Katy Rubin, founder and artistic director of Theatre of the Oppressed NYC, is a joker, director, actor and circus artist. Katy trained with Augusto Boal in Rio in 2008, and returned to New York to find a lack of "popular theatre" at home. The work began with the creation of TONYC's flagship popular theatre troupe, Concrete Justice, with homeless actors. Since 2010, TONYC has expanded its programs to include ongoing popular troupes with HIV+ and homeless New Yorkers; undocumented immigrants and refugees; mothers living with AIDS; LGBT homeless youth; prisoners and parolees; NYC public school students and teachers; and many other communities. These troupes tour the city, engaging in dialogue and action with audiences of both peers and strangers through forum theatre. Katy has trained with Jana Sanskriti in Kolkata, India; collaborated with Combatants for Peace (Israel/Palestine), Cardboard Citizens and Mind the Gap (England); and directed forum plays and facilitated workshops in Nicaragua, the Netherlands, and Norway as well as in New York City. She holds a BFA in Acting from the Boston University School of Theatre, and is a recipient of the Shapiro Fellowship, the TCG Global Connections Grant, and the Global Youth Connect Youth for Human Rights Award.