Caryn Desai
Caryn Desai has dedicated 41 years of her life to International City Theatre (ICT), a professional non-profit theater in Long Beach, California. She began her journey as General Manager while her husband served as Artistic Director and Producer. Sixteen years ago, following his retirement, Caryn assumed the role of Artistic Director and Producer, and for 15 years she managed both roles until recently hiring a General Manager to ensure the company’s sustainability. Her key responsibilities include selecting the season, negotiating rights and contracts with unions, and guiding ICT’s mission to entertain, educate, inspire, and provoke thoughtful dialogue. True to her vision, she chooses plays that challenge audiences thoughtfully rather than divide them, ensuring ICT remains a theater that reflects and enriches the community.
Education and access to the arts are central to Caryn’s work. Growing up in one of the most dangerous cities in the U.S. and in a large family where she sometimes went to bed hungry, the arts—music, visual arts, and exposure to professional theater—saved her. This experience shaped her dedication to arts education. Under her leadership, ICT has developed six education programs serving local students and seniors. The third-grade program alone makes 480 classroom visits, giving eight-year-olds the opportunity to write and perform their own plays. For low-income seniors, ICT provides free tickets and transportation, introducing them to theater for the first time. Caryn’s commitment demonstrates that theater can transform lives, creating access, opportunity, and joy for all ages.
Caryn holds an MFA in Drama, Directing, from University of California, Irvine, and a Certificate from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business Executive Program. Over her career, ICT has earned more than 500 professional awards, and was recognized by the LA Times as one of 52 Southern California theaters known for quality work. Money has never been Caryn’s motivator—purpose and impact drive her. Through her leadership, she has built a theater that not only produces exceptional work but also serves as a cornerstone for education, community engagement, and artistic excellence.
• Stage Directors and Choreographers Union (SDC) Member
• Certificate, Graduate School of Business, Executive Program
• Certificate, Acting
• Certificate, Arts Management
• Certificate, Marketing and Fund-Raising
• California State University, Long Beach - BA, Acting and Directing
• UC Irvine - MFA
• Long Beach City College - AA, Theatre
• 2018 Distinguished Alumna, College of the Arts, California State University, Long Beach
• Keynote Speaker at INTIX, Disneyland Hotel, Anaheim
• Dramaturgical Responder, University of Southern California for Grad. Playwriting Students
• Los Angeles Producers League for Large Theaters, Vice Chair, 2013-16
• Distinguished Alumni Award
• We Can Do It Award from Rosie the Riveter Foundation
• Enterprising Woman in the Arts, City of Long Beach, Public Corp. for the Arts
• Guest Speaker/Panelist, USITT Technical theatre conference re the role of a director
• Guest Speaker, SRO Theatre Conf at USC, re Board Development Best Practices
• 2016 Community Hero Award from the African American History & Culture Foundation for excellence in leadership and service
• Board of Governors, L A Stage Alliance, 1992-96, 2002-06, Executive Comm., Membership Chair
• Directing Awards & Nominations, LA Drama Critics' Circle, NAACP, Ovations, Stage Scene LA, LA Weekly, Garland, Robby, Drama-Logue
• Stage Directors and Choreographers Union (SDC)
• Former Board Member of LA Stage Alliance
• Third-Grade Theater Education Program (480 annual classroom visits)
• Low-Income Seniors Free Theater Program
• Youth Theater Writing and Performance Programs
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to hard work and not giving up. I've never been afraid of hard work - where I grew up, I knew what it was to go to bed hungry, so hard work has never scared me. I also try to be true to what our mission is and to let people understand and know why it's important and why we must continue. It's about doing quality work - whatever you're promising, you need to deliver. Don't burn your bridges. When you're getting to do the premiere of someone's play, their future and the future of that play is at stake, so you better do quality work. That's how I've earned trust and gotten all these premieres to produce. One agent in New York said he doesn't treat International City Theater any differently than he would the Ahmanson, the Geffen, the Pantages, or South Coast Rep, because we do quality work. That's how important trying to maintain that quality is.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I didn't really receive career advice in the traditional sense. My parents didn't raise us to go to college - they told us we're not going to college. They told us to learn skills like shorthand, typing, and bookkeeping so we'd be independent. But I never gave up my dream of going to college. I started working at 15 and paying to live, and every penny I could save, I was saving because I wanted to go to college. I didn't get to do it on my timeline, but I did it. So I guess the drive came from within me rather than from advice someone gave me - it was just that I had that determination and never gave up.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Follow your passion.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge is always raising money. Government funding is uncertain, and it's stressful. The rising prices are also a major issue - even the facility where we're located, which is owned by the city but run by a for-profit company, has really increased their prices because they merged with another company. Just to continue in our space, the increase has been crazy. We were named the city's resident professional theater company, but that doesn't seem to mean much in terms of support. I do national producer meetings on Zoom with similar budget size mid-size theaters, and hearing some of these producers talk, it's like, oh my god, don't give up. The current situation is challenging, but I believe theater is critical and so needed right now. We're so divided as a society, and theater is one of the few places where people from different religions, different generations, different beliefs politically can all gather, form a sense of community, and listen to one story together.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Integrity, kindness, and respect are the values most important to me. Kindness and respect are the two words that I try to live by, and they're the two words I try to teach my children as well. You might not always like someone, but you can treat them with respect. We do have differences, and the more you can understand and empathize with others and their situation and why they may have made those choices, it really helps too. I also believe in being direct and keeping my word. Whatever you're promising, you need to deliver. Don't burn your bridges. Integrity in your work is essential - when you get to do the premiere of someone's play, their future and the future of that play is at stake, so you have a huge responsibility to do quality work.