MC Crosby, 2025

MC Crosby (she/they) is a playwright, performer, choreographer, educator, and activist based in New York City. Dancing before they could walk, MC uses their unique style of interactive “movement theatre” to create socially conscious art addressing gender and Queer identity, body image, global mindedness, and the destigmatization of rape and sexual assault. They earned a certificate in playwriting from the University of Glasgow in 2013. That same year, their dance-infused play Sleeping Soldiers received four stars at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival and was a semi-finalist for Amnesty International’s Freedom of Expression Award. Their dystopian play S-T-I-T-C-H was a finalist for the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting in 2014. A global writer and teacher, MC’s work has been produced alongside their theatre courses in New York City, Scotland, China, Singapore, Indonesia, and Madagascar. With over fifteen plays staged in New York, other NYC playwriting highlights include Imprint (2015), Little Feet Big Dreams (2017), Hear Them Roar (2018), A Woman in Your Life (2018), Clique (2019), Um…Om (2019), Patty (2020), Prom Dress (2020), and Arcade Gym (2021). More than fifteen of MC’s plays and poems have been published by Smith and Kraus, Faces of America, Feels Blind Literary, Fresh Words, Masque and Spectacle Magazine, Literature Today, and other media sources. MC was a finalist for the Playwrights’ Center 2020-21 McKnight National Residency and Commission. In 2020, they won the Kaufman Playwriting Award for their immersive yoga play Um…Om. MC studied world theatre traditions in SouthEast Asia from 2021-2024 including Kecak, Talchum, Khon, Peking and Cantonese Opera, Wayang Kulit, Kathakali, and more, exploring the blend of poetry and dance in Eastern Theatre Traditions. During that time, Sekolah Lentera Indonesia commissioned a new musical adaptation of Mulan that was truer to the original ballad. They were one of six global artists selected to join a summer Japanese Noh theatre intensive residency in Kyoto at the International Noh Institute in 2024. Next summer, MC will partake in the Pedantic Research Grant and Residency, collaborating with theatre and dance companies in Pittsburgh using their promenade Alcoholics Anonymous play Uncle Al.

 

Lena Chen

MC Crosby
New York City, NY
Dates: August 2025
mccrosby.com

 

 

Media

January 2025 Cohort

The sixth cohort included visual artist Sam Grabowska (they/them) based in Denver, CO, curator Maida Gruden (she/her) based in Belgrade, Serbia, and writer Kari Pilgrim based in Brooklyn, NY.

June 27, 2025: Pedantic Summer 2025 Cohort Farewell Open House

June 27, 2025: Pedantic Summer 2025 Cohort Farewell Open House

Pedantic Apartment - 5228 Penn Avenue 6:30-8pmFree, Open to the publicJoin us on Friday, June 27, 2025 at the Pedantic Apartments on 5228 Penn Ave for a closing Open House for the Pedantic Summer 2025 Cohort. We’ll have a farewell toast for this group of creatives who...

June 3, 2025: Summer 2025 Cohort Meet and Greet

June 3, 2025: Summer 2025 Cohort Meet and Greet

KST Alloy Studios - 5530 Penn Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206June 3 from 6-8pmFree, Open to the publicJoin us on Tuesday, June 3, 2025 to welcome our fifth Pedantic cohort. The Pedantic Residents will be giving brief presentations on their backgrounds and their practices....

February 7, 2025: Pedantic Winter 2025 Cohort Farewell Open House

February 7, 2025: Pedantic Winter 2025 Cohort Farewell Open House

Pedantic Apartment - 5228 Penn Avenue6:30-8pmFree, Open to the publicJoin us on Friday, February 7, 2025 at the Pedantic Apartments on 5228 Penn Ave for a closing Open House for the Pedantic Winter 2025 Cohort. We’ll have a farewell toast for this group of creatives...

January 14, 2025: Pedantic Winter 2024 Cohort Meet and Greet

January 14, 2025: Pedantic Winter 2024 Cohort Meet and Greet

KST Alloy StudiosJanuary 14 from 6-8pmFree, Open to the publicJoin us on Tuesday, January 14, 2025 to welcome our sixth Pedantic cohort. The Pedantic Residents will be giving brief presentations on their backgrounds and their practices. Pedantic Arts Residency...

Open Call for Residents and Grantees, submit by November 10

Open Call for Residents and Grantees, submit by November 10

Pedantic Open Call APPLICATIONS DUE: Sunday, November 10, 2024 at 11:59PM ESTCasey Droege Cultural Productions (CDCP) in partnership with Headwater Media is pleased to host a call for applications for the next two rounds of Pedantic Arts Residency (Pedantic). Pedantic...