
Oil Lamp Theater Engages New Executive Director Jay Pastucha
After working for a national touring company which had him traveling for several months of the year, Jay Pastucha joined Oil Lamp Theater in early 2020 and became Executive Director in April after Keith Gerth moved out East.
FDG had a chance to chat with Jay recently:
Why Oil Lamp? All of that back and forth with a touring company was exhausting, and I knew that if I were able to focus that energy on one location, one community, I would be able to make a good impact that I could consistently see first hand. I decided it was time to focus on building an artistic community and deepening roots in the Chicago area. Needless to say, it has been quite the learning experience, but the support of our patrons, Oil Lamp artists and board members has helped tremendously. We’ve been able to put out some great content to keep our patrons engaged, and we’re looking forward to putting up our annual It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play virtually this year. More info at https://oillamptheater.org
About Jay: Jay Pastucha is a director, playwright, designer, and most significantly, producer. He previously served as Managing Artistic Director at The Hampstead Stage Company (HSC) from 2015-2020. During his tenure, he directed nine productions and produced 33 in total, which were performed for over 300,000 audience members nationally. Jay was also a co-founder of Second Glance Theatre (SGT), a nonprofit theatre who worked with emerging artists to create new plays and help them find their voice.
Welcome to Glenview, Jay!