AMERICAN THEATRE | Robert Barry Fleming to Step Down From Actors Theatre of Louisville

LOUISVILLE, KY.: Actors Theatre of Louisville has announced the departure of executive artistic director Robert Barry Fleming, who has led the organization since June 2019. An accomplished director and choreographer, Fleming will be moving on to pursue other creative and artistic opportunities. During their tenure, Fleming presided through some adversity, including not only the Covid-19 lockdown of 2020-21 but also the coincidental end of the Humana Festival of New American Plays due to a shift in the priorities of its namesake funder, all while striving to uphold the theatre’s reputation as a hub for bold, inclusive, and groundbreaking theatre.

“It has been the privilege, honor, and daily joy of my lifetime to work and learn with and from this extraordinary Actors team,” said Fleming in a statement. “Though the challenges of stewarding a regional theatre through a global pandemic and the detrimental comprehensive impact it has had on our industry has been formidable for everyone in our field who care about and are dedicated to the American theatre, I’m nothing less than beyond-my-wildest dreams grateful for the wonderful partnerships that have emerged, and for the sense of community and connecting across difference that has manifested from our collective efforts.”

As the fifth artistic director of ATL, Fleming brought their multifaceted expertise as an artistic and administrative leader, producer, director, choreographer, performer, teacher, and coach to guide ATL toward numerous significant milestones, from world premieres including I Am Delivered’t, Grace, Ohio, and Still Ready, as well as strengthening the theatre’s engagement with diverse local and national communities. They also led the field in continuing programming during the pandemic shutdown with VR experiences, radio plays, a video game, a podcast, community conversations, and multiple short and full-length films.

ATL’s board of directors has reaffirmed its commitment to ATL’s mission of unlocking human potential and building community through theatre by appointing Amelia Acosta Powell, the theatre’s impact producer and co-director of artistic programming, to serve as interim artistic director, and naming Emily Tarquin, currently executive producer and co-director of artistic programming, to the role of interim managing director. Acosta Powell joined ATL in 2021 and most recently directed Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins. Tarquin joined ATL in 2016 and most recently directed Won’t you be my May-bor? As interim leaders, they will collaborate with the staff to continue the exciting upcoming programming without interruption.

Actors Theatre of Louisville, located in the heart of downtown Louisville, is one of America’s most consistently innovative nonprofit professional theatre companies. Founded in 1964, Actors Theatre serves to unlock human potential, build community, and enrich quality of life by engaging people in theatre that reflects the wonder and complexity of our time. As of 2023, its budget was around $4.9 million.