The New Deal Creative Arts Center
Board of Directors

What’s Our “Deal”?

The New Deal Creative Arts Center is a non profit organization located in Hyde Park, NY. We are a creative outlet exploring and celebrating all forms of art (fine, performing, visual, literary, etc) through workshops, classes, special events, and performances. Our main focus is accessibility and opportunity for artists and audiences of all ages, abilities and backgrounds.

As the New Deal was a new outlook and opportunity for the American people, the New Deal Creative Arts Center will provide a new and exciting outlook and opportunity for artists and audiences.

What’s The Deal with New Deal?

We named ourselves The New Deal Creative Arts Center because during the depths of the Great Depression of the 1930s and into the early years of World War II, the Federal Government supported the arts in unprecedented ways. For 11 years, between 1933 and 1943, federal tax dollars employed artists, musicians, actors, writers, dancers, and photographers. Never before or since has our government so extensively sponsored the arts. The New Deal arts projects provided work for jobless artists, but they also had a larger mission: to promote American art and culture and to give more Americans access to what President Franklin D. Roosevelt described as “an abundant life.” The projects saved thousands of artists from poverty and despair and enabled Americans all across the country to see an original painting for the first time, attend their first professional live theater, or take their first music or drawing class.

Teresa Gasparini
Executive Director & Founding Member

Teresa is a local director, actor and producer in the Hudson Valley. She has performed in dozens of shows and has directed over 50 productions. Ms. Gasparini served as the Artistic Director of Clove Creek Dinner Theater in Fishkill, NY from 2015-2020 and was a contributing writer for the online publication Hudson Valley Ovation. She is a recipient of the 40 Under 40 Mover & Shaker Award presented by the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce and a Distinction in the Arts Award from Dutchess County Tourism. Teresa is a middle school drama/music teacher at Oakwood Friends School and serves as the Community Outreach Coordinator for the school. Under her leadership, Teresa has brought New Deal to local, national, and international attention through her visionary and out of the box productions and programming. Contact Teresa at [email protected]

Krista Libertino
Artistic Director

Krista’s Libertino is a vocalist, musician, actor, director and arts educator whose life passion is sharing the performing arts with others. Born and raised in the Hudson Valley, she has been studying and performing in the area for over thirty years. Krista Is the choral director at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic High School. Additionally, She teaches private voice lessons and music and theater classes for several non profits in the community. When not teaching, she can be found performing or working behind the scenes. Often directing, music directing, building sets, costuming and more! She has worked on a myriad of productions over the years. Some recent favorites include: singing for her acoustic duo project, KD MUSIC, directing and acting in the Hudson Valley Theater Festival and appearing as herself in Joy!: The New Deal Creative Arts Christmas Spectacular. Her absolute favorite role is her real life role of Mom to her two kids Jameson and Riley! In her free time she also enjoys cooking, listening to audiobooks, game nights and anything creative.