Executive Placements

Howard Bender Florida Grand Opera FGO Chief Development Officer

Florida Grand Opera Names Howard Bender As Chief Development Officer

14:20 02 July in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

Florida Grand Opera (FGO) has selected Howard Bender as Chief Development Officer, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). He will begin his tenure on July 9, 2018. With 18 years of experience in arts management, Mr. Bender has successfully secured new revenue streams and audiences as well as recruited new board members and major stakeholders in competitive marketplaces. He most recently held the role of Vice President at Virginia Opera, serving a board of 90 members. His efforts helped surpass contributed income goals by 15 percent in FY17 and by 7 percent in FY18. He also created new contributed revenue streams, such as the Adopt-a-School Program and the Virginia is for Opera Lovers tourism initiative. Prior to his time at Virginia Opera, he served as Director of Institutional Advancement and External Relations of the Castleton Festival, where he was chosen by Maestro Lorin Maazel to reconfigure and...

Gram Slaton- Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center WHBPAC

Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center Names Gram Slaton As Executive Director

14:34 26 June in Executive Placements by Emily Carranza

Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center (WHBPAC) has selected Gram Slaton as Executive Director, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). Beginning his tenure on July 16, 2018, he will be responsible for overseeing the programming, administration, fundraising, strategic planning, and overall operation of WHBPAC. Mr. Slaton brings nearly 25 years of experience as an Executive Director at numerous successful performing arts organizations to WHBPAC. Most recently, he oversaw the strategic planning, financial management, community projects, and fundraising for the 1,007-seat Grand Opera House in Macon, Georgia. From 2005 to 2014, he ran the iconic Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, Colorado. Mr. Slaton is also credited with producing and programming several highly publicized and successful festivals, including the Aspen RooftopComedy Festival/Aspen Laff Festival; Mountain Summit: Mountainfilm in Aspen, a documentary and advocacy festival; and the 7908 Aspen Songwriters Festival. He has programmed thousands of shows, working with some...

Ian Derrer The Dallas Opera General Director and CEO TDO

The Dallas Opera Names Ian Derrer As General Director and CEO

16:40 17 April in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

The Dallas Opera (TDO) has selected Ian Derrer as its eighth General Director and CEO, following an executive search process supported by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). He will begin his tenure in July 2018. A lifelong opera lover, he has worked professionally as a singer, Assistant Stage Manager, Stage Manager, and Director at influential regional and national companies, including Santa Fe Opera, The Atlanta Opera, Opera Carolina, Opera Pacific, and Washington National Opera. Mr. Derrer obtained international experience at the Institute of Vocal Arts in Chiari, Italy, before taking on his first administrative position at New York City Opera in 2004. He later accepted a position as Rehearsal Administrator for Lyric Opera in Chicago. During his eight-year tenure, he rose through the ranks to serve as Director of Production and Head of the Rehearsal Department. For two years, Mr. Derrer served as TDO’s Artistic Administrator, where he worked on casting, production,...

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Angela Elster Vice President of the VSO School of Music & Community Programs

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Announces Angela Elster As Vice President of the VSO School of Music & Community Programs

17:37 06 April in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) has selected Angela Elster as Vice President of the VSO School of Music & Community Programs, following an international executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group Canada (ACG). She began the newly created position on March 26, 2018 on a part-time basis and will assume her full-time duties on June 3, 2018. With more than 20 years of experience in music and arts education, research, and learning, Ms. Elster has succeeded in significantly expanding music programs and advocacy. Recognized as an expert in the field of music education, she has become a vital resource for expanding the impact, relevance, and effectiveness of music and arts programs across Canada. Ms. Elster most recently served as Interim Executive Director at the Coalition for Music Education Canada (CMEC), where she was charged with leading and expanding the reach of signature programs, such as Music Monday and Youth 4...

Pilchuck Glass School Names Christopher Taylor As Executive Director

20:17 13 March in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

Pilchuck Glass School has selected Christopher (Chris) Taylor as Executive Director, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). He will begin his tenure on April 9, 2018. Since 2011, Mr. Taylor has served as President of The Clay Studio in Philadelphia, where he was responsible for significant organizational growth, audience expansion efforts, and unprecedented fundraising successes. While leading the organization, The Clay Studio was featured in the Wallace Foundation report Road to Results: Effective Practices for Building Arts Audiences, which highlighted its audience engagement efforts. Mr. Taylor has also held positions as Executive Director of the Holter Museum, a contemporary art museum in Montana; Associate Director of Three Rivers Arts Festival, a major arts festival in Pittsburgh; and Director of Community and Cultural Programs for the Center on Halsted, a community center dedicated to advancing community and securing the health and wellbeing of the LGBTQ people of...

