Our Mission
Upstream Theater is a professional production company dedicated to bringing a world of theater to St. Louis. We believe that art engages as much as it entertains, and that by feeding the senses we feed the soul. Our goal is to move you, and to move you to think.WORLD CLASS THEATER FOR A WORLD CLASS CITY
Since 2005, Upstream has introduced St. Louis audiences to new plays from places as far-flung as Argentina and Australia, as well as innovative stagings of classics. Two-thirds of our shows have been U.S. premieres, and all are chosen for local impact. We collaborate with theater artists from around the globe, and our shows continue to spark discourse in and beyond our local community. This international focus is unique in the region and rare in the country. Our innovative productions of classical and contemporary works have attracted consistent local recognition as well as national acclaim, including three grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. We are also the only local company (and first in Missouri) to be awarded a National Theatre Grant from the American Theatre Wing (founder of the Tonys).
St. Louis is a city of great diversity, with a wealth of artistic talent. From the beginning we have put that diversity on stage by deliberately and consistently hiring across lines of race and ethnicity. We have also been committed to professionalism since our first production, and have always operated under a full contract with Actors’ Equity, which assures our actors safe working conditions, regulated wages and benefits.
Since 2005, Upstream has introduced St. Louis audiences to new plays from places as far-flung as Argentina and Australia, as well as innovative stagings of classics. Two-thirds of our shows have been U.S. premieres, and all are chosen for local impact. We collaborate with theater artists from around the globe, and our shows continue to spark discourse in and beyond our local community. This international focus is unique in the region and rare in the country. Our innovative productions of classical and contemporary works have attracted consistent local recognition as well as national acclaim, including three grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. We are also the only local company (and first in Missouri) to be awarded a National Theatre Grant from the American Theatre Wing (founder of the Tonys).
St. Louis is a city of great diversity, with a wealth of artistic talent. From the beginning we have put that diversity on stage by deliberately and consistently hiring across lines of race and ethnicity. We have also been committed to professionalism since our first production, and have always operated under a full contract with Actors’ Equity, which assures our actors safe working conditions, regulated wages and benefits.
I.D.E.A. Inclusion. Diversity. Equity. Access.
Upstream Theater remains determined to put diversity on stage, with the plays we produce and the people we hire to produce them. By sharing stories from around the world we celebrate difference while underscoring our common humanity. From the beginning our art has been empowered by deliberate inclusion across race, gender, age, ethnicity, identity, ability, and experience. Just as we make sure no physical barrier impedes accessibility in our venues, we strive to remove unseen barriers that impede progress towards greater equity both within our organization and within our community—and we will continue to look to improve our own approach.PHILIP BOEHM Artistic Director
Upstream Theater’s program is guided by founding Artistic Director Philip Boehm, whose career zigzags across languages and borders, artistic disciplines and cultural divides. As a theater director fluent in several languages he has staged dozens of professional productions at theaters in Poland, Slovakia, and the United States. As a dramatist his produced plays include Mixtitlan, Soul of a Clone, Alma en venta, The Death of Atahualpa, and Return of the Bedbug. For this work he has received awards from the Mexican-American Fund for Culture and the NEA. Locally he has received Kevin Kline Awards both as a director and as a playwright.
He is also the author of more than thirty translations of novels and plays by German and Polish writers, including Nobel laureate Herta Müller, Franz Kafka, Bertolt Brecht, and Hanna Krall. For his work as a translator he has received prizes from a number of institutions including the American Translators Association, the U.K. Society of Authors, the Polish Cultural Institute, the Goethe Institute, PEN USA, the Austrian Ministry of Culture, and the Texas Institute of Letters, as well as fellowships from the NEA and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.
Originally from Texas, Mr. Boehm studied at Wesleyan University (CT), Washington University in St. Louis, and the State Academy of Theater in Warsaw, Poland. He is a frequent invited speaker and has worked as a guest artist at several universities, most recently as a playwriting mentor for the Yale Playwrights Festival. He has served on juries for literary prizes both in the US and abroad, and has published reviews and other articles in various journals including American Theatre and The New York Times.