The New 42nd Street has named Russell Granet as its new President and CEO. Granet, who most recently served as Acting President of Lincoln Center, will join the non-profit arts organization in early July.

Granet previously served as head of education and community engagement at Lincoln Center, implementing a citywide arts education initiative to reach underserved middle school students in the New York City school system.

The New 42nd Street plays a vital role in the New York theatre scene, offering family programming through its New Victory Season, as well as the work of up-and-coming theatre artists at The Duke on 42nd Street, and overseeing the New 42nd Street Studios, which provides rehearsal space for major Broadway and Off-Broadway productions.

Granet’s vision for the next phase of The New 42nd Street includes new opportunities and rehearsal space for underrepresented artists to test out new work, in addition to a new focus on producing original work for school-age audiences. Among the first productions will be the world premiere of Where the Wild Things Are, with Senior Director of Artistic Programming Mary Rose Lloyd.

“I am honored to take on the mantle of such a transformative leader as Cora Cahan as the head of New 42nd Street,” Granet said. “While New York’s streetscape has flourished, inequality has grown, especially among children. I’m committed to build on Cora’s legacy to ensure that every child living in or visiting our great city has equal access to the transformative power of theater; it is important that young people see themselves accurately represented in the arts. It is that personal engagement that unlocks unlimited possibilities.”