Steinhardt Alum Hamingson Named Executive Director of The Public Theater

By Timothy Farrell

Andrew Hamingson, who graduated in September from the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development master’s program in performing arts administration, concedes that his student journey was unorthodox. Beginning his studies in 1992, Hamingson balanced both work and school, first as an intern at Manhattan Theatre Club and later as its director of development. As his career accelerated, though, he found himself with less time to devote to his studies. The result was an absence from NYU for more than a decade.
    This past summer, the Public Theater, the nation’s foremost producer of Shakespearean and new work, chose Hamingson as its new executive director, responsible for administration and finance. Oskar Eustis, the Public’s artistic director, oversees programming.
    “Andy Hamingson demonstrated tremendous promise throughout his studies in the program in performing arts administration,” said Brann Wry, associate professor of arts administration. “His gifts for individual research, his very good will, and his innate common sense will serve him well at the Public Theater, where he will continue to serve performing artists and their dreams.”
    In the 15 years since he began at Steinhardt, Hamingson feels he has finally come full circle. As an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions, Hamingson now teaches theater development for the performing arts to students, instilling in them the same passion for the performing arts he saw in his instructors.
    “At Steinhardt, I really learned from people who were working in the arts,” said Hamingson. “My coursework taught me that you could take your passion for the arts and transfer it to a strong administrative side that could help an arts organization realize its mission.”
    In 2004, Hamingson began working for the Atlantic Theater Company, where he helped bring the Tony Award-winning musical Spring Awakening to Broadway. His master’s thesis, in fact, presents a case study of the process of transferring the musical from Off-Broadway to Broadway and the risk-taking involved.
    “It was a challenging musical,” said Hamingson. “It was tackling material not often presented in the musical theatre genre. We felt it needed to be produced. The thesis describes what it took to make it happen.”
    Now at the Public Theater, best known for its “Shakespeare in the Park” at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, Hamingson will work on bringing the Public’s recent revival of Hair to Broadway, as well as overseeing large capital projects, such as a renovation for the Public’s beloved theater at 425 Lafayette Street.