About 17D

We are a women-founded and operated production company dedicated to telling stories that reflect and challenge ideas in bold, engaging ways. Our mission is to create high-quality entertainment that naturally promotes gender equity, reaching and resonating with the widest possible audience.

Origin Story

For over thirty years, our Chairwoman, Anne Klaus, has brought together improvisers, actors, comedians and writers in her New York City apartment, 17D. These weekly gatherings fostered a dedicated group of professional artists who have collaborated, workshopped and created material that has since made its way to both stage and screen. 

Inspired by this success, core members Tessa Borbridge and Elizabeth Wiseman founded 17D Productions to bring our unique brand of entertainment to a wider audience.  

Meet the Team

  • CHAIRWOMAN

    ANNE KLAUS was the first girl on her Little League team. She grew up a Mets fan, but following a 20-year hiatus from watching baseball, abdicated to the Yankees under the influence of a good friend.

  • PRODUCTION COORDINATOR

    KAT GILROY loves sports of all kinds. She was a competitive gymnast, an avid softball player, and now runs 1-2 miles every 2 weeks. She is a die-hard Yankees fan and wants to visit all 30 Major League Baseball stadiums (current progress: 9).

  • CO-FOUNDER

    LIZ WISEMAN grew up a Mets fan and remains one to this day. This experience makes her an invaluable asset as she knows the pain of laboring against literally all odds and finding humor even in the most tragic situations. 

  • OPERATIONS MANAGER

    ROCIO SANTANA has had an “it’s complicated” relationship with sports thanks to her passion, misinterpreted as “unwanted feedback” in dance school and “profanity” on her soccer team. This intensity (and her blood pressure) has forced her to retire as a Yankees fan.

  • CO-FOUNDER

    TESSA BORBRIDGE doesn’t watch sports but played them too seriously growing up. From an emotional and geographic distance she roots for the Bay Area teams, none of whom were winning when she was an actual fan. She agnostically wears a Yankees hat.