The Artist Fellowship Awards are one of Great Performances’ most cherished traditions and every year, they remind us just how deeply creativity runs through our community. In 2025, GP proudly awarded four $5,000 fellowships, investing $20,000 in the artistic projects of team members whose work reflects imagination, heart, and the cultural vitality of New York City.

This year’s winners are:

Yuleima Gonzales - El Manifesto del Duelo

A poetic and conceptual audiovisual piece that explores memory, the body, and the spiritual connection to the land. This project aims to create a sensory and symbolic experience where nature, the female body, and voice intertwine in a visual and sonic invocation.

Ananda White - The Butterfly Vase

A short film about a girlfriend who suddenly finds herself at her boyfriend’s funeral, closed off from her feelings and everyone around her, leaving with his urn in hopes of getting closure on the secret she harbors.

Dane Terry - Record with Dad

An audio-fiction musical podcast about Dane’s childhood, being raised evangelical and experiencing the loss of his mother in a car accident. Dane examines loss, faith, and queerness through memoir and song, which he brings full circle by recording in his hometown with his father on drums.

Michael Russell - Everybody Eats

An illustrated children’s book geared toward ages 3 to 6, Everybody Eats aims to promote inclusivity through what and how people eat and to combat body shame. Everybody Eats is the unofficial prequel to Everyone Poops.

The fellows were honored at a ceremony on January 12 at Mae Mae Café and Plant Shop, an event that has become a favorite among GP employees. The gathering brought colleagues together to celebrate one another’s creative ambitions and hear directly from the artists about the work they’re bringing into the world. Founder and CEO Liz Neumark presented the awards alongside New York State Assemblymember Amanda Septimo, who also presented each awardee with an official Citation from the New York State Assembly in recognition of their artistic achievements.

Rooted in GP’s founding mission to provide flexible employment that empowers women in the arts, the Artist Fellowship Awards continue to be a source of pride across the company. Year after year, the program reflects what makes Great Performances special: a shared belief that supporting each other’s creativity makes us all stronger.

Celebrating the 2025 Artist Fellowship Awards

Fellowship Spotlight: Tira Adams, Conjure

Great Performances 2024 Artist Fellowship Awards Winners

2023 Fellowship Award Winner Aubrey Hunt Publishes His First Book

Celebrating Creativity: The 2023 Great Performances Artist Fellowship Award Winners

Great Performances’ Artist Fellowship Awards

When we asked Tira Adams, one of GP’s 2024 Fellowship recipients, how the award helped her artistically, she didn’t hesitate: “I finally got to make the thing! This award was exactly what I needed to move Conjure from idea to a real, living, breathing pilot.”

Conjure, a supernatural audio drama set in Brooklyn, has been living with Tira in one form or another for nearly twenty years. The Fellowship helped her clear one of the biggest creative hurdles artists face, funding, by allowing her to move the project out of development limbo and into production.

“In New York there’s always that can-do attitude of ‘come on, guys, let’s put on a show!’” she explains. “But there are very real costs that come with storytelling. Especially when you’re making a full season of 13 thirty-minute audio episodes. That’s like saying you’re going to make 13 short films.”

With Fellowship support, Tira entered the studio, heard actors speak lines she had written and rewritten, and released a fully produced 30-minute pilot. “To put my baby out into the world makes me giddy with excitement,” she says. “I have such confidence now that I can create this story on my terms and that it not only works, but other people want to hear it.”

The project also marked a major professional shift. “This was a real leveling-up moment for me,” Tira shares. Beyond the creative work, she stepped into leadership by managing production, contracts, meetings, and community-building. “No one tells you in drama school how much of this work is emails and meetings,” she laughs. “The creative part is often the cherry on top.”

Through Conjure, Tira expanded her network, connected with the New York audio community, and secured fiscal sponsorship through AIR Media, gaining critical infrastructure to support the project’s future.

While the journey didn’t unfold exactly as planned, it reshaped the work for the better. After submitting the pilot to the Tribeca Festival audio division, Tira realized the scope of the project required a pivot of more time, more care, and long-term sustainability. She restructured Season One into Volumes I and II, making space for both artistic integrity and personal realities, including navigating the loss of her father.

