arts Festival; to the singular artists Herbert Siguenza and Dajhan Blevins for their creative work that lifted San Diego higher and higher; and finally to the wonderfully generous Sheila and Jeff Lipinsky for their eternal care for our work and to the simply extraordinary patrons and friends Joan and Irwin Jacobs, who’s unwavering support over many decades has provided a foundation for the REP to stand on.
Together with every actor, director, designer and playwright I have been privileged to work with and to the thousands of theatre patrons who have walked the road with me, I am deeply grateful to everyone who have blessed an amazing journey.”
Woodhouse has passionately served the REP’s mission to produce intimate, provocative, inclusive theatre. We promote an interconnected community through vivid works that nourish
progressive political and social values and celebrate the multiple voices of our region. San Diego Repertory Theatre feeds the curious soul.
Since co-founding The REP over four decades ago, Woodhouse has overseen major artistic and community accomplishments. Conceived as a place that is home to a wide range of artists and companies, San Diego REP has managed the Lyceum since 1986 as San Diego’s Cultural Town Hall, hosting runs and one-night events of theatre, music, dance, magic, stand-up comedy, jazz and much, much more. The REP was a leader in the renaissance of downtown San Diego in the 80’s and 90’s with their work at the Lyceum.
Under Woodhouse’s leadership, the REP received a 1998 Tony Award® Nomination for It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues. Additionally, The REP has received over 200 awards for artistic excellence from the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle, Patté Theatre Awards, NAACP, Backstage West, Dramalogue, and StageSceneLA. Recent 2018 Critic Circle awards include Outstanding Production for A Doll’s House, Part 2 and Outstanding Direction of a Musical for Woodhouse for the production of Fun Home. Additional Critic’s Circle awards include Outstanding Resident Musical for In the Heights (2013), Outstanding Solo Performance by Hershey Felder in Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin (2015), Outstanding Projection Design for Blake McCarty in 33 1/3 House of Dreams (2019) and Outstanding Solo Performance for Ryun Yu in Hold These Truths (2019).
One of Woodhouse’s most Artistically ambitious and personally satisfying artistic experiences was directing The Threepenny Opera in 2009. A sexy, political “in your face” musical, the Brecht and Weill masterwork challenged audiences, even upsetting some. The REP didn’t flinch. Remember, this was the year after the Great Recession. America was reeling. Woodhouse told the SD Reader’s Smith “Threepenny was a leap because the work is flawed, mischievous and elusive — postmodern before postmodern existed.”
In 2003, Woodhouse was awarded the Patté Shiley Award for Lifetime Achievement by KPBS and the prestigious Alonzo Award by the Downtown San Diego Partnership. In 2006, he and co-founder Doug Jacobs, were honored with the Craig Noel Award by the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle for “30 years of artistic dedication to downtown and diversity.”
Commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Woodhouse’s commitment to Equity Diversity and Inclusion is reflected in the breadth of work produced by the company as well as the festivals produced and housed by the REP. It was further solidified with the REP’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan of 2021.
Woodhouse shared “In the 13 months since our comprehensive Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan was published, I am pleased to report that we hired 293 artists to make work on our live or virtual stages. 61% of those have been BIPOC artists and 66% of those have been women. Our REP staff of 45 employees is 45% BIPOC and 58% of the staff are women. I am proud of our work in EDI and very aware that we have a long way to go to meet our challenging goals”
Since moving to the Lyceum in 1986, the REP has produced 51 mainstage productions by Latino playwrights and hosted artistic residencies by Luis Valdez, Max Roach, Amiri Baraka, Culture Clash, Yehuda Hyman, Marion J. Caffey, Randall Myler, Octavio Solis, Maria Irene Fornes and Herbert Siguenza, who is currently Playwright-in-Residence with special thanks to the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation’s National Playwright Residency Program.
Another highlight of diverse work at The REP came out of The Calafia Initiative in the 1990s – 2000s, which supported over 22 binational works created by unlikely partners working across multiple artistic disciplines. A highlight of this Initiative was the world premiere of the bilingual play Nuevo California, which imagined the union of San Diego and Tijuana into a binational city state blessed at the border by the first Pope from Mexico.
During his tenure at The REP, Woodhouse has provided a platform for multiple festivals to showcase diverse artistic work.
About San Diego Repertory Theatre
San Diego Repertory Theatre (San Diego REP) produces intimate, provocative and inclusive theatre. Founded in 1976, San Diego Repertory Theatre is downtown San Diego’s resident theatre, promoting an interconnected community through vivid works that nourish progressive political and social values and celebrates the multiple voices of our region. The company produces and hosts over 550 events and performances year-round on its three stages at the Lyceum Theatre. Since moving to the Lyceum, The REP has produced 54 main stage productions by Latino playwrights, and more than 45 world premieres. The company has received more than 200 awards for artistic excellence from the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle, Patté Theatre Awards, NAACP, Backstage West, Dramalogue and StageSceneLA. In 2005, the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle presented The REP with the Craig Noel Award “For 30 Years of Artistic Dedication to Downtown and Diversity.” San Diego Repertory Theatre feeds the curious soul. To learn more about San Diego Repertory Theatre, to purchase tickets, or make a donation, visit sdrep.org. Join us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@SanDiegoREP).
