ACT II: The Campaign for EPIC's Next Decade

For ten years, EPIC Players has changed what’s possible. Now, this is the moment to build what comes next….

As EPIC Players celebrates its 10-year anniversary, we are launching a bold four-year campaign to expand opportunity for Autistic, Neurodivergent and Disabled artists, strengthen the future of inclusive theater, and build the foundation for EPIC’s next decade. Demand for EPIC’s work has never been greater. Classes are full; waitlists continue to grow; and more artists, families, collaborators, and audiences are seeking spaces where Disabled artists are not only welcomed, but celebrated.

ACT II: THIS IS THE MOMENT is a $10 million investment in what comes next: more artists served, larger artistic opportunities, stronger infrastructure, long-term sustainability, and a physical home for Autistic, Neurodivergent and Disabled arts and artists.

The Campaign for EPIC’s Next Decade

For the past decade, EPIC has created transformative artistic opportunities for Autistic, Neurodivergent and Disabled artists through professional productions, training programs, mentorship, and community-centered performance experiences.

Today, EPIC is at a pivotal moment.

Demand for EPIC’s programs is strong and visible. Classes exceeded enrollment caps and waitlists continue to grow. EPIC serves more than 500 students in in-school programming, audience attendance grew 35.5% year over year, and we engaged 177 active Players. The ACT II Campaign will help EPIC meet this momentum by:

  • Expanding access for more Players

  • Strengthening staffing and infrastructure

  • Increasing artistic opportunity

  • Growing long-term sustainability

  • Laying the foundation for the EPICenter, a physical home for Disabled arts

Together, these investments will help ensure that Autistic, Neurodivergent and Disabled artists have greater access to professional artistic opportunity, visibility, community, and belonging for decades to come.

The Vision for The Future

  • Serve More Players

    Demand for EPIC’s programming continues to rise across New York and Los Angeles. Classes routinely reach capacity, and waitlists persist across programs.

    Campaign support will help EPIC:

    • Expand class offerings

    • Increase advocacy support

    • Add teaching artists and mentors

    • Create more performance opportunities

    • Strengthen continuity across programs

    More artists deserve access to spaces where they can train, perform, collaborate, and belong.

  • EPIC Launchpad — Staffing and Systems

    Growth requires more than programming.

    Act II will strengthen the staffing, coordination, systems, and organizational infrastructure necessary to support Players with consistency, rigor, and care as EPIC expands.

    This investment ensures that EPIC’s growth remains sustainable, connected, and artist-centered.

  • Off-Broadway Productions

    EPIC’s long-term artistic vision includes producing work at an Off-Broadway level; creating larger, more visible opportunities for Autistic, Neurodivergent and Disabled performers and creative teams.

    This next chapter includes:

    • Larger-scale productions

    • Greater visibility for Disabled artists

    • Increased professional opportunities

    • Expanded actor compensation

    • A stronger national profile for inclusive theater

  • The EPICenter

    EPIC’s future includes building the EPICenter: a physical home for Disabled arts in New York City.

    The vision for the EPICenter is larger than a rehearsal or office space.

    It is a long-term investment in belonging, where community can form, creativity can flourish, and Players can return again and again to be with one another. It would also create a visible center for inclusive theatre-making in New York and a stronger foundation for employment pathways, artistic collaboration, and communal life.

  • The R.I.S.E. Fund and Operating Reserve

    Act II also supports the continued growth of the R.I.S.E. Fund, EPIC’s reserve-building initiative focused on long-term resilience and institutional stability.

    More than $1.5 million has already been committed toward this effort, helping establish a strong foundation for the future.

    This investment helps ensure that EPIC can continue serving artists with strength, stability, and confidence for years to come.

Get Involved in the Act II Campaign

The Five Pillars of Act II

The ACT II Campaign will unfold over three years, built for the next ten. Act II strengthens EPIC's full capacity — access, artist pathways, organizational infrastructure, artistic ambition, and a physical home. Five connected pillars, one future.

Visible demand exists across every level of EPIC’s programming. Waitlists are not a sign of failure — they are proof that Players and families are seeking EPIC out. Act II converts that demand into meaningful access by expanding the pathway so no Player ages off a waitlist without a next step. Support will fund more classes, teaching artists, Advocate Sessions, and performance opportunities, allowing more Players to participate, grow, and move forward within EPIC over time.

Pillar 1 — Serving More Players

Pillar 2 — Staffing and Systems

Growth without infrastructure is fragile. Pillar 2 builds the internal capacity needed to sustain quality and care as EPIC scales, ensuring that expansion serves Players rather than strains them. Support will fund staffing infrastructure, program coordination, and the operational systems that connect programs, track outcomes, manage enrollment, and support EPIC’s growing complexity across two markets — making growth durable and every other pillar sustainable.

Pillar 4 — The EPICenter: A Home of Our Own

Fragmented, rented space limits what EPIC can offer as demand grows. Pillar 4 creates The EPICenter — a physical Brooklyn headquarters, with continued Manhattan presence, designed with and for Neurodivergent and Disabled artists. Support will create accessible studios, sensory rooms, flexible performance space, and a community commons, enabling EPIC to serve more Players, expand productions and classes, and generate earned income that strengthens long-term sustainability. The EPICenter is not simply a space — it is the infrastructure that makes EPIC’s next chapter possible.

