Newcity Stage

Theater, Dance, Comedy and Performance in Chicago

Players 50 2026: The Advocates and Changemakers

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by Newcity
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Text-heavy graphic with bold, colorful categories: The Music Makers, The Advocates + Changemakers, The Institutions, The Rising Stars + Storefront Stalwarts, The Producers + Places, over a black background.

Design: Dan Streeting

Players 50 2026: Introduction
Players 50 2026: The Music Makers
Players 50 2026: The Institutions
Players 50 2026: The Rising Stars and Storefront Stalwarts
Players 50 2026: The Producers and Places

Here are Chicago’s Advocates and Changemakers.

Two young men stand close together smiling at the camera. One has glasses, light skin, and curly hair; the other has darker hair, a mustache, and a nose ring. Both appear happy and relaxed against a light background.

Danny Fender and Adam Todd Crawford/Photo: Joe Mazza | brave lux

Adam Todd Crawford and Danny Fender
Co-Owners, The Understudy Coffee and Books

After graduating from the Theater School at DePaul University, Adam Todd Crawford and Danny Fender celebrated their shared love of Chicago theater by opening Understudy, a café, theater and bookstore. Nestled inside an intimate storefront in Andersonville, plays are performed inches from the audience, and are amplified by creative scenic design. Driven by their pillars of community, collaboration and discovery, Crawford and Fender produce a range of work, like Avril Lavigne musical “The Best Damn Thing” (2024), “Blithe Spirit” (2025) by Noel Coward, and community events, like the yearly “KAPWA” Filipinx variety show. (Tristan Bruns)

A person with short, tousled hair wearing a nose ring and a brown-and-white striped button-up shirt, smiling softly against a plain, bright background.

Joanna Furnans/Photo: Joe Mazza | brave lux

Joanna Furnans
Executive Director, Chicago Dancemakers Forum

In an increasingly punishing funding landscape, Chicago Dancemakers Forum—under Executive Director Joanna Furnans’ fearless leadership—remains an oasis for movement artists making groundbreaking work. The organization was forced to take tough austerity measures in 2024, eliminating two key positions. Yet that same year, CDF pumped $230,000 into the local dance ecosystem through its Lab Artist grants, DanceChance program, and paid opportunities for artists, scholars and administrators. In 2026, the group will pause the Lab Artist program while launching project grants to provide ten artists with $10,000 each toward the creation of new work, focusing on unconventional venues and spaces. Furnans will also lead community meetings on how Chicago’s dance organizations and leaders can better meet the needs of artists. (Sharon Hoyer)

A bald man with a scarf and a woman with short hair and glasses stand close together, facing the camera. The man has his arm around the woman’s shoulders. Both have a slight smile. The background is plain and light-colored.

Kevin Iega Jeff and Mashaune Hardy/Photo: Joe Mazza | brave lux

Mashaune Hardy and Kevin Iega Jeff
Co-Directors, Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project

The Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project was born in 2019, transforming the landscape for more than a dozen dance companies, all of which are integral to Chicago’s performing arts scene, yet receive paltry resources compared to Eurocentric companies. Each of the Project’s groups receive multi-year funding, marketing and archival support, along with high-profile performance opportunities at venues like Ravinia, the Harris Theater, the Pritzker Pavilion and the Logan Center at the University of Chicago. Mashaune Hardy—associate director, partnerships and strategy at the Logan Center—and Kevin Iega Jeff—co-founder and former artistic director of Deeply Rooted Dance Theater—stepped into co-director roles in 2024. The third cohort begins this year and will receive, in addition to funding, tailored organizational development and financial management training. (Sharon Hoyer)

A woman with short, blonde hair smiles while wearing a white collared shirt, beige shawl, red lipstick, dangling earrings, and a jeweled headband, standing against a plain light background.

Darlene Jackson/Photo: Joe Mazza | brave lux

Darlene Jackson
Executive Director/CEO, Collaboraction

Darlene “DJ Lady D” Jackson is “Chicago’s House Music Queen,” but her role as chief executive officer and executive director of Collaboraction takes center stage as the organization expands its mission to inspire knowledge, empathy, dialogue and action by bringing theater and youth programs to underserved communities. “We believe in our youth and in funding the future,” says Jackson. “We treat these young artists as artists, and we help them navigate the professional world and their own personal development.” Their new facility in Humboldt Park’s Kimball Arts Center provides more opportunities for Collaboraction to foster the next generation of Chicago superstars. (Tristan Bruns)

A woman in a red jacket and a man in a dark sweater are smiling brightly while standing together against a plain, light-colored background.

Marissa Lynn Jones and Tony Bondoc/Photo: Joe Mazza | brave lux

Marissa Lynn Jones and Tony Bondoc
Executive Director and Director of Programming, League of Chicago Theatres

The League of Chicago Theatres is the city’s one-stop shop for everything theater, including their comprehensive directory for jobs and auditions, information on grants, anti-racist resources and news about programs and events. Marissa Lynn Jones and Tony Bondoc consider the Chicago theater scene as “one big family,” and their role as bridge-builders for the community, a conduit of resources for artists and companies to work together. The League is gearing up for the annual Chicago Theatre Week, February 5-15, their big kickoff to the new year, offering discounts on productions across the city. (Tristan Bruns)

A person with short, curly dark hair and light skin, wearing a brown coat and a dark floral scarf, stands in front of a neutral background, looking at the camera with a soft expression.

Julia Mayer/Photo: Joe Mazza | brave lux

Julia Mayer
Executive Director, See Chicago Dance

Julia Mayer made a name for herself in the Chicago dance scene after moving to the city in 1986. It was a formative time that prepared her for her role as executive director of See Chicago Dance, a communal forum and provider of needed resources for dancers. Despite funding freezes and attacks on diversity and inclusion, Mayer is undeterred in her vision of a united dance community. “We’re in a time of transition,” says Mayer, “and it’s been my privilege to be at this inflection point with the organization and the arts in Chicago.” (Tristan Bruns)

Note: Tristan Bruns is also the managing editor and a dance writer for See Chicago Dance.  

Advocates and Changemakers
Hall of Fame

Emjoy Gavino
Founder, Chicago Inclusion Project

Michael and Mona Heath
Philanthropists

Chris Jones
Theater Critic, Chicago Tribune

Brian Loevner
Founder/President, BLVE

Anthony Moseley
Artistic Director, Collaboraction

Coya Paz
Strategic Director, Free Street Theater

Regina Victor
Founder/Editor-In-Chief, Rescripted

Hedy Weiss
Arts Critic, WTTW