Malden resident Dawn M. Simmons Appointed New Artistic Director of Speakeasy Stage Company

BOSTON – March 27, 2025 – Following a six-month nationwide search, the Board of Directors for SpeakEasy Stage Company has announced the appointment of award-winning theater artist Dawn M. Simmons as its new Artistic Director, effective July 1. Simmons succeeds founding Artistic Director Paul Daigneault, who led the company for more than three decades. SpeakEasy Stage’s Board of Directors co-chairs Andrew Fullem and Constance Gist Guindo, expressed excitement for Simmons‘s appointment.

“Dawn is one of Boston’s leading theater directors, and she was approved unanimously by the Board for this position,” Fullem says. “She has the skills, experience and imagination needed to succeed someone as visionary and influential as Paul, and will further elevate SpeakEasy’s profile regionally and nationally.”

“Dawn’s experience working with SpeakEasy, both as a director and as a co-producing partner positions her perfectly to take the helm,” Gist Guindo says. “Her knowledge of the Boston community and her vision for how to marry theater with community and audience engagement make her the ideal leader for SpeakEasy in this moment.”

Simmons, (l., photo by Nile Scott Studios) is an award-winning director, producer, playwright, administrator, cultural consultant and educator. She has led productions in Boston, across Massachusetts and around the country, most recently directing SpeakEasy’s critically acclaimed production of “Ain’t No Mo’” by Jordan E. Cooper, a co-production with The Front Porch Arts Collective, which she co-founded.

The nationwide search was guided by consultants at the DeVos Institute of Arts and Nonprofit Management, and was led by a SpeakEasy search committee comprising staff leadership, Board Members and Advisory Board Members. The committee’s work was informed by interviews and surveys among key stakeholders including SpeakEasy staff and board members, and a broader community of artists who have worked with the company. The Committee reviewed nearly 100 interested candidates from 15 states and three countries.

SpeakEasy Executive Director David Beardsley says “Dawn understands SpeakEasy. She is committed to our mission, she’s familiar with our audiences, and she has an exciting vision for how to move the company forward at an undeniably challenging time for the theater sector. Her artistic vision fits so well with SpeakEasy’s commitment to producing Boston and New England premieres of contemporary plays and musicals that are bold and entertaining, and feature Boston’s exceptional talent. This is an exciting moment for SpeakEasy. Dawn is the ideal person to take up our artistic reins.”

Reflecting on her new role, Simmons says “I’ve admired the incredible team at SpeakEasy for years, and I have been fortunate to collaborate with them in myriad ways. Stepping into the role of Artistic Director is a true honor; I’m beyond excited to join this remarkable team. This is an opportunity to usher in a bold new chapter for SpeakEasy, one where we continue to captivate and challenge audiences with powerful, thought-provoking productions and new programming. I’m committed to amplifying fresh voices, diving into meaningful subjects, and celebrating the rich diversity of stories that deserve to be heard. We’re gonna have some fun!”

ABOUT DAWN M. SIMMONS

Simmons’s reach and experience in the Greater Boston theater community has been significant. In 2016, along with Maurice Emmanuel Parent, Simmons co-founded – and has since served as Co-Producing Artistic Director for – The Front Porch Arts Collective, Boston’s leading Black theater company committed to advancing racial equity in Boston through theater. “The Porch,” as it’s known, and SpeakEasy are regular collaborators, having co-produced three shows (“Pass Over,” “A Strange Loop,” and “Ain’t No Mo’”). Beardsley says the organizations remain committed to working together.

In 2008, Simmons co-founded her first theater company, New Exhibition Room, which was dedicated to producing provocative, political and affordable theater events. She served as Executive Director of the service organization StageSource, where she focused on workforce development and sector improvement in New England theater. Much of Simmons’ work has shone a light on social and social justice issues, and encouraged theater makers, cultural leaders and audiences to understand, examine and address them.

Simmons has directed a wide array of award-winning productions in Boston and beyond including shows at Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Central Square Theater, Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, Gloucester Stage, Greater Boston Stage Company, the Huntington, Lyric Stage Company, New Repertory Theatre, and Wheelock Family Theatre (all in Greater Boston), at New England-based JAG Productions (White River Junction, Vt.) and WAM Theatre (Lenox, Mass.), and across the country at Alliance Theatre (Atlanta), Play On Shakespeare (Ashland, Ore.) and The Hangar Theatre (Ithaca, NY).

Simmons holds the 2024/25 Monan Professorship in Theatre Arts at Boston College, which brings renowned theater artists to work and teach at the campus for one year. She has been an adjunct faculty member at Northeastern University and has worked with Berklee College of Music, Suffolk University, Brandeis University, Harvard University and others.

Daigneault and Simmons have been close colleagues for years, collaborating on projects, providing each other creative counsel and addressing mutual concerns for the regional theater scene. As Simmons says, “Paul was instrumental in shaping the theatrical landscape of our city. He brought us work that was bold, thought-provoking, challenging, nostalgic and inspiring, setting a high bar for excellence in Boston. Through his efforts, he created opportunities for artists to thrive and find a true home here.”

Daigneault says leading SpeakEasy has been the privilege of a lifetime: “I’m excited to collaborate on this transitional period with an artist and leader for whom I have such affection and respect. I am confident Dawn’s exceptional talents will propel the company to even greater heights.”

Simmons begins her new role July 1, as SpeakEasy starts its 35th Season.