In Conjure, Tira’s characters live by a family symbol: the turtle, with the motto “the race doesn’t belong to the swift nor the strong, but to those who endure till the end.” As she puts it, “Yeah — sometimes your work comes back to bite ya.”

Next up: Volume I of Conjure will be produced as a live radio play under a SAG New Media contract, with rehearsals beginning in early 2026. The pilot will be exhibited this fall at the Urban Action Showcase in Times Square, with additional festival appearances and a virtual premiere to follow.

“The turtle still won,” Tira says.

We’re proud to have supported Tira Adams through the Great Performances Artist Fellowship and we are excited to see Conjure and Tira continue to grow.

Check Out Tira's Work

More From the Fellowship Awards

Celebrating the 2025 Artist Fellowship Awards

Fellowship Spotlight: Tira Adams, Conjure

Great Performances 2024 Artist Fellowship Awards Winners

2023 Fellowship Award Winner Aubrey Hunt Publishes His First Book

Celebrating Creativity: The 2023 Great Performances Artist Fellowship Award Winners

Great Performances’ Artist Fellowship Awards

In November 2023, Aubrey Hunt, a member of our event staff, was awarded a Great Performances Fellowship Award. The $5,000 grant is presented following a rigorous selection process overseen by judges who are notable individuals in the creative and artistic fields throughout New York City. Members of our event staff who meet employment criteria and invited to submit an application to the grant, which comprises a description of their project, a budget and outline of what they’d do with the award money, and any additional supporting materials. We received almost 100 applications and awarded 4 grants.

Aubrey’s project was to complete a children’s book he had written inspired by watching a flock of pigeons take flight while he was working at an event at Jazz at Lincoln Center. He used the grant money to complete his story, hire an illustrator, and get his book published.

His book, The Bird Who Was Afraid to Fly, is now available on Amazon in print and digital formats. We sat down with Aubrey to talk to him about the process and what his plans are next.

GP: We’re so thrilled that you’ve been able to publish your book! Can you tell us how the award helped?

AH: The award actually helped me get over my most difficult hump because the book was already written. I was able to hire an illustrator and then publish the book through Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing.

GP: The story is beautiful, as are the illustrations. How did you find an illustrator?

AH: I went through a variety of sources, but ended up using a freelance service. I found five different artists and I paid each of them to do a sample page from my manuscript, and they could choose their scene. It was great to see their interpretations, but Bahagia’s stood out immediately. Her art style kind of reminded of the art that was in the books that I read when I was young.

GP: Tell us about your writing process?

AH: My commute is kind of long, sometimes 2 ½ hours, depending on where the event is, so I use my commute to do most of my writing. I’ll write or think while I’m on public transportation or even during breaks and downtimes during events.

GP: Where do you get your ideas from?

AH: I get my ideas from everywhere, and a lot of them are about lessons that I essentially wish I could have learned when I was younger. But these are all coming from personal life experiences and that’s why it’s something I feel is incredibly relatable. And when I find inspiration, I’ll just jot down notes and come back to it when I’m off work.

GP: What’s your process as you’re developing your ideas?

AH: I would talk with some of the other staff at GP, especially the people who, when I first came up with the idea and discussed it with them, supported it from day one. Those are the pepole I would turn to and ask if they’d mind reading it for me and giving me their general opinion. That’s worked wonders for me.

GP: It sounds like you have a lot of ideas for new books. What’s next?

AH: Oh yes! I actually currently have two [books] already completely written. They do have to be edited, so that’s my next step, and then I’ll be working on trying to publish at least one if not both sometime this year.

Aubrey’s dedication to his craft and his goal of impacting the future generation through his writing is truly inspiring. It’s clear that his journey as an author is just beginning, and there’s much more to come from his creative endeavors.

CELEBRATING CREATIVITY: THE 2023 GREAT PERFORMANCES ARTIST FELLOWSHIP AWARDS WINNERS

By Great Performances

We’re thrilled to announce the winners of our 2023 Great Performances Artist Fellowship Awards.

On Tuesday, December 12, we unveiled the winners at a ceremony held at our own Mae Mae Café and Plant Shop in the Bronx. The awards, four $5,000 grants, were presented to members of our staff to help foster their artistic dreams and pursue their creative careers.

