our history: from artists, for artists

In the late 1980's, a group of San Francisco theater artists, including David Dower, formed the Z Collective, an innovative theater company. In 1993, after the collective disbanded, Dower created the Z Space Studio, a laboratory for developing new Bay Area theater.

The Z Space emerged out of Dower's belief that much of American theater was stymied by a product-driven process that did not allow artists to develop at their own pace. By creating Z Space, Dower strove to create a place that artists could call home, in all its senses - a place that offered security, encouragement, advice, and comradeship in the form of other artists also pursuing their creative ends.

He invited Bay Area theater artists to join the Studio and many signed on. While most initially pursued solo projects, two women, Susan Harloe and JoAnne Winter, wished to create a literature-based theater company. Soon Word for Word had a core company and a repertoire of stories, which they performed in local libraries, schools, and theaters. In 1994, Word for Word became the first program of the Z Space Studio and, over the years, the company has earned many accolades for its work and has presented stories from prominent authors like Barbara Kingsolver, Amy Tan, Tobias Wolff, Daniel Handler, and Greg Sarris.

As the organization continued to grow, so did its endeavors, including an ever-expanding Youth Arts program, also headed by Winter. Starting from the idea that Word for Word's unique style offered a perfect entry point for students to literature, Youth Arts first launched an annual School & Library Tour, done in the Word for Word style. That program eventually expanded to also offer workshops and residencies for both students and teachers, with the goal of furthering the use of theater as an educational tool.

As the Z Space has continued to grow, Dower has welcomed new artistic input in the form of Lisa Steindler, a seasoned actor and producer (and artistic director of San Francisco's Encore Theatre Company), and has formalized the other development projects that existed at the Z Space into the newest program, Z Plays Development. Z Plays has been responsible for the nurturing of solo artists like Josh Kornbluth and Anne Galjour, as well as the development of large-scale projects like The People's Temple, The Bucky Show, and the forthcoming Los Alamos Project.

Wherever the future takes the organization, the guiding mission of all of its members remains the same as it was in 1993. The Z Space will forever be a place that nurtures the best and brightest in the San Francisco Bay Area, from children in kindergarten all the way up to our artists, audience, and the national arts community.