Dream Street Theatre Company

Our goal: through large-scale theatrical productions, performing arts training, and community outreach performances, DreamStreet helps those with developmental abilities and special needs strengthen their artistic and interpersonal skills, build confidence, and become role models in their communities.

DreamStreet provides adults living with developmental disabilities opportunity, fulfillment, education and inspiration through its performing
arts programming. DreamStreet also offers their families peace of mind, hope, and joy in seeing their loved ones succeed at something they
love.

Specifically, these are the community benefits we expect from our programming every year:

Benefit #1, Learn artistic skills: Cast members will learn new production skills including creative writing, artistic direction and production, set
design, and performance.

Benefit #2, Gain fulfillment: Cast members will report satisfaction and joy in expressing themselves creatively and artistically, and will gain
experience in pursuing a full circle creative process.

Benefit #3, Become amateur or professional artists: Cast members that participate in the Platform Project will gain skills and knowledge for
artistic career development, and pursue opportunities in/are recruited by the performing arts sector.

Benefit #4, Increased appreciation of the unique abilities of people with development disabilities: Audience members (about 3,100) will gain
significant appreciation for the talents and contributions of cast members with development disabilities, helping to breakdown stigma and
increase opportunities for cast members (and others).

The DreamStreet team consists of talented and dedicated group of NYC performing artists.
Key members include:

KENDRA HEISLER, Executive Director
Kendra joined DreamStreet's team in 1998 as an assistant stage manager and photography intern. Kendra received her BFA in Photography from F.I.T. in NYC and currently serves on the Board of the Downtown Brooklyn Artists' Alliance, on the Advisory Board of the nonprofit Friends of Karen, and as a member of the Y.M.C.A.’s Senior Citizen Life Improvement Efforts.


MIRIAM WASMUND, Artistic Director
Miriam began her journey with DreamStreet as a Teaching Artist in 2013. She has been a professional performer, dancer, and choreographer in New York City for 15 years, since beginning her conservatory studies with Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre in 2001. From 2004-2010, she served as a Founding Partner and Artistic Director of The Impulse Initiative, producing collaborative dance and theater. Since 2010, she has focused on creating smaller concert dance pieces of her own. Her work with the Special Needs community began at the age of 17 as a volunteer for Park School in Evanston, IL. Miriam brings love for performance, dance, choreography, and emceeing to her work with the DreamStreet community. She enjoys cultivating a collaborative environment with DreamStreet volunteers, staff, families, and Board.

ARIELLE YODER, Artistic Director
Arielle joined the DreamStreet team as Artistic Director in 2016. Her first experience with devised theater was a politically charged fable she created with nine other fierce artists at The Guthrie. Since then Arielle has been employing clown, mask, and Viewpoints as a way to create theatre that speaks to advocacy and disability. She recently relocated to NYC from Chapel Hill, NC where she obtained her MFA.

RACHEL BOELTER, Associate Artistic Director
Rachel's love of theater and the performing arts started at a young age. She received a BFA in musical theatre from the Boston Conservatory, and she is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Drama Therapy at NYU, in the hope of using her lifelong love of the arts to help, heal, and inspire others. She joined the DreamStreet team in 2016.

JAKE PRIMMERMAN, Associate Artistic Director
As a musical theater performer, Jake's performance credits include the National Tour of Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, Anything Goes, Mary Poppins, and 42nd Street. Additional appearances include the film For the Love of Fred Astaire (starring Len Goodman), The Fred and Adele Astaire Awards, and The Rachael Ray Show. He deeply enjoys his work teaching, guiding, and creating with the DreamStreet cast. He joined the DreamStreet team in 2016.


BRIGITTE CHOURA, Associate Artistic Director
Brigitte Choura is teaching artist and actor. She is a cofounder of Third Wheel Collective, a collaboration-based theatre company. She has toured nationally with Philadelphia’s Enchantment Theatre in their production of The Velveteen Rabbit and their

DreamStreet is in its 21st year, and has reached over 30,000 audience members and members of the NYC community, opening their hearts and minds to the unique abilities and contributions of performing artists with developmental disabilities.

Every year, we:

- Engage 30+ cast members intensely In performance art skill building
- Produce three separate, unique shows
- Perform each show 1-3 times for a total of 3-6 major performances

DreamStreet also enjoys:

- 98% cast member retention rate; and
- Consistent positive feedback (collected three times per year) from participants, participants' social workers, travel companions, and caregivers