The Awardees and Their Inspiring Projects

Jonathan Lauture: Igniting Imagination Through Music

Lauture, inspired by the birth of his son and his background in music production, founded Johnny’s Way—a children’s media company. His animated YouTube series educates and entertains kids through music, and he has plans to expand the series, publish a second children’s book, and enhance the brand’s visibility.

Check out his first book here

Check out Jonny’s Way youtube channel:

Aubrey Hunt: Flight of Lessons, Self-Love, and Healing

Hunt’s project takes flight from an awe-inspiring moment during a Jazz at Lincoln Center event. Observing a flock of pigeons, he was inspired to create a book about life lessons, self-love, and healing. The grant will support collaboration with a professional writer and illustrator for digital and print publication.

Iyana Shelby: Art You Can Feel: Navigating Grief Through Multimedia

Shelby’s project, “Art You Can Feel,” emerged from the profound loss of her mother during the pandemic. It explores the tapestry of human emotions through a multimedia art display, capturing the collective journey of processing grief. The grant will cover outreach, marketing, art creation, and eventual presentation.

Amir Windley: Ties That Choke: Exploring Childhood Friendships on Film

A former aspiring actor turned director, Windley harnessed his creativity and experience for a project, “Ties That Choke,” that delves into the unbreakable bond of childhood friendships. Having won Best Director in the Film Connection program’s 48-hour film challenge, the grant will support the creation of this compelling narrative.

Check out some of Amir Windley’s work:

The judging panel consisted of esteemed figures from prestigious cultural entities from across New York:

Heather Lubov, executive director, City Parks Foundation
Viviana Bianchi, executive director, The Bronx Council of the Arts
Angela Vallot, consultant, Entrepreneur
Klaudio Rodriguez, executive director, The Bronx Museum of the Arts

The Great Performances Artist Fellowship Awards serves as a testament to GP’s enduring mission to empower individuals in the arts. We look forward to following these talented individuals as they pursue their creative dreams and seeing the impact of the grant. Our commitment to supporting the arts remains at the core of our values, echoing our roots in providing flexible, part-time employment to support people’s artistic careers.

For past winners, please follow the link here.

GP ARTISTS - UPCOMING EVENTS

Our Great Performances Artists have been busy! Check out some of their creative and artistic endeavors below!

ASHTON HEYL

Egg Party, a short film I co-wrote and acted in, will have its World Premiere at Cinequest Film Festival. The Festival runs March 20th-30th, and tickets are 99 cents to view any time during that period. Tickets are at https://creatics.org/cinejoy, and our website with a trailer to the film is www.eggpartyfilm.com. We were also awarded the Panavision New Filmmaker Award to make the film. The Story: In late spring, six powerhouse women gather together in a Brooklyn apartment for a not-so-sober egg decorating party to support one of their own struggling with fertility. As the afternoon unfolds, the strength of their laughter and friendship creates new birth.

JENNIFER HIEMSTRA

Will be performing in a choral concert with Ember Choral Arts on March 26-27th with musical messages of bridging divides, and later this summer will be joining the U.S. Army as a vocalist in their Regional Band career field!

KEVIN HORNE

I have a TikTok account that features all things New York City. While part of GP’s delivery teams for the Get Food NYC project during the first 7 months of the pandemic. I became fascinated with the outdoor seating areas that restaurants were building. There seemed to be no way for people to know what a given restaurant was building, so I showcased local businesses. It’s since grown into a channel featuring anything and everything about this wonderful city we call home. I post to other social media, but TikTok is where my audience is- 56K and growing!

@nightwindnyc Grand Central Terminal #nyc #newyorkcity #newyork #manhattan #midtown #trains #grandcentral #travel #tourism #trains ♬ Bright company background music - TimTaj

DANIEL LERNER

I just released my new single in anticipation of my upcoming EP (due later in 2022). The single is called Harvest the Moon. https://fanlink.to/htm.

