April Cleveland shares how she and thirteen artists built The Exodus Ensemble—Santa Fe’s radical, immersive theatre company—by daring to leave behind tradition, embrace risk, and create electric, community-rooted performance experiences.
When the theater industry came to a halt in 2020, April Cleveland didn’t wait for it to come back—she built something new. In this inspiring and deeply personal talk, April shares the origin story of The Exodus Ensemble, a radical immersive theatre company founded by thirteen artists who left big-city careers to create electric, community-rooted performances in Santa Fe. Through stories of risk, burnout, resilience, and reinvention, April explores what it truly means to revive an artform—and yourself. NOTE: Due to copyright protections, we are not able to show you the preview performance by The Exodus Ensemble. Please visit their website to learn more.
About the speaker
April Cleveland is the Artistic and Executive Director of The Exodus Ensemble, an award-winning immersive theatre company based here in Santa Fe. Known for bold reimaginings of classic texts, April and her ensemble create electrifying, intimate performances that dissolve the line between audience and actor. In 2024, Exodus performed over 100 times, was featured on the cover of American Theatre Magazine, and received both The Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts and the New Mexico Entertainment Award for Top Performing Arts Group.
In her talk on this month’s theme, Revival, April shares the story of how ten artists left behind big-city careers to build something radical and community-rooted in Santa Fe. Through donation-based, immersive performances in homes, trailers, and other unconventional spaces, Exodus revives not only classic stories but also the purpose of theatre itself. For April, revival isn’t about returning—it’s about reimagining, risking, and daring to begin again. Not through tradition, but through trust, risk, and radical access.
Revival = Resurrection.
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CCA | Muñoz-Waxman Gallery space
1050 Old Pecos Trail Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico United States 87505
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City of Santa Fe Office of Economic Development
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