Cynthia Levin

Levin was born and raised in Washington, D.C.[2] She attended Park University in Parkville, Missouri, where she majored in theatre and graduated magna cum laude in 1977.[3][4]

After college, Levin briefly worked for the Missouri Repertory Theatre (now the Kansas City Repertory Theatre), as well as various summer stock theatre and local Kansas-City-based theatres.[5] In 1979, she was hired by the Theatre Workshop in Kansas City, which became the Unicorn Theatre in the early 1980s.[6] During her early years at the Unicorn, Levin acted, directed, stage managed, and designed for numerous productions.[7] She became the artistic director of the Unicorn in 1982 and has guided the theatre in its mission to produce new and bold contemporary plays,[8] particularly those which have not yet received Kansas City premieres.[9] Levin has served as a director, actor, or designer for over 260 Unicorn productions,[10] and has directed plays for UMKC Theatre and the Coterie Theatre in Kansas City. She has also directed multiple world-premiere readings at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.[11] Levin is a founding board member of the National New Play Network.[12]

In 1995, Levin was named one of Kansas City's “Local Heroes” by Ingram’s.[13] In 2000, the Unicorn Theatre received the Missouri Arts Council’s Arts Award.[14] Levin was awarded an honorary doctorate from Park University in 2002.[15] She has also been the recipient of the Pinnacle of Excellence in the Arts Award from the Johnson County Library Foundation,[16] the Human Rights Campaign Award,[17] and the GLAAD Leadership Award.[18]