CHELSEA — A festival in Chelsea aims to help upstart actors create their own theater companies.
The 6th annual Harold Clurman Festival of the Arts kicks off Monday night at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting at 31 W. 27th Street. The festival is a combination of plays, avant-garde performances and panel discussions for those hoping to make it in the business. All events will examine the relationship between art and social activism.
A key panel on Monday night is called "How to build a non-profit theater," and features artistic directors from the city's premier nonprofit performance houses, such as the Signature Theater Company and the SITI Company.
Other events include performances of Clifford Odets' "Waiting for Lefty," and an untitled, avant-garde dance piece by Canadian Margie Gillis.
The festival is named after Harold Clurman, a well-known New York-based producer, director and drama critic, who directed more than 40 broadway shows. The festival itself is a fundraiser for the Stella Adler Studio's outreach division, which provides free theater education to the city's public school students.
The festival begins on Monday at 7 p.m. and runs until Sept. 26.