JEROME BROOKS JR

Composer & Performer

Playlist

2 Videos

“Debbie Allen Workout” 10-27-21

0:16

“Grossman School Graduate”

0:16

I was a 2021 #CityArtistCorps Grant recipient for my original musical. Since I want to also create opportunities for fellow GP Actors to perform I cast Philip Eng in one of the roles and the 1 night event presentation was SOLD OUT. SOCIAL DISTANCE Musical follows a week amidst the Coronavirus where four multiethnic New York artist friends unite via technology while in quarantine at the start of the pandemic: a black musician, a Chinese gamer, a South East Asian medical student and a BIPOC Social Media Influencer. In the spirit of Lieber and Stoller, Ain’t Misbehavin, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Songs for a New World, SOCIAL DISTANCE is a sung through musical . The presentation took place at the OFF-Broadway PLAYERS THEATRE Oct. 27th, 2021 This is a link to the Broadway World Article: https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Musical-Theatre-Composer-Jerome-Brooks-Jr-Recognized-with-City-Artists-Corp-Grant-20210909 These are the social media links to relive the show with hopes it will progress to a possible bigger opportunity for all involved

ADDITIONAL LINKS

Personal / Professional

Other

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Azeyol

Musical

Instagram: SocialDistanceMusical
Twitter: SocialDistanceA

YULEIMA

Music Producer

Yelitza (my twin sister) and I work with Linda Briceño aka Ella Bric, a two-time Latin Grammy winner and the first woman to win as Producer of the Year. When the quarantine started we thought that our block needed a little help at the 7 pm clap for essential workers. So one day, after coming back from delivering meals for the elderly, with the help of a friend, we set up the speakers in a window and asked Ella to play her trumpet while Yelitza played the tambourine and I played the maracas from the street. Well, the neighbors loved our mini-concert so much that one day became three months. Every day at 7 pm “La trompeta de Harlem” came out and played for 10 minutes. First by herself, but later with many well-known musicians that wanted to join the cause.

People came in from all over Harlem, the Upper West Side, Long Ilsand City and even New Jersey. They came out from their windows, their balconies, fire escapes, and some of them stayed in their cars while many were on the street.

We were featured on the local news, on Univision, CNN, on an AT&T commercial, and on the first documentary for YouTube Originals called “Aislados”.

On October 16th at 7 pm, Ella Bric will be played at the Lincoln Center: Gold Sessions at the Hearst Plaza.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Ella Bric (@ellabricmusic)

ADDITIONAL LINKS

http://lincolncenter.org/lincoln-center-at-home/show/gold-sessions-ella-bric-931

SANTOS IRWIN

Photographer

In 2018 I had the great opportunity to visit Uganda and Rwanda.

I got to see amazing animal life and meet remarkable people while learning about the roots “where it all began”.

These portraits are of some of the children I met along the way.

Every child welcomed me with a smile or laugh and it opened my eyes and heart even more.

Many kids have to trek miles for school, necessities, work and water.

Each child had such a presence when they talked to me.

The purity and kindness of the children reminded me that we must treat each other with love and respect.

I thought this would tie in with what is happening in our world today.

With Black Lives Matter we all have to stop looking at our differences the hate and anger has to be turned into love, acceptance and understanding. These images help to remind me during these turbulent times of the saying I heard while in Africa “One Blood, One World”.

NY's Waiters Sing Their Hearts Out

It’s a different holiday season for us. We’re not throwing parties and our gifted waiters aren’t able to extend their skills and talents to provide the gracious service you’ve associated with our events. Instead, NY’s Waiters Sing Their Hearts Out as Great Performances’ incredibly talented team members share their talents in song, story, and music to help spread holiday cheer in your homes.

ABOUT THE PREFORMERS

Aubrey Barnes

Come, O Come Emmanuel

The Christmas Song

Christmas Medley (Live)

Aubrey Barnes is indeed the musical doyen of multi-genre song. His current project, the debut of his jazz standards CD, in the spring of 2021, is his passionate focus for the time being. He’s actually fond of sharing the fact that the venerable Frank Owens, pianist to the stars and former Johnny Mathis pianist, is his pianist for his debut CD. “The CD will showcase an impressive array of familiar and uncommon songs from the primer songbook, ‘The American Songbook…’ “ Aubrey shares. Aubrey credits and thanks his Mother for his lifelong artistry, for her personal example and for her love and support. “Hearing Aubrey sing is nothing short of receiving a spiritual transmission. He sings from such an intensely personal place that it immediately becomes universal; the audience is included, embraced and uplifted. Aubrey Barnes is a stunning vocalist and a deeply powerful performer. He will make you want to live more fully, love, laugh and cry. Aubrey Barnes brings the magic-inspiring audiences in this hurting, yet still precious world.” Hilary James

