Ars Nova commissions and develops new projects with artists who work non-traditionally, create across multiple disciplines, and have big dreams for what they want to make next. Commissioned projects are nurtured from beginning stages to full production in Ars Nova’s adventurous, process-driven environment, allowing them to develop organically and always with the artists’ needs at the center.
Kevin Armento‘s plays include Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally (New York Times Critic’s Pick, Drama Desk nomination, Stage Edinburgh Award; commissioned by One Year Lease), Balls (Drama Desk nomination, Houston Theater Award; co-written with Bryony Lavery), Good Men Wanted (New York Stage and Film), Devil with the Blue Dress (Stage Debut nomination), and Playing Hot (Off-Broadway Alliance Award nomination; co-written with C.A. Johnson for Pipeline Theatre Co.). With partner Jaki Bradley he’s written films for Paramount, Netflix, AGBO, Chernin, and Artists Equity, and developed an original series for FX. His play killers was adapted into the short film Sometimes I Think About Dying which was shortlisted for the 92nd Academy Awards, followed by the feature film of the same name starring Daisy Ridley that opened the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
Manik Choksi Broadway: Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812. Off-Broadway: Indian Ink, Roundabout; Bunty Berman Presents (Lortel Nomination), New Group; Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, Ars Nova; God Bless You Mr. Rosewater, Encores!; King Tot and D, Deb, Debbie, Deborah; Clubbed Thumb; Huck & Holden, Cherry Lane. Regional: Moby Dick and Moby Dick, ART. Film/TV: “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”; “New Amsterdam”; “Good Fight”; “Mindhunter”; “Elementary”; “Happyish”; “One Life To Live” (Vimal Patel), Home, Passing Season. Composer: Those Lost Boys (workshop); Food Odyssey, 3LD. Education: The Juilliard School
Kate Eberstadt is a singer-songwriter, writer, and performer. Hailed by Billboard as “sly and irresistible,” her work fuses bold songwriting with theatrical edge. Her solo show Where We Meet—an exploration of love, loss, and quantum physics—has been developed with Ars Nova, the cell theatre, NYU, Musical Theater Factory, and Upper Jay Arts Center, with support from the Frank Young Fund for New Musicals (NAMT). An Ars Nova Makers Lab Resident (’25), Kate has also held artistic residencies at The Watermill Center, Good Hart Artist Residency, the American Academy in Berlin, and the cell theatre, and is an inaugural Toulmin Creator at the NYU Center for Ballet and the Arts & National Sawdust. Her work has been featured in outlets including The New York Post, Entertainment Tonight, ELLE, Glamour, Gothamist, and NPR. Her debut album HEAVEN ON EARTH—an existential, irreverent pop fantasia—arrives Fall 2025.
As a writer, actor, host, and sexual/mental wellness advocate, Brandon Kyle Goodman (they/them) is best known for their work on Netflix’s smash hit and Emmy nominated animated comedy series Big Mouth and its spin-off Human Resources; Amazon’s Modern Love, Hulu’s Plus One, Netflix’s Feel the Beat, and ABC’s Abbott Elementary.
In 2024, BKG launched their podcast, Tell Me Something Messy! with the iHeart network. On the show, celebrity guests and experts divulge their messy stories all with the intention of helping people lead more liberated lives. BKG continues their hosting duties, joining E! News for RE!CAP where BKG and co-hosts serve up hot takes on Hollywood’s biggest nights.
BKG shares an inspiring and uplifting message of self-love and acceptance with their first book, You Gotta Be You released in 2022. Written in the same refreshingly honest voice as their viral Instagram posts, they explore the intersection of race, sexuality and gender, and the lessons that would guide them to their most authentic self. They continue their writing on relationships, sex, and identity for their Messy Mondays Substack.
