Information about the 2024 Working Farm will be announced in early spring 2024.

The Working Farm, SPACE’s resident writers’ group, offers five playwrights, composers, lyricists and/or librettists a total of five (subsidized) weeks on Ryder Farm during the course of the season.

While in residence, each writer focuses on developing a single new work and is strongly encouraged to structure their days and weeks to best suit the needs of their project. The Working Farm writers may invite a collaborator (e.g., a director, designer, dramaturg, actor) to join them on the farm for individual days, subject to vaccination status and space availability.

Residents are housed in Ryder Farm’s Kay Hall and provided with artistic and administrative resources. The only requirements at SPACE are that residents attend three communal, farm-sourced meals each day, and share some of what they’ve developed while in residence. Please see SPACE’s FAQ page for information about diets and food allergies SPACE’s chefs are able to accommodate. 

All time in-residence is subsidized. Additionally, The Working Farm residents will receive a $150 travel stipend. For reference, a round-trip off-peak Metro-North ticket from Grand Central Terminal to Brewster is $30. Transportation between the Brewster Station and Ryder Farm is provided by the SPACE team on the first and last days of the residency.

The Roving Dinner

The culmination of The Working Farm is The Roving Dinner, which occurs during the group’s autumn residency weeks. During this celebration of The Working Farm writers, excerpts of SPACE-developed pieces are paired with a multi-course, farm-sourced meal and performed at various locations around Ryder Farm. 

ELigibility

All Working Farm applicants must be at least 18 years old. 

Applicants cannot apply as a writing team.

Previous members of The Working Farm cannot reapply for the program.

Because SPACE residents routinely dine together, work together and inhabit indoor buildings with SPACE staff (who are in turn part of their own communities), minimizing risk associated with COVID-19 requires full participation in straightforward, clear policies. To this end, all residents are required to be fully vaccinated as a condition of attending a SPACE residency. A similar policy is in effect for SPACE staff and guests. 

SPACE recognizes medical contraindications and closely held religious beliefs may prevent some residents from receiving the COVID vaccine. Furthermore, SPACE knows that many have not had fair and just access to the COVID-19 vaccine and have been disproportionately impacted by the virus, leading to the distrust of government health agencies and hesitancy towards the vaccine itself. Such individuals will be asked to follow a thorough set of safety protocols including quarantining and PCR testing before arrival. Additionally, all residents, regardless of vaccination status, will be tested on the first day of their residency. 

Please contact Chief Operating Officer, Allyson Davis, at allyson@spaceonryderfarm.org with any related questions or concerns. 

QUESTIONS?

To make sure SPACE will be able to support your project, please take a moment to read about the workspaces available at SPACE. 

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions.

Still have questions? Write to us at residencies@spaceonryderfarm.org. No phone calls, please.

The Working Farm is supported in part by the Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.