Website: aubreybarnes.com

Caitlin Borek

Grown Up Christmas List

I’m Caitlin Borek. I hail from the midwest but I’ve called NYC my home for nearly 5 years now. GP was a huge reason I was able to flourish in this grand city, with it’s flexible hours, solid pay, and the artists they hire. It’s the best kind of environment for a hustling performer. I studied musical theatre, and am currently performing in a Christmas Concert up in Wisconsin. The theatre has gone above and beyond with safety measures due to Covid-19, including occupying the house at only 25% capacity, installing iodizers in the filtration system, social distancing the audience and requiring the use of masks, and keeping the 4 singers 8ft away from everyone at all times. This piece I submitted is one of the songs from the show. I love how it captures the desire for peace and love in these trying times, and I wanted to share that sense of optimism.

www.caitlinborek.com
IG @sea2bee2
Tiktok @caitlinborek

Chandra Albritton

The Man with the Bag

Chandra Albritton is a singer/actor originally for Maryland. She has worked in various theatre in Virginia, Wisconsin, Florida, and New York. She is currently keeping herself busy with classes and working on her film reel. You can find her vocal work at http://www.youtube.com/user/PinkChan09 and acting work at https://vimeo.com/user66398098.

Ellen Christi

Merry Christmas Baby

Santa Baby

Since the mid-seventies, Ellen Christi has steadily gained ground as an important contributor to American improvised music and contemporary jazz. As a composer/vocalist, Ms. Christi has worked in varying performance venues ranging from multi-media theatrical productions to solo vocal concerts. She has also been an active advocate in supporting innovative performing artists through organizations that she has co-founded or directed. Presently, she has reopened Christi Sound Studios and has begun recording and editing podcasts and also teaching vocal technique and vocal improvisation. You can find more information at her website www.ellenchristi.com.

Jason Lee

The Laughing Heart

Jason Lee is an actor/singer from Taiwan currently based in New York, and is a Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute. Recent credits include Eighty-12 (Amazon Prime Video), Richard III (American Theatre of Actors), Gypsy (Heights Players), Here To Recruit You (Wild Project) and Yell-Low (Dixon Place). He has also acted in an original French play he co-wrote with friends, and a theatrical adaptation of Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis which won the Excellence Award of Taipei Fringe Festival. His latest work CherryBomb will launch on Amazon Prime Video in March 2021.

www.jasonchlee.com
Instagram: @jason.c.h.lee

Jerome Brooks, Jr.

Jerome Brooks, Jr. is a SAG-AFTRA/ AEA Actor/ Composer.

FaceBook: @JeromeBrooksMusicFans
Twitter: @JeromeBrooksJr
Instagram: @JeromeBrooksMusic
YouTube: @Azeyol

Kat Liz Kramer

Christmas Medley (Live)

Kat Liz Kramer – American Singer Songwriter. Favorite past credits include: Cabaret- This Is Me at Don’t Tell Mama, David Drumgold’s variety show, Kat Liz Kramer & Friends, and Mondays, mondaysintheclub.com Theatre- Smokey Joe’s Cafe 20th Anniversary(National tour) Man in The Mirror(World tour) Hero, An Origin Story as Rea(NYMF), Single Room Occupancy as Crystal(Fringe), Anything Goes as Reno Sweeney(regional), Special guest on Rising Star(BeTerrificTV) Kat’s original music can be found on all streaming platforms with My Wonderland Special Edition. She is currently recording her first full length album using Broadway musicians and production staff affected by the COVID shutdown. The world may have stopped but the music lives on. Kat was the first artist in residence for We Light www.welighthome.com another way to bring a bright light in times as these.

https://gf.me/u/yz5g93
https://music.apple.com/us/album/my-wonderland-special-edition/1536264382
Instagram & Facebook @katlizkramer
katlizkramer.com

Kat is a proud member of Actors Equity.

Kendrick Mitchell

This Christmas

Kendrick is a New York based actor and singer originally from Houston, Texas. He has toured the country, and sailed the seas with the Tony Award winning show, After Midnight. You can catch him on select Wednesdays and Saturdays at the Seville, jamming alongside his bandmates.

