Intiman Theatre

INTIMAN Theatre, recipient of the 2006 Tony Award® for Outstanding Regional Theatre, is one of the premiere theatres in the country. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Bartlett Sher and Managing Director Laura Penn , INTIMAN is dedicated to producing some of the most extraordinary theatre created anywhere in the world. It makes a home for vigorous, bold and emotionally rich approaches to the classics, and is the starting point for the development of work created by some of our country’s best writers and artists.

INTIMAN produces classics, contemporary plays and new work. World premieres include The Light in the Piazza, a musical by Craig Lucas and Adam Guettel based on the novel by Elizabeth Spencer, winner of six 2005 Tony Awards; Singing Forest by Craig Lucas, winner of the American Theatre Critics Association’s Steinberg New Play Award; Nickel and Dimed, Joan Holden’s adaptation of Barbara Ehrenreich’s non-fiction bestseller about America’s working poor; and Robert Schenkkan’s The Kentucky Cycle, the first play to receive a Pulitzer Prize before a New York production.

INTIMAN’s most recent world premiere is Kent Gash’s adaptation of Richard Wright and Paul Green’s play Native Son. Native Son, produced in 2006, was the third production of INTIMAN’s five-year American Cycle, which combines theatrical experiences of classic American stories with community-wide programs that encourage civic dialogue about who we were, who we are and who we might become as Americans. The Cycle’s annual programs, developed in collaboration with local civic leaders, include humanities forums, community readings and an original youth performance created by Rough Eagles students from Cleveland and Roosevelt High Schools. A Core Audience also works with INTIMAN to make connections between arts participation and community building.

Nationally recognized for innovative education initiatives, INTIMAN launched its award-winning Living History arts-in-education program in 1986. To date more than 150,000 students have benefited from its innovative approach to exploring complex ideas about history, politics and ethics through theatre.

INTIMAN’s achievements have been saluted nationally and locally. In 2004, it was the first Washington state company to be honored as a Leading National Theatre by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. At its 2006 Civic Awards, the Municipal League of King County named INTIMAN Organization of the Year (the first arts organization to be so honored), recognizing its outstanding contributions to the community.

Founded by Margaret Booker in 1972, the Theatre took its name from a playhouse started by playwright August Strindberg in Stockholm, Sweden. INTIMAN, which translates to “the intimate,” emphasizes a close relationship between actors and audiences. It is rooted in civic engagement, community participation and collaborative partnerships. Its patrons and donors share its vision that theatre is a gathering place for entertainment at the highest level, and for complex and generous discourse.
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Our Mission Statement
INTIMAN Theatre produces engaging dramatic work that celebrates the intimate relationship among artist, audience and language and, through the exploration of enduring themes, illuminates the shared human experience of our diverse community.