Sinking Ship Productions, a New York-based theater company, is the creative collaboration between Jonathan Levin and Josh Luxenberg. We work with a core group of Associate Artists, combining physical theater, puppetry, music and movement in delightful, strange and unexpected ways. Our productions have grappled with concepts such as the creation and destruction of the universe as imagined by science fiction writers, how a man's search for connection could ultimately lead to complete isolation, and the limits of human understanding through the search for extra dimensions of space in theoretical physics. We like big ideas.

History

Founded in 2008, Sinking Ship’s original works include Cassandra, an Agony, a modern telling of the myth of Cassandra (commissioned by the Getty Museum in L.A.), The 7th Voyage of Egon Tichy, an original live streaming performance based on the story by Stanislaw Lem (Theater in Quarantine; New York Times Critic’s Pick); A Hunger Artist, based on the story by Franz Kafka (premiere at Connelly Theater, 2017, co-produced by The Tank’s Flint & Tinder series, nominated for Drama Desk Awards for Outstanding Solo Performance and for Outstanding Puppet Design; UK premiere at Edinburgh Fringe, 2017, WINNER - Summhall's Lustrum Award for Excellence; tours in the US and Europe), Powerhouse, about the idiosyncratic composer Raymond Scott (workshop at FringeNYC, 2010; premiere at New Ohio Theatre, 2014, O’Neill Playwrights Conference Finalist, 2012; New York Times Critic’s Pick), there will come soft rains, a triptych of science fiction stories (FringeNYC, extended at Barrow Street Theater, 2008), ModrnTim.es (work-in-progress, Dixon Place’s Little Theater), Section B, a site-specific séance in several tries; Ocean (work-in-progress, Mabou Mines Resident Artist Program, 2016), and Flatland (work-in-progress, EST/Sloan Foundation Commission, 2010).

In addition to producing original work, Sinking Ship also runs the popular puppet and music series Puppet Playlist, which has played to sold-out crowds since 2009, becoming one of New York's premiere venues for original short-form puppetry.

People have said nice things

“[Audiences are] constantly looking for the next new thing... and with this talented company, we may have found it.”

—Jason Zinoman, The New York Times

 “Thrilling! ... the creative standard to which companies should be pushing themselves.

Aaron Riccio, Theater Talk's New Theater Corps

“The splendid Sinking Ship Productions… aiming to honor the mad, creative urge to perfectly transmute ideas into art... succeeds beautifully.”

David Cote, Time Out New York

“Highly original.”

—Will Friedwald, Wall Street Journal

Selected awards

Two Drama Desk Awards nominations for A Hunger Artist: Outstanding Solo Performance; Outstanding Puppet Design

Summerhall's Lustrum Award for Excellence at the Edinburgh Fringe for A Hunger Artist

UnitedSolo Fest Award for Best Satire for A Hunger Artist

Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference finalist for Powerhouse

FringeNYC Award for Outstanding Ensemble for Powerhouse

FringeNYC Award for Outstanding Direction for there will come soft rains

About Us

Josh Luxenberg

Josh Luxenberg is Sinking Ship’s co-Artistic Director. He is a playwright, director, and photographer. Credits with SSP include: Cassandra, an Agony (J. Paul Getty Museum, commission), The 7th Voyage of Egon Tichy (Theater in Quarantine, a NY Times Critics Pick), A Hunger Artist (Connelly Theater/The Tank, nominated for two 2018 Drama Desk Awards, and winner of Summerhall's Lustrum Award for Excellence at the Edinburgh Fringe 2017), Powerhouse (New Ohio, O’Neill Playwrights Conference Finalist, NY Times Critics Pick), Ocean (Mabou Mines Residency), Flatland (EST/Sloan Commission), there will come soft rains (FringeNYC). Josh co-wrote The Dial, an interactive narrative augmented reality installation created by NightLight Labs (premiere at Sundance Film Festival 2019). Josh is the General Manager of the Connelly Theater, where his programming includes Mandy Patinkin in Concert: Diaries (New York Theatre Workshop), The Lucky Ones (Ars Nova),  Futurity (Soho Rep./Ars Nova), Lypsinka!, The Offending Gesture (The Tank), and Daniel Kitson’s A Show for Christmas. He is co-curator of Flint & Tinder, The Tank's flagship theater series: YOUARENOWHERE, Ada|Ava, Paper Hat Game. Josh has also worked as an assistant director at Baltimore CENTERSTAGE, Paper Mill Playhouse, NYMF, Virginia Stage, and as a writers assistant at Playwrights Horizons. He worked in the writer’s office of HBO’s The Wire, and is an alum of the Baltimore School for the Arts and Oberlin College.

Jonathan Levin

Jon Levin is Sinking Ship's co-Artistic Director. He is a director, performer & puppeteer. Recent directing credits include Cassandra: An Agony (J. Paul Getty Museum), The 7th Voyage of Egon Tichy (NYT Critics Pick), and Footnote for the End of Time, both with Theater In Quarantine (live-streamed from a closet on the Lower East Side). He co-created and performed A Hunger Artist at the Connelly Theatre for which he was nominated for two Drama Desk awards: Outstanding Solo Performance and Outstanding Puppet design, and was awarded Summerhall’s Lustrum Award for Excellence at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Additional SSP directing credits include Powerhouse at the New Ohio Theatre (NYTimes Critics Pick), Flatland, an EST/Sloan commission, Ocean at Mabou Mines Suite and There Will Come Soft Rains at FringeNYC (Excellence Award for Outstanding Direction). In addition to his work with the Sinking Ship Productions, Jon is also a founding member of the Krumple Theatre company, with which he has co-directed and performed work throughout Norway and in NYC since 2014. As puppeteer Jon has worked extensively with Wakka Wakka: SAGA, Animal R.I.O.T., & The Immortal Jellyfish Girl. Jon is a graduate of the École Internationale de Théâtre de Jacques Lecoq and holds a BA in theater and neuroscience from Oberlin College.