The first Lab Fellows cohort consisted of ten pathbreaking artists who exemplify radical diversity in geography, socioeconomic status, race, religion, gender, sexual preference, national origin, and politics. The members of this cohort hail from Cambodia, Colombia, Palestine, Syria, the US, Zimbabwe – immigrants, children of immigrants, and refugees, containing and connecting multiple cultures. They are actors, directors, writers, clowns, scholars, producers, activists, dramaturgs, educators, and community leaders, all of them holding a range of complex identities as artists, activists, professionals, and people.
“Being one of the Lab Fellows means so much to me – as an artist, as a Syrian woman, and as a refugee. This is an amazing group of people, and I’m so proud to be one of them. We are more than friends, we’ve been united under the name of humanity, culture, and art, a connection that eclipses the different places we’re from. These are relationships that will last forever.”
– Reem Alsayyah, Inaugural Lab Fellow