BKG has been featured in The New York Times, Esquire, Well+Good, OUT, Bustle, Buzzfeed, and many more. A graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, BKG is currently based in Los Angeles. www.brandonkylegoodman.com
Sammy Miller A native of Los Angeles, Grammy nominated drummer Sammy Miller has become known for his unique maturity and relentless focus on making music that “feels good” as a drummer, singer and bandleader. Upon completing his Master’s at The Juilliard School, Sammy formed his ensemble, The Congregation. As a band they are focused on sharing the power of community through their music—joyful jazz.
Ellen Winter (any pronouns will do) is a Brooklyn-based artist, music producer, and performer whose songwriting fuses theatrical storytelling with indie pop whimsy.
In the realm of theater, Ellen has carved out a niche for herself in new works of surreal musicalized plays and band-driven musicals. Most recently, she music directed, co-arranged and performed in Cold War Choir Practice as a part of Clubbed Thumb Summerworks. Last year she music supervised, composed and performed in Ars Nova’s The Beastiary. Along with her frequent collaborator, Chris Littler, she co-composed/wrote/directed 36 Questions, the world’s first Broadway calibur musical podcast starring Tony Winner Jonathan Groff (Merrily We Roll Along) and Jessie Shelton (Hadestown). She’s been on the music teams of Salty Brine, The Bengsons, Heather Christian, Dave Malloy, Machel Ross, Miranda Haymon, and Cėsar Alvarez.
In the world of music, their newest album YIKES is now out everywhere (playlisted on Spotify’s GLOW)! Her hit song “Mantras” off her debut record Every Feeling I’ve Ever Felt, rocked the #1 slot on In-Store Radio Charts for the better part of 2022 and her cover of “Paper Roses” was featured in the emmy-nominated Hulu show, Tiny Beautiful Things, starring Kathryn Hahn. She’s collaborated with the likes of Sara Barielles, Ingrid Michaelson, Monique Moses, Mark Sonnenblick, and Softee.
Ellen is a recipient of the 2024 EST/Sloan Commission and the 2021 Bryan Gallace/Posthumous Prodigy Productions Musicians Fellowship. Residencies include Joe’s Pub Working Group, Berkeley Rep Ground Floor, Mercury Store, Ars Nova Maker’s Lab, SPACE on Ryder Farm, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat and BarnArts. Her work’s been featured in the New York Times, The Guardian, Marie Claire, Interview Magazine, MTV news, and Playbill. Ellen lives in Brooklyn with her collection of sentimental knick-knacks and her pooch Ruby. Listen to Ellen’s music here: https://ffm.to/ewinter.oem
Ray Yamanouchi was born in Queens, raised on Long Island, and received a BA in film and theatre from CUNY Hunter College. His plays include Tha Chink-Mart (PlayPenn 2018), Impact (Semi-finalist, National Playwrights Conference 2017), and The American Tradition (New Light New Voices Award 2018). He has developed work with WT Theatre, The Blank Theatre, Rising Circle Theater Collective, The New Harmony Project, SPACE on Ryder Farm, PlayPenn, Mission to (dit)Mars (Propulsion Lab), Ars Nova (Play Group), and The Playwrights’ Center (Core Writer). He has been commissioned by Ars Nova and Cygnet Theatre. He is based in Queens, New York. (rayyams.com)
Deepali Zeer is a performance artist, theater practitioner, and nascent medium. Their work in theater includes United States v. Gupta, I Love You Stranger, Ski End, House Plant, and Minor Character. Their work has been supported by Brooklyn Arts Council, NYSCA, NY Women’s Fund, and Axe-Houghton Foundation. Deepali facilitates the New Georges Jam; and is an affiliated artist of Target Margin Theater and New Georges, as well as a past resident artist with La MaMa and The Civilians. B.A. Brown University; M.F.A. New York University.
Participation in our commissioning program is by invitation only. Check our Work With Us page for more information on how to introduce Ars Nova to your work.
Kevin Armento & Sammy Miller are commissioned with support from the Stephen Siderow Fund for New Musicals.
Manik Choksi is commissioned with support from the New York State Council on the Arts.
We’re always looking for partners to support our development programs! Learn more by reaching out to Ben Lasser, Development Director, at blasser@arsnovanyc.com.
