Our Team

the new york irish center staff

George C. Heslin – Executive Director
For 19 years George served as founding Artistic Director of off- Broadway's Origin Theatre Company. In 2008 he founded Origin's 1st Irish Festival, under George in its 12 year history, the city wide cultural festival has presented the work of 300 Irish playwrights and created partnerships with 80 organizations internationally . In 2018 he founded New York's European Month of Culture in association with the Delegation of The Europe Union to the United States working in partnership with 28 consulates across New York City.
George has directed over 80 productions in venues from The New York Irish Center,  59E59 Theaters, The Sheen Center, The West End Theatre , The NY Public Library for the Performing Arts, at Lincoln Center, Triad Theatre,  Boston Center for the Arts, The Irish Repertory Theatre, The Theatre Center- Brussels, Lehman Stages, Fishamble-Dublin,The Gene Frankel Theatre, The American Academy of Dramatic Arts- NYC, and many others. George has produced numerous plays across New York.
As an actor;  Broadway National Tour of the hit show Stones in His Pockets. Off-Broadway productions include; Juno and The Paycock at The Roundabout, The Blowin of Baile Gall, The Colleen Bawn (Drama Desk Nomination) at Irish Repertory Theatre. Regionally he has appeared  at The Kennedy Center, Old Globe San Diego, Pittsburgh Public, Studio Arena Buffalo, Virginia Stage Company, Penguin Rep, The Caldwell Theatre Florida, and Syracuse Stage, to name a few. In Ireland with The Abbey – Ireland’s National Theatre, The Gate, Druid Theatre, The Lyric, Passion Machine, Project Arts Center, Island Theatre, Graffiti, Grand Opera House and The Olympia Theatre. In London at The Kings Head Theatre & The Drill Hall. The Tramway, Glasgow.  West End Credits include; Philadelphia Here I Come and Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens.
He is a graduate of the Samuel Beckett Centre, Trinity College, Dublin; The Abbey Theatre Dublin Directors Program; and The HB Studio ,New York where he studied with the legendary Uta Hagen. For 17 years he has been a member of the associate faculty at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts and spent three years as adjunct director at Nassau College.
Awards include The Irish Examiner/New York Man of The Year Award, The New York City Council Award for his dedication to theatre from Council Speaker Christine Quinn. The 2024 Citation Of Excellence Award from Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, The John C. Liu Office of Comptroller Commendation, The Global 100 Award from Irish America Magazine, The CUNY Award of Cultural Excellence from City University New York, and in 2011 he was invited to The White House to meet President Obama.

Stephen Long - Director of Arts & Culture
Stephen Long has served as the New York Irish Center’s Director of Arts & Culture since 2019.
Since 2019, Stephen has compounded upon the many successes of the cultural programs established by his predecessors at New York Irish Center. From leading and developing digital programming during the COVID-19 pandemic to establishing and nurturing brand-new cultural series in the years after, Stephen has led the cultural team to new heights. Shepherding in the launch of series such as 40 Shades of Green, New York Croons for Christmas, Queens Irish Heritage Festival, Between the Lines, Ireland Live…From New York, Battle of the Orgs, Blind Date Night, Reelin’ in the Shorts, and many more, he has broadened the cultural footprint of New York Irish Center in Queens and New York and continues to shape the cultural mission of the Center for years to come. He led the radical website redesign for NewYorkIrishCenter.org and oversaw the shift in marketing and graphic design across all digital platforms.
Prior to joining the New York Irish Center team, he was the associate editor at American Iron Magazine for four years, a motorcycle publication where he directed the redevelopment of the social media and digital strategy, broadened publication reach, wrote over 800 articles and features, and edited over 1,000 pieces across four different publications.
Stephen attended the University of Scranton, earning his B.A. in English Literature with a minor in History. He took intensive courses in writing, specifically Poetry and Creative Nonfiction. He coached youth basketball from 2015-18 and has tutored elementary-level math, English and history. Upon graduation, he worked for a time with Cormac O’Malley at the Glucksman Ireland House, transcribing Ernie O’Malley’s daily journals. He is a first-generation Irish-American, the son of a Galway woman and Wexford man, and thrilled to be working in his home borough of Queens.