Growth requires resilience. Pillar 5 builds EPIC’s financial foundation through the R.I.S.E. Fund, protecting core operations, supporting responsible growth, and strengthening our ability to navigate an uncertain funding environment. With more than $1.5M already committed before the public launch of Act II, the R.I.S.E. Fund demonstrates that EPIC is building for the long term — growing with discipline, managing resources with care, and giving donors confidence that EPIC is prepared for what comes next.

Pillar 5 — The R.I.S.E. Fund

Support the Future of Inclusive Theater

Year Four focuses on the long-term future of EPIC through stronger infrastructure, continued growth of the R.I.S.E. Fund, and the vision for the EPICenter: a physical home for Disabled arts. Campaign support will help strengthen organizational stability while laying the groundwork for expanded space, deeper community connection, and long-term sustainability. By the end of this phase, EPIC will be positioned with greater capacity, resilience, and a stronger foundation for the decade ahead.

YEAR 4: Building the Future

“EPIC has been incredibly meaningful to me by giving me access to many different resources…...I look forward to anything EPIC related always because of how much happiness and belonging I feel from being part of this company. I am so thankful to anyone and everyone that works within and with EPIC. Thank you so much for existing.”

— Genesis Sullivan, EPIC Season 24/25

The Producers' Circle

Individual Giving Levels, Recognition, and Gala Benefits

The Producers’ Circle is the individual major donor community of Act II, EPIC Players’ three-year campaign for its next decade. Members make multi-year commitments that help build everything Act II makes possible — more Players served, stronger infrastructure, Off-Broadway productions, the future EPICenter, and the R.I.S.E. Fund.

Producers’ Circle members receive meaningful recognition throughout the campaign, including naming opportunities, website and program recognition, annual report and season materials, stage recognition, and invitations to opening-night receptions and leadership briefings with EPIC’s artistic and executive leadership. Gala benefits apply throughout each member’s active pledge period.

  • All Marquee recognition, plus:

    • Invitation to name a room in the EPICenter in their honor (TBD)

    • Featured recognition across the Act II campaign, including campaign materials and the EPIC website.

    • Invitation to serve on the gala honorary committee or as an event co-chair

    Gala Benefits

    • VIP table for 10 (premier placement)

    • Honorary committee / co-chair recognition

  • All Director's Circle recognition, plus:

    • Enhanced naming opportunity in the EPICenter (TBD).

    • Recognition from the stage at one mainstage opening or the gala Invitation to an annual leadership briefing with EPIC's artistic and executive leadership

    Gala Benefits

    • VIP table for 10 (premier placement)

    • Verbal recognition during the gala program

  • All Center Stage recognition, plus:

    • Naming opportunity in the EPICenter (TBD).

    • Prominent placement in program and website listings.

    • Season opening-night house seats with concierge ticketing.

    Gala Benefits

    • Table for 10 (premium floor placement)

    • Prominent gala program recognition

  • All Spotlight recognition, plus:

    • Recognition in the EPICenter (TBD).

    • Recognition in EPIC's annual report and season materials

    • Invitation for 2 to an opening-night reception

    Gala Benefits

    • 4 VIP gala tickets

    • Priority seating placement

  • All Ensemble recognition, plus:

    • Plaque with the donor's name in the EPICenter or on the donor wall (TBD)

    • Named recognition line in the gala program

    • Invitation for 2 to a season open rehearsal or cabaret evening

    Gala Benefits

    • 2 VIP gala tickets

    • Named listing in the printed gala program

    • Donor listing in all EPIC mainstage and cabaret programs (season- long)

    • Name listed on the Act II campaign page of the EPIC website

    • Campaign updates and season newsletter

    Gala Benefits

    • 2 individual gala tickets (floor seating)

    • Listing in the printed gala program

  • Commitments of $250,000 and above to the Act II campaign are recognized through individually designed leadership gift agreements. Recognition at this level is shaped with each donor and may include naming opportunities connected to the EPICenter, a campaign pillar, or a production season.

$10 Million To Build the Next Decade With EPIC Players

Ten years ago, EPIC began with the belief that Neurodivergent and Disabled artists deserve rigorous artistic opportunity, visible representation, and spaces where they can fully belong.

Today, that vision is stronger than ever.
This the moment to expand access.
This is the moment to invest in artistic excellence.
This is the moment to help shape the future of inclusive theater.

Act II is a four-year, $10 million campaign to expand opportunity for Neurodivergent and Disabled artists and ensure that the community we have built can thrive for generations to come.

Act II invites donors to invest in EPIC’s long-term future.

With your support, more artists will be able to enter EPIC’s world, stay connected over time, and grow as performers, collaborators, leaders, and working artists within a stronger and more resilient institution.

Build the Next Decade

Be Part of This Moment

Interested in supporting EPIC’s next decade?

Please contact Executive Artistic Director
Aubrie Therrien
aubrie@epicplayersnyc.org

Together, we can help build the future of inclusive theater.

Invest in What Comes Next