As a freelance grant writer and as a staff writer for Benvenuti Arts, Ariel has secured grants from the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (2012-2016; 2018-2021), the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs (2019-2022), and the Alliance of Resident Theatres-New York (Creative Opportunity Fund, Creative Space Grant, and COVID Relief Fund, 2018-2021) for his work with Leviathan Lab He has also won foundation and government funding, including multi-year funding from New York State Council for the Arts, for National Asian Artists Project (2019-23), Phoenix Theatre Ensemble (2013-2020); choral ensembles Voices of Gotham (2013-2016), Empire City Men’s Chorus (2013-2017), and Choral Chameleon (2014-2021), and the professional ballet company BalletCollective (2018).

Through Ariel’s development and community engagement work, Leviathan was also a 2011 resident artist at Space on White, and was a 2013 and 2014 resident artist at the Performance Project at University Settlement. He has also secured residencies at SPACE on Ryder Farm (2019), The Orchard Project (2021), Bric Arts Media (2022), and Perseverance Theatre (2023). You can download his CV here.

Ariel Estrada (he/him/his) is an actor, singer, producer, and Founder | Executive Artistic Director of Leviathan Lab, a creative studio for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander performing artists. He was a member of the 2024 cohort of the National Alliance of Acting Teachers’ Teacher Development Program and the 2023 cohort of Theatrical Intimacy Education’s Educator Advocate Program. He was a also member of the 2021-22 cohort of artEquity’s BIPOC Leadership Circle and holds designations as a 2019 Emerging Arts Leader by New York Foundation for the Arts, and a 2017 Rising Leader of Color by Theatre Communications Group. He also currently serves on the boards of the Episcopal Actors Guild, Musical Theatre Factory, and the advisory board of Houghton Hall Arts Community. He has served on multiple adjudication panels for government and foundation grants, including for the NEA, NYSCA, and the LMCC.

Ariel is also an accomplished Fortune 500 and Inc. 5000 level communications designer. A design portfolio can be provided upon request. https://www.arielestrada.com/about