Robert Negron—Producing Artistic Director
Robert is a professional actor, multidisciplinary playwright, craftsman, educator, producer, community liaison, consultant, and program director who has led Indy Convergence’s artistic vision and engagement strategies since its inception in 2008.
As Indy Convergence’s Producing Artistic Director, Robert has directed over twenty-five artist residencies in Indianapolis, Canada, and Haiti. He is also the founding artistic producer of A Rising Tide, a seasonal performance series presented on floating and all-terrain stages along the shores of Indianapolis’ White River. Through his leadership, Robert has been instrumental in Indy Convergence’s community engagement initiatives, serving on various resident-driven committees and task forces. In 2021, he co-managed the Belmont Beach project, where he collaborated with residents and stakeholders to create “…a signature community gathering space while expanding neighborhood-based capacity to lead and engage in positive community change” (Belmont Beach, n.d.).
As co-chair of the Reconnecting to Our Waterways (ROW) White River Committee, Robert stewarded the New York Street bridge lights project, an iconic lighting installation under one of Indianapolis’ most heavily utilized downtown bridges. He also provided maintenance for the Urban Nature Trail and led educational engagements focused on the river’s history and significance. Currently, Robert serves as the ROW White River Committee’s Near West community liaison, continuing to provide support for its programs. Additionally, as a founder and co-chair of the Near West Livability Task Force, he has spearheaded programs like the West Michigan Street Festival, Near West Flow Fest, the Portico Project between Super Tortas restaurant and the Linebacker bar, and numerous neighborhood Art Walks.
In 2019, Robert was nominated by the Near West Steering Committee as Thrive Indy’s Near West Resiliency Ambassador, where he led initiatives to establish a community garden, a seed library, a mobile community tool shed, and a local air quality research project. Later that year, he was selected to attend the Indianapolis Food Access Coalition’s Food Champion program, completing a 10-week course on food access barriers and developing a community garden project that produced over 200 pounds of food.
Robert has presented his work on artistic asset-based community development at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and Indy Design Week, where he addressed common challenges in the ‘artist-as-community-builder’ model and advocated for engagement strategies that prioritize people-centered projects, long-term sustainability, and ensure that initiatives are firmly rooted in and reflective of resident culture.
An actor by training, Robert has performed at the Rubicon Theatre, South Coast Repertory, Boston Court, the Old Globe Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and the Fonseca Theatre. He trained professionally in performance at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and the South Coast Repertory Professional Conservatory. In 2013, he attended the Earthship Academy, where he trained in autonomous building design and sustainable off-grid techniques.
Robert’s artistic interests lie at the intersection of the arts and resident-driven initiatives that amplify local voices, strengthen community ties, and use the arts as a catalyst for incremental, resident-led economic growth.
Caitlin Negron—Managing Director
Caitlin is an arts administrator, program director, educator, professional dancer, and BASI-certified pilates instructor who specializes in arts-driven community development. As one of Indy Convergence’s co-founders, she has led the company’s administrative branch since 2008. Under her steadfast leadership, Indy Convergence has grown from an annual pop-up artist residency to a year-round arts and culture organization with a permanent home in Indianapolis’ Near Westside.
Caitlin has co-curated and produced the residency program since its inception. In addition to overseeing creative development, she has served the project manager and producer for various Indy Convergence programs, including Arts Walks, the Near West Storytelling Project, A Rising Tide, the Near West Rara, and other community engagement events. Caitlin has also served as an arts advocate on panels with Indiana Arts Commission’s OnRamp program, SKL Class XLV, Indiana Dance Festival, the Indianapolis Foundation, and presented at the Indiana Arts Homecoming. She collaborates with other local organizations to produce outdoor arts events such as the Black N Brown Get Down, Reconnecting to Our Waterways 10th anniversary celebration, and Stringtown Rocks.
In addition to her B.F.A. in Dance Performance and B.A. in Anthropology from Southern Methodist University, Caitlin has studied at the American Dance Festival, The Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, and IUPUI’s O’Neill School of Nonprofit Management. As a dancer, she performed in works by Martha Graham, George Balanchine, Alvin Ailey, Stephanie Martinez, Seda Aybay, Brock Clawson, Andre Megerdichian, and others. Caitlin was a company member at Dance Kaleidoscope for twelve years and performed throughout the greater Chicago area and Los Angeles as a freelance artist. In 2015, she was awarded both the Indy Arts Council Creative Renewal Grant and the Arts Council’s Individual Artist Grant.
Caitlin served as Indy Convergence’s Executive Director from 2008 to 2023 and is currently the company’s Managing Director.
Jess Carr—Executive Artistic Producer
Jess is a performing arts producer, arts administrator, program manager, and stage manager with over twenty years of experience developing and leading nonprofit projects, fundraisers, and cross-cultural exchange programs. Prior to joining Indy Convergence, she served as an artistic producer at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) where she produced a range of events, including the Green Show, the Daedalus Project, OSF’s Juneteenth Celebration, the City of Ashland’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, CultureFest, SOPride, Hip Hop Poetry Open Mics, Black Swan (aka Midnight) Projects, the Every 28 Hours Plays, and Mixing Texts collaboratives. During her time at OSF, she also stage managed the Green Show during Dance Kaleidoscope’s residency, founded and developed an award-winning experiential learning program for emerging theater artists, and served as the company’s talent acquisition specialist.
Jess studied stage management at Bennington College and holds an MSEd in Adult Education and a BA in English Education from Southern Oregon University.
Consultants
Lisa Barton—Digital Marketer
Lisa is an Indy native, cat-loving creative, web designer, and marketing specialist who has been with Indy Convergence since the summer of 2021 handling social media messaging and website updates. She has been involved in the local art community for many years, as a contributor and an enthusiast. In addition to her work with Indy Convergence, Lisa is a UX design strategist for the State of Indiana and works as a freelance graphic and web designer. In her rare moments of free time, she also enjoys going back to her original art roots to create drawings and paintings, and collaborate on group projects.
Ben Rose—Resident Media Consultant
As the resident media consultant for Indy Convergence, Ben has taken on videography and promotional design duties.
He is a multi-hyphenate artist who has spent time cultivating his skills in theater, photography, filmmaking, and community building.
Ben has been recognized for his work consistently throughout the past several years. He is an Indy Theater Profession MVP award winner (2016), has had an original screenplay named an Official Selection in the 2017 Los Angeles International Screenplay Awards, and received support from the Arts Council of Indianapolis and 16 Tech Innovation. With the latter, he is currently working on a documentary on the Indy neighborhood of Haughville, where he has participated in community work for the past three years. Ben was also recently awarded the Arts Council of Indianapolis‘s 2022-2023 Creative Renewal Fellowship.
Adam Fonacier—Technical Consultant
Adam manages technical needs for Indy Convergence events and for our facilities.
Hailing from a small town east of Indianapolis, Adam has always had a heart for his home state. He works as a freelance music producer and audio engineer for venues, artists, and arts nonprofits in Indy. His involvement with organizations like Indy Convergence has provided him with welcome connections to a growing network of artists and entrepreneurs who share his passion for the local creative scene.