Ryan Gilliam

Ryan Gilliam is the Artistic/Executive Director of Downtown Art. As a director and playwright, she has collaborated with youth over the past eighteen years to create more than a hundred original theater and music works performed for the community. She is a founding member of the East 4th Street Cultural District, currently serving as Chair for FABnyc, a member of the Working Group of Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts/NY (NOCD), and recently joined the board of A.R.T./New York. She is currently co-facilitating the creation of Lower East Side History Month in May 2014 in collaboration with over forty cultural, historical and community groups. Ryan has created a series of site specific music theater works with partner/composer Michael Hickey which are based on the history of the Lower East Side and performed, using individual mp3 players and silent live performance, through the streets of the neighborhood. She taught theater for several years in three local public schools; and held past positions as the Arts Director for Judson Church and management roles for several small dance and theater companies. Ryan came to New York in 1976 when she was 18; her love for arts and community can be attributed to her family who were deeply engaged in community development efforts and always saw culture and arts as integral to neighborhoods. Ryan received a B.F.A. from New York University and an M.F.A. from the Yale School of Drama.