American Stage Theatre Company (American Stage) is looking for an ambitious and entrepreneurial minded visionary to lead all aspects of operations and programming for this highly respected cultural bedrock of the St. Petersburg, Florida community. The Producing Artistic Director is the chief executive reporting directly to American Stage’s Board of Trustees and is responsible for ensuring that the company has the required capacity to execute an exciting annual plan of theatrical programs that reflect and respond to contemporary topics.
Balancing American Stage’s role as a theatre company that exists to entertain as well as inspire audiences will be a primary focus of the Producing Artistic Director’s constant quest to motivate the company to perform beyond expectation. American Stage’s Producing Artistic Director will derive great satisfaction from strategically building upon and leading a team of artists, administrators, and advocates who can implement a bold vision that shines a light on an increasingly diverse set of voices in the theatre speaking to today’s audiences with heart, humor, and intellect. The Producing Artistic Director will continually value inclusion and access for all and lead by example, celebrating an atmosphere of unquestioned integrity, belief in community service, and the joy derived from an honest day’s work.
BACKGROUND AND THE FUTURE
American Stage was founded in 1977 as the Palisades Theatre of Florida and was originally conceived of as a university-based company that primarily produced work for educators and students. Since those early years, American Stage has evolved into the premiere professional theatre company in the Tampa Bay area and is well-known for top level productions of contemporary stories from a growing pool of today’s most exciting writers and theatre creators.
Stephanie Gularte has been American Stage’s Producing Artistic Director since 2015. During her tenure the theatre has doubled down on confirming its place as a cultural cornerstone for the vibrant St. Petersburg community. In the summer of 2020, Ms. Gularte announced that she would be stepping down in 2021 due to personal health challenges. Ms. Gularte leaves the company in a strong and resilient place, even in the face of the business interruptions American Stage has experienced in response to COVID-19.
American Stage annually produces a 6-show season plus a large-scale outdoor musical theatre event. The 6-show season happens in the 182-seat Raymond James Theatre where the company is in residence on the campus of St. Petersburg College in the heart of downtown St. Petersburg. The large-scale musical theatre production takes place in Demens Landing Park and is a highly visible public performance event for American Stage. Since 2017, the 21st Century Voices New Play Festival has confirmed American Stage’s commitment to the development of new work. American Stage has long embraced a deeply held set of values around giving voice to BIPOC centered stories on its stages and is proud to have been one of a handful of professional theatre companies in the world to fully produce August Wilson’s Century Cycle. The theatre currently operates under an SPT-7 contract with Actors’ Equity Association.
Educational programming is a key part of the American Stage experience and the company offers classes for youth and adult learners. Outreach activities include an annual school tour and workshops in the community, and a Family Series and school matinees offer opportunities for multi-generational audiences to revel in the joys of live performance. An apprentice program has evolved to allow early career theatre artists and administrators practical, hands-on experiences in a professional theatre setting. American Stage also proudly supports a leadership fellowship focused on developing young women and BIPOC theatre professionals to become future industry leaders.
American Stage has a 16-member Board of Trustees of community advocates dedicated to the company’s mission through governance oversight, financial support, and the sharing of professional insight and talent. American Stage also benefits greatly from the wisdom and dedication of a Strategic Advisory Board whose members serve as important ambassadors for the theatre. Like other cultural organizations, America Stage is working through the challenges of delivering its core, mission-based activities in the face of difficult circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to business interruptions brought on by the pandemic, American Stage supported a small full-time staff with year-round involvement from a large group of contracted artists, artisans, and administrators (the hope is to bring back currently furloughed employees in a staggered manner as a level of normal live production resumes). The company has reimagined its current season as a hybrid experience of online connections and limited socially distanced in-person performance opportunities. For more information about American Stage, visit http://americanstage.org/.
