The original Subtext Studio was founded by Artistic Director Omar Vicente Fernandez with other UIC students in 2021 to provide opportunities to emerging BIPOC artists so that they may gain valuable professional experience by producing theater. Fernandez, a Mexican American artist, had been active in professional theater since his teens, working with 16th Street Theater (Berwyn, IL) in various capacities for nearly a decade, most recently as a staff member in 2022.
Dragonfly Theatre Company was founded in November 2020 by Jean Gottlieb (Interim Artistic Director of 16th Street Theater NFP 2021-2022) as a virtual outlet during the pandemic, producing new plays on zoom. Dragonfly Theatre went into hiatus in May of 2022 as theaters resumed live programming.
In December of 2022, Omar joined forces with Jean Gottlieb, bringing Jean into SSTC as Managing Director and combining the missions and resources of Dragonfly Theatre Company and Subtext Studio Theatre to create Subtext Studio Theatre Company.