Douglas Aibel Stepping Down as Vineyard Theatre Artistic Director (EXCLUSIVE)
Douglas Aibel will step down as artistic director of Vineyard Theatre, ending a forty-year run. He will continue to work as a producer and casting director, focusing on several upcoming film and television projects.
It’s a major shift for the organization given that Aibel has held the position since 1985, and in partnership with Sarah Stern since 2011. He began his work there in 1982, joining Vineyard Theatre as an associate director. Over four decades, he shepherded major works to the stage, including “How I Learned to Drive,” “Three Tall Women,” “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill,” “Avenue Q,” and “The Scottsboro Boys.” In his leadership role, Aibel championed such writers as Paula Vogel, Edward Albee, Nicky Silver, Craig Lucas, Kirsten Childs, Polly Pen, Colman Domingo, John Kander and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins.
Aibel and Vineyard Theatre were the recipients of the 1998 Obie Ross Wetzsteon Award “For Sustained Support of Artists and Creativity in the Theater,” and he has additionally accepted special Drama Desk and Lortel Awards on behalf of the theater. Stern will continue to lead Vineyard Theatre.
“It has been the honor and privilege of a lifetime to serve as Artistic Director of my beloved Vineyard Theatre for four decades, and I will always be deeply grateful to the incredible artists who cast their lot with us, and worked together to build a very special place for the creation of new plays and musicals,” Aibel said in a statement. “I would never have dreamed that when my 24-year-old self first met [Vineyard founder] Barbara Zinn Krieger, and offered to launch a new play program at the newly opened Vineyard, that over 40 years later, the company would still be my home.”
“The late great Laura Nyro once described her songwriting process as akin to creating a ‘serious playground’ for the development of new work,” he added. “I think that is an apt metaphor for what the Vineyard has been, and continues to be, for its adventurous artists and audiences. My deepest appreciation to all who are a part of it.”
Many of the authors who worked with Aibel praised him for his stewardship. “After my play ‘How I Learned to Drive’ was turned down by another theatre, I sent it to Doug Aibel, who called me 24 hours later,” Vogel remembered. “‘We would like to do your play,’ he said. ‘What?!’ ‘It’s all here on the page.’ Doug Aibel is a theatre artist who not only can read: he can envision the production, the casting, the director, and thoughtfully design the marketing. He has been a mentor and superb dramaturg for playwrights, and his passion has fueled what has become one of the most important creative homes for artists in the country.”
“Vineyard Board members and I are so grateful to Doug — in the more than 40 years since he joined our Founder Barbara Zinn Krieger and became Artistic Director of the Vineyard, he has produced plays that have had a profound impact on theatre, in and beyond New York City,” said Annette Stover, Vineyard Theatre board chair.
Stern added: “I have been fortunate to call Doug a mentor, a partner, and a friend in our work at the Vineyard for more than two decades. His vision, ingenuity, and deep care for artists are in the DNA of the Vineyardand leave a profound legacy, from Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning plays and groundbreaking musicals to artists shaped by his belief in their voices. As he embarks on a new chapter of producing and continues his brilliant casting work in film and television, I am grateful for his integrity, passion, and extraordinary contributions to the Vineyard and to the American theatre, and for all that exists because he nurtured it forward.”
In addition to his work at Vineyard, Aibel is also a film and television casting director. Among his many film credits are such acclaimed works as “Materialists,” “Manchester by the Sea,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “Dead Man Walking,” “Unbreakable” and “The Royal Tenenbaums.” Upcoming films include Noah Baumbach’s “Jay Kelly” and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Bride.” His casting credits for television include “Succession,” “Mozart in the Jungle” and “The Sinner.” He has received numerous Artios Awards for his film work, a special Robert Altman Independent Spirit Award for his work on “Marriage Story,” and BAFTA and Emmy nominations.
It’s a major shift for the organization given that Aibel has held the position since 1985, and in partnership with Sarah Stern since 2011. He began his work there in 1982, joining Vineyard Theatre as an associate director. Over four decades, he shepherded major works to the stage, including “How I Learned to Drive,” “Three Tall Women,” “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill,” “Avenue Q,” and “The Scottsboro Boys.” In his leadership role, Aibel championed such writers as Paula Vogel, Edward Albee, Nicky Silver, Craig Lucas, Kirsten Childs, Polly Pen, Colman Domingo, John Kander and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins.
Aibel and Vineyard Theatre were the recipients of the 1998 Obie Ross Wetzsteon Award “For Sustained Support of Artists and Creativity in the Theater,” and he has additionally accepted special Drama Desk and Lortel Awards on behalf of the theater. Stern will continue to lead Vineyard Theatre.
“It has been the honor and privilege of a lifetime to serve as Artistic Director of my beloved Vineyard Theatre for four decades, and I will always be deeply grateful to the incredible artists who cast their lot with us, and worked together to build a very special place for the creation of new plays and musicals,” Aibel said in a statement. “I would never have dreamed that when my 24-year-old self first met [Vineyard founder] Barbara Zinn Krieger, and offered to launch a new play program at the newly opened Vineyard, that over 40 years later, the company would still be my home.”
“The late great Laura Nyro once described her songwriting process as akin to creating a ‘serious playground’ for the development of new work,” he added. “I think that is an apt metaphor for what the Vineyard has been, and continues to be, for its adventurous artists and audiences. My deepest appreciation to all who are a part of it.”
Many of the authors who worked with Aibel praised him for his stewardship. “After my play ‘How I Learned to Drive’ was turned down by another theatre, I sent it to Doug Aibel, who called me 24 hours later,” Vogel remembered. “‘We would like to do your play,’ he said. ‘What?!’ ‘It’s all here on the page.’ Doug Aibel is a theatre artist who not only can read: he can envision the production, the casting, the director, and thoughtfully design the marketing. He has been a mentor and superb dramaturg for playwrights, and his passion has fueled what has become one of the most important creative homes for artists in the country.”
“Vineyard Board members and I are so grateful to Doug — in the more than 40 years since he joined our Founder Barbara Zinn Krieger and became Artistic Director of the Vineyard, he has produced plays that have had a profound impact on theatre, in and beyond New York City,” said Annette Stover, Vineyard Theatre board chair.
Stern added: “I have been fortunate to call Doug a mentor, a partner, and a friend in our work at the Vineyard for more than two decades. His vision, ingenuity, and deep care for artists are in the DNA of the Vineyardand leave a profound legacy, from Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning plays and groundbreaking musicals to artists shaped by his belief in their voices. As he embarks on a new chapter of producing and continues his brilliant casting work in film and television, I am grateful for his integrity, passion, and extraordinary contributions to the Vineyard and to the American theatre, and for all that exists because he nurtured it forward.”
In addition to his work at Vineyard, Aibel is also a film and television casting director. Among his many film credits are such acclaimed works as “Materialists,” “Manchester by the Sea,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “Dead Man Walking,” “Unbreakable” and “The Royal Tenenbaums.” Upcoming films include Noah Baumbach’s “Jay Kelly” and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Bride.” His casting credits for television include “Succession,” “Mozart in the Jungle” and “The Sinner.” He has received numerous Artios Awards for his film work, a special Robert Altman Independent Spirit Award for his work on “Marriage Story,” and BAFTA and Emmy nominations.