Highland Center for the Arts Annie Houston Executive Director

Highland Center for the Arts Appoints Annie Houston As Executive Director

18:17 05 February in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

The Highland Center for the Arts (HCA) has selected Annie Houston as Executive Director, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). She began her tenure on January 22, 2018. A Vermont native, Ms. Houston most recently served as Program Officer at Boston’s Massachusetts Cultural Council. Since starting this role in 2011, she has created annual spending plans and timelines for programs and created cross-program initiatives to boost the organization’s efficacy while fostering relationships between the state’s 43 designated cultural districts, municipal government, and local stakeholders. She also helped design and facilitate a cultural district designation renewal process, built local parent support networks statewide for arts education advocacy, and represented programs and agencies at local, regional, and national meetings. Additionally, Ms. Houston has held the roles as General Manager at The Boston Camerata and as Administrative Director, Youth Chamber Program at Craftsbury Chamber Players. She holds a bachelor of...

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center Dion Brown President

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center Announces Dion Brown As President

17:21 05 February in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center (Freedom Center) has selected Dion Brown as President, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). He will begin his tenure on February 26, 2018. Mr. Brown steps in following the 2017 retirement of former President and current board member Dr. Clarence G. Newsome. Mr. Brown brings a wealth of museum, management, and branding experience to the Freedom Center, serving most recently as the founding Executive Director of the National Blues Museum in St. Louis, Missouri. Recognized by CNN, National Geographic, and the New York Post as a must-see museum, Mr. Brown helped the new start-up flourish since its founding in 2015. Under his leadership, he has helped raise funds, balance the budget, and expand museum programming, tours, and attendance. Prior to his leadership at the National Blues Museum, he held roles as Executive Director of the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in...

Peter Stephen Arnold Executive Director Yakima Valley Museum

Yakima Valley Museum Appoints Peter Stephen Arnold As Executive Director

17:27 20 November in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

The Yakima Valley Museum has selected Peter Stephen Arnold as Executive Director, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). He began his tenure on November 13, 2017. For nearly 10 years, Mr. Arnold served as President & Chief Executive Officer at the Genesee County Village & Museum in Mumford, New York. During his time there, he was responsible for all aspects of site management, developing a strategic master plan to guide the museum’s future development, and creating new entrepreneurial programs and revenue producing strategies. He also successfully orchestrated fundraising activities and solicited the largest gift in the museum’s history. From 2001 to 2007, he was Director of Old World Wisconsin, the largest living-history museum in the Midwest, where he oversaw all operations and budgeting. Mr. Arnold has also held roles as Director of the Fort Myers Historical Museum, Director of the Burroughs Home and The Imaginarium Science...

Jonathan Kaledin President and CEO Cape Arts & Entertainment Cape Symphony Cape Conservatory Cape Symphony & Conservatory

Cape Arts & Entertainment Names Jonathan Kaledin As President and CEO

12:00 12 October in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

Cape Arts & Entertainment, home of the Cape Symphony and the Cape Conservatory, has selected Jonathan Kaledin as President and CEO, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). He will begin his tenure on October 16, 2017. Mr. Kaledin is a lawyer and seasoned nonprofit executive with more than 30 years of extensive experience working in both government and the private sector. During his illustrious career, he has become one of the country’s noted public interest environmental executives. His leadership roles include Executive Director of the National Water Education/Funding Council, Executive Director of the Alliance for Water Stewardship, and Executive Vice President/General Counsel of Natural Systems Utilities. He has also served as New York Regional Counsel for The Nature Conservancy and General Counsel of Environmental Affairs for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. A professionally trained cellist and musicologist, Mr. Kaledin played in the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and the Boston-based...

Bonnie Butkas Merrimack Repertory Theatre Executive Director

Merrimack Repertory Theatre Selects Bonnie Butkas As Executive Director

17:12 02 October in Executive Placements by Amanda Bertone

Merrimack Repertory Theatre (MRT) has selected Bonnie Butkas as Executive Director, following an executive search process led by Arts Consulting Group (ACG). She will begin her tenure in Fall 2017. Ms. Butkas joins MRT from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), where she served as Senior Director of Foundation Relations. In this role, she was responsible for leading the university’s strategic efforts to secure funding from private and family foundations. Under her guidance, RIT secured its first significant gifts from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the Henry Luce Foundation. Prior to her time at RIT, she served as the Director of Development at Geva Theatre Center in Rochester, New York. During her tenure, Ms. Butkas oversaw five years of unprecedented growth in the company’s contributed income. She played a key role in a successful $10 million capital campaign to renovate the building and grow...