PRESTON MARTIN
"CAPTIVATING" - THE NEW YORKER
Preston Martin is a queer class clown living in Brooklyn.
Preston came to New York City by way of Southwest Virginia and has since performed and directed in over fifty venues across New York City, in Los Angeles, as well as internationally in the UK, the UAE, China, Italy, Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia and Turkey.
They have appeared in the TriBeCa Film Festival twice, once in an award winning web series Om City, and again in a documentary chronicling the making of The Reality Show, a mental health awareness theater project which he directs for the three global campuses of NYU in NYC, Abu Dhabi and Shanghai.
you're excited to find out Preston has worked with:
Greta Gerwig!
Quinn Shephard!
Mary Stuart Masterson!
Alex Timbers!
Anne Kauffman!
The Bengsons!
Pam MacKinnon!
Michael Greif!
Stephen Brackett!
Grace McLean!
Kathleen Turner!
you're excited to find out that Preston has performed at:
The Public!
Lincoln Center!
The Geffen!
Ars Nova!
La MaMa ETC!
Atlantic Theater Company!
Williamstown Theater Festival!
a long version of this information!
Preston Martin is an actor, director, writer and mental health advocate living in Brooklyn. They have performed and directed in over fifty venues across New York City, in Los Angeles, and internationally in the UK, the United Arab Emirates, China, Italy, Croatia, Serbia, Macedonia and Turkey.
Their artistic career has been guided by the recently passed Elizabeth Swados. Preston began collaborating with the Tony-nominated director in 2005 at NYU. They were an actor and writer in the inaugural production of “The Reality Show: NYU,” a musical sketch comedy show exploring mental health for the incoming freshman of the university. After two years of performing and writing for the show, they became Ms. Swados' co-director, following the show from Madison Square Garden to Radio City Music Hall to The Beacon, and then abroad to NYU's satellite campuses in Abu Dhabi and Shanghai. In 2013, Preston became the creative director over the entire international program. They direct the three productions simultaneously each summer, curating the original material created by the casts and helming the performances across the globe. A short documentary exploring the show, "Better to Live," was made in 2014, which premiered at the TriBeCa Film Festival in 2015.
Also with Ms. Swados, Preston has performed as the titular character in Ms. Swados’ opera “Kaspar Hauser” at The Flea, in her cantata “Atonement” at St. John the Divine, and in “La MaMa Cantata,” which chronicles the life of her mentor Ellen Stewart, at La MaMa ETC and abroad. They are an original member of her musical sketch comedy group Political Subversities, which has been performing since 2006 at the Culture Project, The PIT, Ars Nova, and Joe’s Pub. They are also a member of musical sketch comedy group SHIZ, the brain child of Political Subversities’ Shaina Taub and Matt Gehring that performed monthly at Upright Citizens Brigade, and now at The Asylum NYC.
Other selected theater acting credits include the West Coast premiere of Josh Harmon’s “Significant Other” at The Geffen, Nancy Kerrigan in Zackary Grady's "Toe Pick," "Spring Street Social Anxiety," an immersive musical installed in the Africa Center, Miranda Priestly in Jay Stull’s “Streepshow,” Nobeard in Atlantic Theater Company’s “Pirate La Dee Da,” harunalee's “War Lesbian” with Erin Markey at Dixon Place, Jaclyn Backhaus’s "You On The Moors Now" at HERE, "Wink" by Jen Silverman with terraNOVA Collective, "I Wanna Destroy You" by Josh Conkel at Theatre Row, "PS Jones and the Frozen City" by Rob Askins at the New Ohio, "Far From Heaven" directed by Michael Greif, "Stopped Bridge of Dreams" by John Jesurun at La MaMa, "The More Loving One" (Best Play, Fringe Festival 2011), Woodshed Collective’s "Twelve Ophelias" by Caridad Svich, and "The Conspirators" opposite Kathleen Turner in the Vaclav Havel Festival. They have been in workshops with Alan Menken, Alex Timbers, Anne Kauffman, The Bengsons, Pam MacKinnon, The Civilians, The Dance Cartel, Sam Pinkleton, Todd Almond, and many other artists.
Preston is currently a CAMP Artist in Residence at Ars Nova, developing a multimedia solo musical. They also created and performed their one person show “Fun Design With Svelte!” in the 2009 soloNOVA Festival at the DR2.
Other creative team positions include directing the world premiere of "Elysium," a new musical by up and comers Ben Chavez and Yianni Papadimos, directing two installments of Salty Brine’s cabaret series "Spectacular Living Record Collection" at The Red Room, co-creating and directing the Christmas comedy "Merry Little Evening" at the Duplex, co-directing "Bio-Hazard" (Best Comedy, United Solo Festival 2012) and creative consultant for "Grace McLean Lives in Concert" (Lincoln Center American Songbook Series, Ars Nova ANT Fest, The Flea).
As a vocalist, Preston has performed in bands with Sherie Renee Scott, Todd Almond, Grace McLean, and a sixteen piece outfit helmed by Matthew Dean Marsh. They have also been featured on several albums in Ms. Swados' legacy project in which fifteen of her greatest musicals were recorded and archived on her website.
Preston is now budding into on camera work and can be seen dancing in Greta Gerwig’s “Little Women” and as a talk show host in Quinn Shephard’s upcoming feature “Not Okay.” Also premiering recently, Preston starred opposite Laila Robins in “The Rest of Us,” produced by Mary Stuart Masterson, which they also associate produced as well as helped to develop with award winning screenwriter Laura Moss. Their work has been seen twice in the TriBeCa Film Festival, once in Jessie Barr and Tom O’Brien’s web series “Om City,” and again in the aforementioned documentary “Better to Live.” They performed in a “one person short film” called “Colby” with Emily Tomson and another short “Henry and Henry.”
Preston has been a member of the Williamstown Theater Festival Non-Equity Acting Program and the TS Eliot US/UK Exchange with The Public and The Old Vic. They received their BFA from NYU/Tisch, studying at Playwrights Horizons and Experimental Theatre Wing.