Instagram: @KendrickMitchellOfficial
Website: KendrickMitchell.com

Kevin Horne

Kevin is an actor, writer, director, and producer. He has performed in many regional productions, and although you probably don’t remember it, he sold you something via various commercials on TV. For seven years he produced the 90X Arts Festival, which was a showcase of the professional talent working at GP where shows such as Into the Woods, Little Shop of Horrors, and Urinetown were presented. He wrote the modern day farce Death Is a Waltz (affectionately described as Weekend at Bernie’s meets Chopped) which was being presented just as the pandemic hit, so be on the lookout for that when things get back to “normal“. You can follow him on TikTok and Instagram @NightWindNYC where he makes short videos showcasing restaurants in New York City. He also finds it awkward writing about himself in the third person.

Lauren E King

The Spirit of Christmas

Lauren E King is an actor, singer, dancer, and NYC transplant from Lilburn, GA. After obtaining her BA in Theatre and BA in Advertising from the University of Georgia (’19), she joined the North American tour of PAW Patrol Live! The Great Pirate Adventure! as Mayor Goodway. After the cancellation of the tour from COVID and moving to New York, she performed in a workshop production of Homeless Garden with Refracted Theatre Company and is now channeling her energy into song covers and crafting her voiceover reel. Off stage you can find her admiring bodega cats while running errands as a Personal Assistant. She would like to thank her friends and family for their continuous outpour of love and support and the Universe for having a wicked sense of humor when it comes to making your plans into bigger and better things.

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrOcnAZdcb77m46vUkag0vw?view_as=subscriber

Instagram: @ren.elizabeth.king

Mark Donato

Panis Angelicus by César Franck

A “jack of all trades:” Mark Donato is a professional singer of 33 years, and Vinyasa Yoga (& Meditation) instructor of 22 years. He also worked professionally as a Tap Dancer for 15 years; doing National & International tours of Broadway shows; like “42nd Street,” “Crazy For You,” “The Will Rogers Follies,” & “State Fair.”

The last 15 years have been primarily focused as a classical tenor doing choral work in several concerts & Opera’s. Much of which have been with The American Symphony Orchestra, and the Bard Music Festival. Mark sang at Carnegie Hall 15 times. Once as a soloist! He also has an extensive history singing in Churches & Synagogues; much of which is as a Cantor/Chanter in Catholic Churches.

Within all of that, Mark also has a long history performing on cruise ships with companies like Holland America, and Celebrity.

Working in the Catering industry all these years is what makes this performing arts lifestyle possible.

Michael Fisher

SnowBirds

I’m an AEA actor and a U.S. Army veteran. I love camping, hiking, and just being outdoors with friends and family. My dream house would have a woodworking shop in the back yard and a big wraparound porch where I could sit and play guitar in the evening. I love riding motorcycles and I am newly engaged to be married and my favorite color is orange!

https://soundcloud.app.goo.gl/ozAeoCqEuwuuwDHCA

Trifon Dimitrov

Alone Together

Christmas Time Is Here

Trifon Dimitrov was born in Pleven, Bulgaria. After graduating the National Academy of Music in Sofia, Bulgaria in 2002, Trifon moved to Frankfurt, Germany where he studied and performed till 2004. In 2004 he began studying at Brooklyn-Queens Conservatory of Music in New York, USA. He is

honored to be a student of the jazz legend Ron Carter. Trifon has performed at numerous Jazz Festivals, clubs, TV, Radio and Broadway shows. Currently based in New York, Trifon actively performs in USA and around the world.

Icons made by Freepik from www.flaticon.com

Get to know more GP Artists.

Sharing Our GPA (Great Performances’ Artists)

40 years ago we started as a company to provide women in the arts with an income so they could pursue their artistic dreams. Today, we renew that commitment for all individuals at Great Performances. We’re launching GPA, Great Performances’ Artists, to showcase the talent of our staff and share their art. From singers and songwriters to film and documentary makers, we have hundreds of talented individuals who are eager to share their craft with you.

We’re constantly updating our list, so check back often — and if you like what they do or would like them to perform at your next virtual (or live!) event, drop us a line at celebratefood@greatperformances.com.