Under the Radar Festival Receives $1 Million from Mellon

The grant will support UTR’s dynamic artistic leadership who have implemented a bold ‘rotational leadership model’ to ensure an ongoing infusion of new ideas, perspectives, and practices for the organization in the years ahead.  The funding underscores Mellon’s strategic commitment to fortifying visionary artistic leadership and will provide support for building organizational capacity, infrastructure with new staff roles and expanded board membership, community engagement, and expansion for commissioning and presenting new works.

Led by artistic director Mark Russell, co-creative directors Kaneza Schaal and Meropi Peponides, and producers Thomas O. Kriegsmann and Sami Pyne of ArKtype, UTR is now celebrating both its 20th anniversary, and its inaugural year as an independent nonprofit organization. The 2025 festival, which began on January 4th and runs through the 19th, will present more than 30 performances and convenings this year, including a works-in-process session and symposia.

“The performing arts are at a critical juncture, requiring courageous and imaginative leadership to build toward a more just and thriving ecosystem,” said Stephanie Ybarra, Mellon Foundation Arts and Culture Program Officer. “Throughout their careers, Mark, Meropi and Kaneza have repeatedly demonstrated their capacity not only to respond to these challenges but also to envision a blueprint for the future of the arts—one that prioritizes inclusivity, adaptability, and relentless creativity. Mellon is proud to support this vital work and help ensure that groundbreaking voices continue to thrive on a global stage.”

“This grant empowers us to rethink what leadership in the arts can look like,” said Mark Russell, Founder and Artistic Director of Under the Radar. “Our mission has always been to support the boldest and most innovative voices in performance, and that requires a leadership structure that’s just as dynamic and forward-thinking. With the support of Mellon, we’re charting a new path for sustainability and creativity—one that reflects the diversity and groundbreaking spirit of the artists we champion.”

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The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is the nation’s largest supporter of the arts and humanities. Since 1969, the Foundation has been guided by its core belief that the humanities and arts are essential to human understanding. The Foundation believes that the arts and humanities are where we express our complex humanity, and that everyone deserves the beauty and empowerment that can be found there. Through our grants, we seek to build just communities enriched by meaning and guided by critical thinking, where ideas and imagination can thrive. Learn more at mellon.org.

Under the Radar is a NYC-based festival celebrating new theater and performance works from both around the world and down the street, produced and programmed in collaboration with over two dozen venues from around the city. Led by Artistic Director Mark Russell, Co-Creative Directors Kaneza Schaal & Meropi Peponides, and Producers Thomas O. Kriegsmann and Sami Pyne, UTR addresses a city, a country, and the world with the voices of innovative multidisciplinary artists speaking to their time. The festival stands for transparency, equity, and equal collaboration in the development of new live works. It represents global citizenship, innovation, and a platform for those whose voices have yet to be heard. The Under the Radar Festival began as a beta concept in 2003 co-produced by the University of Texas at Austin and Performance Space 122. The first NYC edition was realized at St. Ann’s Warehouse in 2005, moving to the Public Theater for the next eighteen years and becoming one of the world’s seminal annual meeting point for producers, presenters, and their international counterparts. The festival mixes international work with national and local artists, to give a spotlight on new artists and new global developments in the field, providing a breakout platform for many artists, and introducing them to international presenters and a wider New York and national audience.