Arizona Theatre Company Retains National Search Firm for New Leadership Team

From: scarr51@gmail.com [mailto:scarr51@gmail.com]
Sent: Thursday, July 16, 2015 5:34 AM
Subject: Arizona Theatre Company Retains National Search Firm for New Leadership Team

 

NEWS RELEASE

 

For Immediate Release

 

ARIZONA THEATRE COMPANY RETAINS NATIONAL SEARCH FIRM FOR NEW LEADERSHIP TEAM

 

            TUCSON/PHOENIX, Ariz. (July 16, 2015): Arizona Theatre Company has engaged national search firm AlbertHall&Associates to identify candidates to succeed Artistic Director David Ira Goldstein and Interim Managing Director Matt Lehrman.  

            Goldstein, who completed his 23^rd year as Artistic Director with the 2014-15 season, had previously announced his intention to leave ATC in 2013, but agreed to stay in his current role during a period of management changes and transitions that included former Managing Director Jessica L. Andrews' return to the organization in 2013, her subsequent retirement in January 2015 and her appointment as Managing Director Emeritus.

            Lehrman, principal of the consulting firm Audience Avenue, LLC, was named Interim Managing Director in September 2014.

            The search firm will coordinate efforts with the recently formed ATC Search Committee.  Committee members to date are: Mike Kasser, co-chair; Joanie Flatt, co-chair; Lynne Wood Dusenberry, Chair-Elect, ATC Board of Trustees; and Dr. John Shaefer, a former ATC Trustee and the former President of the University of Arizona. Additional committee members will be named.

            A timetable for the search will be established in collaboration with AlbertHall&Associates.

            "David Ira Goldstein is an artistic icon and a visionary, not only for the arts in Arizona but nationwide," Dusenberry said.  "He has built a remarkable legacy at Arizona Theatre Company by his artistry through the productions he has directed and with his leadership and creative decisions that have positioned ATC among the nation's elite theatre companies.  We are not looking to replace him, only to find the person who will build upon the foundation he has created."

            Dusenberry said that Lehrman's selection as Interim Managing Director "was the right choice at the right time.  Matt has provided steady leadership and valuable strategic direction during a hectic transition period.  We very much appreciate his work."

            During his tenure at ATC, Goldstein has directed and/or produced more than 200 mainstage plays, workshops and presentations including acclaimed appearances by the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain.  He has been a guest director at theatres nationwide including The Pasadena Playhouse, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Geva Theatre Center, Mixed Blood, ACT Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Village Theatre and The Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis.

            He has won numerous awards for his work, including the Jeff Awards in Chicago, the Elliot Norton Award in Boston, several Bay Area Critics Awards and the Los Angeles Drama Critics Award.  In Arizona, he is a recipient of many ariZoni Awards, the Governor's Award and was named the 2010 Leader of the Year Award in Arts and Humanities from the Arizona Capitol Times.

            AlbertHall&Associates is a full-service consulting and executive recruiting firm that has provided support to many of America's most prestigious arts and entertainment companies, nonprofit organizations and allied agencies including The Stratford Festival of Canada, The Public Theatre, Center Theatre Group, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, South Coast Repertory, the Old Globe Theatre, the Guthrie Theatre, the Goodman Theatre and Manhattan Theatre Club, among many others.  

            For more information about Arizona Theatre Company, visit www.arizonatheatre.org.

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Media Contact: Steve Carr, The Kur Carr Group, Inc., (602) 317-3040; scarr@fastq.com

 

About Arizona Theatre Company:

Touching lives through the power of theatre, Arizona Theatre Company (ATC), is the preeminent fully professional theatre in the state of Arizona. Boasting the largest seasonal subscriber base in the performing arts in Arizona, ATC is the only resident company in the U.S. that is fully based in two cities providing its wide array of programming and community outreach across the region.  Now in its 49th season, more than 130,000 people a year attend our performances at the historic Temple of Music and Art in Tucson, and the elegant Herberger Theater Center in downtown Phoenix. Each season of home-grown productions reflects the rich variety of world drama—from classics to contemporary plays, from musicals to new works—along with a wide array of community outreach programs, educational opportunities, access initiatives and new play programs. Designated the State Theatre of Arizona, ATC is led by Artistic Director David Ira Goldstein, Interim Managing Director Matt Lehrman, Managing Director Emeritus Jessica L. Andrews and a dedicated Board of Trustees. 

 

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