staff bios
Victoria Joy Murray is currently the Arts Action Fund Coordinator for Americans fot the Arts. Prior to this Ms. Murray was employed by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the official arts agency for the District of Columbia. Ms. Murray served as Executive Producer for numerous signature events for the District including the coveted Mayor’s Arts Awards, the most prestigious honor conferred by the District to individual artists, arts organizations, and patrons of the arts. Another such event, Art Unplugged, a new initiative which she developed and implemented for the Commission was recognized by the National Assembly of States Arts Agencies (NASAA) as a National best practice. Additionally, Ms. Murray served as Program Officer for several long-standing grant programs that assist artists and arts organizations by providing funding and a broad range of resources.
Holding an MA in Arts Politics from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and a BFA in Theatre Arts from Howard University, Victoria is an artist in her own right and has directed numerous productions throughout the Washington, DC metropolitan area including PASSING STRANGE; HERSTORY: Love Forever Hip-Hop; A Woman's Liberation; SHE: The Healing Pool; The Lover; and Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill. She has assisted directors including the Tony Award Winning Moises Kaufman, David Muse, Timothy Bond, Keith Alan Baker and Peter C. Brosius, among others. Ms. Murray is an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.
An avid traveler, Ms. Murray has trained both nationally and internationally, New York City (Women's Project Producer's Lab); Ashland, Oregon (Oregon Shakespeare Festival FAIR Fellow); Washington, DC (Allen Lee Hughes Fellow, Arena Stage); Italy (LaMaMa, ETC. International Symposium for Directors); Brazil (Center for the Theatre of the Oppressed); and London (British Academy of Dramatic Arts Shakespeare Program).
Victoria resides in Washington, D.C., when not working she enjoys swimming, traveling, yoga, and attending cultural events.
E-mail Victoria.