For 35 years, Everyman Theatre has been led by a single artistic voice: Vincent Lancisi, founder of the celebrated downtown theater group.

A new chapter begins in July, when Brandon Weinbrenner takes over as Everyman’s second artistic director in its history.

Weinbrenner, who succeeds the retiring Lancisi, spent the last 13 years at the Tony Award-winning Alley Theatre in Houston, where he serves as associate artistic director.

The monthslong interview process, which occurred in Baltimore and over Zoom calls, revealed what Weinbrenner called a “shared value system” and way of working between him and Everyman, Weinbrenner told The Banner.

Everyman and the Alley Theatre are among the few U.S. theaters to employ dedicated resident companies, a cohort of local actors who perform regularly each season, rather than hiring mostly touring actors.

“I want the programming to be really emblematic of the strengths of the [resident] company and the artists at Everyman,” Weinbrenner said.

While the theater’s board of directors selected Weinbrenner, Lancisi said in a statement that he’s excited to see “a respected and admired artistic leader” take the reins. Along with Managing Director Marissa LaRose, Weinbrenner will oversee a staff of more than 150.

Lancisi has been nothing but “warm and generous with his support and his knowledge,” according to Weinbrenner.

“Trust my gut. That’s the best advice he’s given me,” the 41-year-old from Dallas said.

Bryan Rakes, president of Everyman’s board of directors, said in a statement that the theater is “fortunate to have found an exciting and vibrant artistic director who shares our cultural and artistic values and also has deep experience working with resident actors and artisans.”

At the Alley Theatre, Weinbrenner directed commercial hits like “Clue” and “Sherlock Holmes,” and earned a Houston Press best director nomination for “The Humans,” an eerie Thanksgiving familial drama. “A lot of humor and angst is packed into 90 minutes, and it is a testament to our times,” reads a “Humans” review in Houstonia magazine.

Weinbrenner said the biggest challenges facing Everyman are familiar to theaters around the country: Keep costs down — he wants to upcycle more set pieces for future productions, for example — and increase sales.

Everyman, which welcomes more than 30,000 visitors each season, has done “a great job” of bringing audiences back after the COVID-19 pandemic, he said. The number of single tickets sold has grown nearly 27% since 2023, according to theater spokesperson Corey Frier-Ritsch.

“I think that there’s still room to grow in that capacity,” Weinbrenner said.

He plans to “uplift new voices and new playwrights,” while reminding audiences why classic stories still endure, while also producing plays that reflect the Baltimore community.

“We need to have diverse perspectives on stage and offstage,” he said.

Everyman’s current season continues Feb. 1 with the world premiere of Tuyết Thị Phạm’s “Dawn,” a drama about a first-generation Cambodian American and her mother. “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike,” the last play directed by Lancisi, follows on March 22 before “Emma,” a modern update of the Jane Austen novel, closes the campaign in mid-June.

Admittedly, Weinbrenner has a lot to learn about his new home. After he relocates, his plan for the rest of 2026 is “to put on a real listening tour.”

“I can’t possibly have specific changes or missions without really understanding the operations and the people behind Everyman,” he said. “So I come in very humble, very open, very ready to get to know the organization and the community.”

Weinbrenner, whose only prior visit to Baltimore was to see the National Aquarium as a 10-year-old, believes he’s arriving at “a really special time” for the city and its arts scene.

“It feels to me, from what I’ve gotten to know about it, that it’s in a period of innovation and growth, and I hope to innovate and grow right alongside with it,” he said.