Fran de Leon, a seasoned performer and director, has been named the new artistic director of Theater Mu. Once the transition takes place, she will become the fifth person to hold the position in the history of the Midwest’s largest Asian American theatre company.
A Los Angeles native, De Leon brings decades of experience to the table, having begun producing at just 19. Since then, she has gone on to work with East West Players, Geffen Playhouse, South Coast Rep, and Pasadena Playhouse, just to name a few. On television, she has appeared in shows like Criminal Minds, Speechless, and the recent Netflix hit The Brothers Sun. In her new role as artistic director, in addition to producing Theater Mu’s program for the upcoming season, de Leon will leverage that extensive background while overseeing initiatives like festivals and Mu’s Training Institute, which aims to support artists of color to develop in the space.
De Leon’s hire concludes a nationwide search, which was intentionally focused on finding a leader who could expand Mu’s reach and reputation nationally, while continuing to center underrepresented voices.
“[De Leon] brings a great blend of experience, leadership, and vision,” said Elizabeth Hang and Nonoko Sato, who were the search’s co-leads and serve on the company’s board of directors, in a statement to Broadway World. “We look forward to working together to continue Mu’s excellence in art and impact in the community.”
Despite the national reach of her career thus far, de Leon says her approach to her new role will be one rooted in humility and community. In an interview with the Sahan Journal, she stated, “I really want to come in here for the first year with an open heart, open eyes, open ears, and learn what it is that the Twin Cities theater community and the community at large want to cherish, represent, and convey.”
Such a focus on local voices is more critical now for the organization than ever before. Under the Trump administration’s proposed budget priorities, arts organizations like Theater Mu that serve diverse communities have come under increased financial strain. The Sahan Journal reported that just last month, Theater Mu lost a $20,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for its production of Fifty Boxes of Earth, which the NEA claimed did not fall under the grant’s emphasis on “projects that reflect the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity as proposed by the president.”
Despite the obstacles that face her from the outset of her directorship, de Leon remains undeterred. “Art and activism are in my DNA,” she said in a statement as reported by American Theatre. “My purpose in the theatre world is to engage, enlighten, disrupt, and sometimes enrage—I’m okay with that too.”
De Leon officially stepped into the role on June 2 and will transition fully into the position by the end of the year, joining managing director Anh Thu T. Pham in a co-leadership structure in the interim.
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