Founded in 2002 by Arian Moayed and Tom Ridgely, Waterwell is dedicated to the creation of new work and bold reinterpretation of classics. The company’s special blend of music, theater and social dialog has been nominated for three IT awards, a Drama Desk, a New York Magazine Culture Award and Village Voice Best of NYC. Recent work includes the resurrection of lost WWII-era Frank Loesser musicals Blueprint Specials, featuring civilian and military performers onboard the former USS Intrepid (Public Theater’s Under the Radar Festival); as well as a dual-language (English/Farsi) adaptation of Hamlet performed by a cast predominantly of Middle Eastern and South Asian actors. The company also believes strongly in the power of the arts in youth development. Its acclaimed educational arm, the Waterwell Drama Program, has delivered – in partnership with the Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS) – top-quality, year-round, in-school theater training to over 200 NYC public school students annually since 2010. Partnerships with Manhattan Youth, the New School and others provide rich artmaking experiences to dozens of additional students each year, from middle school through college.