Shanta Thake is the Chief Artistic Officer of Lincoln Center, charged with expanding Lincoln Center’s cultural reach within

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Before taking the Lincoln Center position in September 2021, she was Associate Artistic Director/ Director of Artistic Programs at

The Public Theater The Public Theater is a New York City arts organization founded as the Shakespeare Workshop in 1954 by Joseph Papp, with the intention of showcasing the works of up-and-coming playwrights and performers.Epstein, Helen. ''Joe Papp: An American Li ...

. In this capacity, Thake oversaw the growth and development of Public Works, Mobile Unit, Under the Radar, Joe’s Pub, The Shakespeare Initiative and Public Forum. Previously, she spent 10 years as the Director of Joe’s Pub at The Public, The Public Theater’s cabaret space named after Theater founder

Joseph Papp Joseph Papp (born Joseph Papirofsky; June 22, 1921 – October 31, 1991) was an American theatrical producer and director. He established The Public Theater in what had been the Astor Library Building in Lower Manhattan. There Papp created a y ...

. Under Ms. Thake’s direction, Joe’s Pub produced events at The Delacorte Theater in

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

and in collaboration with Make Music New York, Under The Radar and DanceNOW, among other organizations. In 2011, Ms. Thake established ''New York Voices'', a commission program that provides musicians with tools to develop original theater works. Recipients include

Ethan Lipton Ethan may refer to: People *Ethan (given name) Places *Ethan, South Dakota *Fort Ethan Allen (Arlington, Virginia) Fiction *''Ethan of Athos'', 1986 novel by Lois McMaster Bujold *"Ethan Brand", 1850 short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne *'' Ethan ...

, whose 2011 ''New York Voices'' debut ''No Place To Go'' went on to win an

Obie Award The Obie Awards or Off-Broadway Theater Awards are annual awards originally given by ''The Village Voice'' newspaper to theatre artists and groups in New York City. In September 2014, the awards were jointly presented and administered with the A ...

, (Off-Broadway Theater Award). Other commissioned artists include

Toshi Reagon Toshi Reagon (born January 27, 1964) is an American musician of folk, blues, gospel, rock and funk, as well as a composer, curator, and producer. Early life Born January 27, 1964 in Atlanta, Georgia, Reagon grew up in Washington, D.C. She wa ...

Bridget Everett Bridget Everett (born April 21, 1972) is an American comedian, actress, singer, writer, and cabaret performer. She has starred in the semi-autobiographical 2022 HBO series '' Somebody Somewhere'', the movie ''Fun Mom Dinner'', and in a one-hour ...

Allen Toussaint Allen Richard Toussaint (; January 14, 1938 – November 10, 2015) was an American musician, songwriter, arranger and record producer. He was an influential figure in New Orleans rhythm and blues from the 1950s to the end of the century, descri ...

and more. Ms. Thake also serves as one of three producers of globalFEST, a world music festival and non-profit organization. The organization has curated stages at

Webster Hall Webster Hall is a nightclub and concert venue located at 125 East 11th Street, between Third and Fourth Avenues, near Astor Place, in the East Village of Manhattan, New York City. It is one of New York City's most historically significant ...

Bonnaroo The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival is an American annual four-day music festival developed and founded by Superfly Presents and AC Entertainment. Since its first year in 2002, it has been held at what is now Great Stage Park on a farm in M ...

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

and Festival d’Ile de France and administers a touring fund to world music artists touring new markets in North America. Ms. Thake acted as board chair for the theater company Waterwell, was the co-creator of Weimar New York and is an active member of the

Middle Collegiate Church The Middle Collegiate Church is a dually aligned United Church of Christ and Reformed Church in America church located at 112 Second Avenue between 6th and 7th Streets in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City.

Jerriese Johnson Gospel Choir. Ms. Thake has been the recipient of the

Association of Performing Arts Presenters The Association of Performing Arts Professionals (previously the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, also known as APAP), based in Washington, D.C.,

''Emerging Leader'' award as well as Theater Communications Group’s ''Leaders of Color'' grant. She received a BA in Theater as well as a degree in Management from

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

and currently lives in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thake, Shanta 1979 births Living people Indiana University alumni American theatre directors American women theatre directors