About

  ARTFARM is an independent, non-profit organization, founded in 2001, dedicated to cultivating high quality theater with a commitment to simple living, environmental sustainability and social justice. 

It is our intention to acquire a farm in central Connecticut, and renovate the barn, turning it into a performance, workshop and retreat space. We are dedicated to the ideas of farm preservation and open space and greatly concerned about the increasing rate that developers are consuming Connecticut's precious lands. ARTFARM – a theater, a working small organic farm, and a retreat and workshop center where artists, activists, underserved young people and just good folks can come for renewal and inspiration.

Summers will be committed to producing high quality new and classic theater with a combination of professional actors, interns and community volunteers. A small group of interns, mostly college age or slightly older, will live on the farm for all or part of the summer and participate in both farm and theater related activities. They might be weeding or harvesting in the morning then running the light board or performing in the evening with seasoned professionals recruited from around the northeast. Community members could get involved backstage, or by helping with box office, hospitality or “front of house”, or by lending their building, agricultural, or development know-how or sweat, by participating in one of ARTFARM's annual community celebrations at Summer Solstice or other times of year, or in any number of ways yet to be discovered.

During the school year, ARTFARM will continue to have touring shows available for schools, colleges, festivals, etc., combined with teaching residencies and directing productions in local schools and art centers, but the farm itself would function primarily as a center for workshops, retreats and community celebrations. Programs will range from one-day courses in “Sustainable Living”, “Organic Home Gardening”, or “Writing in Nature” to weeklong intensives in “Shakespearean Acting,” “Creating Original Theater with Young People” or restorative retreats for artists, activists and everybody. Faculty will be drawn from regional artists, activists, farmers, teachers and luddites in addition to teachers with national and international reputations.