The largest Lab to date involves 200 participants working on productions of 16 plays .

The 2002 Directors Lab was the largest and most ambitious Lab to date with the participation of almost 200 artists: 70 directors; 135 actors; 25 playwrights; plus designers, composers, music directors, dramaturges, and stage managers working on productions of 16 plays.

After the tragic occurrence of 9/11 disrupted our lives, aesthetic concerns seemed hazy and remote as many young artists re-evaluated their lives and their work during the months that followed. By late December, the Lab had received close to 600 inquiries about the 2002 Lab and there was a collective feeling that this year's session was especially necessary. But in what way? The community of directors in the Lab and the closeness they feel has always been a great asset of the program's work.

In 2002 we decided to capitalize on this by creating a Lab rooted in a sense of community and support, without rushing the directors to make too much sense (perhaps prematurely) of what was happening in the world. The 2002 Lab was conceived in a manner to avoid facile conclusions and a simplistic rush to "understand" a set of events whose consequences may not be understood for years.

In February, we asked directors applying to the Lab to look into their hearts, and to begin reading new plays by writers unknown to them. This process had to be documented in their application. Our goal was to broaden horizons and to nurture new contacts between directors and playwrights. Plays that in some way spoke to what the directors were feeling-without necessarily being "about" 9/11-were solicited as part of their applications. The 2002 Directors Lab produced 26 of these plays, each one staged by the director who had submitted it. Almost all of the playwrights, including those from abroad, participated in the productions. In addition, a corresponding set of 26 incoming Lab members were chosen to act as producers of these plays to foster a sense of support for each others' work. Artistic directors spoke to Lab participants about the ways in which they support the visions of directors who stage productions at their theaters.