Niamh Griffin - Director of Social Care
Niamh Griffin serves as Director of Social Care at the New York Irish Center, implementing and managing a wide range of community services and programming for the organization and its members.
An Occupational Therapist from Kerry, Ireland, Niamh studied at University College Cork, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy. She maintains her registration with CORU, Ireland’s regulatory body for health and social care professionals.
Niamh has diverse experience spanning acute hospital care, rehabilitation, pediatrics, and mental health. She has also conducted research on frailty, which was published in the Irish Journal of Occupational Therapy and presented at the national conferences of the Irish Gerontological Society and Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland in 2022.
Niamh has a particular interest in working with older adults and is dedicated to exploring creative means to enhance individuals’ well-being and quality of life across all age groups.

Karen McGrath - Director of Finance
Karen has served as Finance Director at New York Irish Center for 15 years. She is a graduate of Rupert Stanley College, Belfast. Prior to joining the center Karen worked with William Raveis Real Estate Group. Originally from Belfast she now resides in Connecticut. Karen has a deep passion for the mission of the organization. Karen is married to Declan O'Neill and together they have three daughters.

Eva Bruné - Senior Officer of Philanthropy and Strategy
Eva has a 40-year career in the arts, managing and fundraising for a number of institutions, including the Museum at Eldridge Street, the CityKids Foundation, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, The Big Apple Circus, INTAR Hispanic American Arts Center, the Visual Arts Center of Alaska, a Traveling Jewish Theater, and the International Sculpture Center, among other organizations. 
She has extensive experience in organizational strategic planning; capital campaign design, implementation and solicitation; foundation grants; securing city, state and federal funding contracts; major gala and special events planning and implementation; Board recruitment and solicitation training; budgeting and contract negotiations; and major 6- and 7-figure major gifts solicitations.
She is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, and has served as a NEA grant panelist in a number of divisions, and as a grants panelist for the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, the New Jersey State Arts Council, the Florida State Council on the Arts, OPERA AMERICA, and the Westchester Arts Council. Eva has served on the Board of Trustees of Alliance of Resident Theaters and Origin Theater Company, and as a consultant to many organizations including CareerVillage, Rural China Education Fund, and Mayan Families.
She received her BFA from the California College of Arts and Crafts (now renamed the California College of Art), majoring in textiles and sculpture, and studied at New York University, majoring in international relations, with a focus on international NGO fundraising. A trained pianist, she studied and performed jazz and classical music for more than 20 years.

Beck Lee - Marketing and Media Relations Consultant

Dubbed “a man for all people” by the Irish Echo, Beck has enjoyed a fascinating career championing the work and accomplishments of some of the most innovative and groundbreaking non-profits that contribute to the cultural diversity and richness of New York City.

Adding to his years as the marketing director for Origin Theater Company (producer of the annual Origin 1st Irish Festival), Beck is delighted to be part of the NY Irish Center's communications and engagement team.  The founding director of Media Blitz, LLC -- a marketing and public relations company working in theater, film, music and cultural advocacy — Beck has played key roles in the current revival of Yiddish theater in New York (in his work with the National Yiddish Theater Folksbiene and New Yiddish Rep). At the Barrow Street Theatre he helped introduce the long-form improvisers TJ & Dave to New York audiences, and he represented the Irish-American comedian Des Bishop’s “Made in China.”  Among the landmark shows he’s served as press rep are the acclaimed Yiddish premiere of “Waiting for Godot,” the long-running “My Son the Waiter, A Jewish Tragedy,” and the mega hit “Grandma Sylvia’s Funeral.”