PRIORITIES OF RESPONSIBILITY
As American Stage’s top artistic and administrative leader, the Producing Artistic Director shall be responsible for the following priorities:
Executive Leadership
- Build upon American Stage’s professionalism in all aspects of the operation, always fiercely supporting the company’s mission, vision, and core values.
- Set a plan to navigate strong adaptive emergence from the restrictions brought on by COVID-19.
- Lead staff, artists, and volunteers with confidence, compassion, and authenticity, creating an environment of clear expectations where a team feels supported to do its best work.
- Establish and nourish a great relationship of trust and accountability with American Stage’s Board of Trustees and Strategic Advisory Board, including new member vetting and onboarding.
- Optimistically value and recognize contributions (time, wealth, ideas, etc.) made by all stakeholders by encouraging creativity and the free sharing of ideas.
- Ensure that a strategic approach to identifying new artistic and funding resources is front-and-center in all organizational planning and discussions.
Programming and Education
- Define American Stage’s artistic vision and direction through a deep understanding of how the company can uniquely serve the needs of its region.
- Plan American Stage’s season of theatrical productions and participate artistically in that execution in some capacity (i.e. as director, actor, playwright, designer).
- Maintain a thriving and diverse network of today’s best working artists to draw upon to realize American Stage’s productions and programs.
- Manage and mentor artistic, production, and education personnel.
- Oversee and participate in selecting, hiring, and mentoring professional actors, directors, designers, artistic/production staff, and educators.
- Support an infrastructure where young artists can learn from the best in the field through apprenticeship and where seasoned artists are reinvigorated by new lessons gained from early career talent.
- Show a dedicated commitment to education and expansive access to the theatre in new and creative ways and through support of a skilled education and outreach staff interested in engaging with a broader community.
- Foster the growth of American Stage as a home for new works development and seek out and present exciting new voices in the American theatre.
- Show an obvious and active love of theatre by producing live performances with a public sense of elation.
Fiscal Management, Fundraising, Administration, and Strategy
• Lead the annual organizational budgeting process, understanding all details of operational need and potential.
• Run American Stage with fiscal rigor and achieve annual revenue and expenditure goals.
• Evaluate staffing structure and ensure for the best alignment of personnel resources and focus that recognizes the need to honor reasonable work/life balance.
• Improve upon systems and practices to measure and monitor the effectiveness of American Stage’s programming and operations.
• Serve as American Stage’s chief fundraiser, leading the charge for support in collaboration with American Stage’s Board of Trustees and development staff.
• Motivate development staff to establish and succeed in hitting aspirational goals.
• Lead with a long-term mindset towards building reserves of resources, both in the financial realm and in regards to artistic connections throughout the industry.
Communication and Access
• Be proactive in making access and inclusion to an increasingly diverse community a priority in all operations and communicate that in a highly public manner.
• Actively participate in a positive and present manner in key areas of civic engagement to ensure the arts in general and live theatre, specifically, play a central role in city planning.
• Establish a persona in the St. Petersburg community as an energetic ambassador who engages and identifies funders, key influencers, and important civic friends.
• Build an atmosphere and team for innovative marketing approaches that accurately convey American Stage’s spirit and personality.
• Assure that brand identity is cohesive and appropriate.
• Regularly assess sales/marketing programs and plans and revise when needed.
• Communicate key messaging and marketing approaches to Board and staff in advance of their implementation and execution.
Interested candidates should also possess the following qualifications, skills, and traits:
• Great comfort with non-profit sector financial management skills.
• The ability to be a highly effective manager balancing artistic vision and organizational capacity.
• Proven track record of success in leading a diverse team of professionals in a theatre setting.
• High level emotional intelligence and communication skills.
• Successful experience with and enthusiasm for mission-based fundraising.
• An engaging personality and the ability to inspire confidence as a team leader.
• A balanced approach to life highlighted by a great sense of humor.
• Enthusiasm for the St. Petersburg area and a desire to establish a role as a respected cultural leader in the community.
COMPENSATION AND START DATE
The salary range for the Producing Artistic Director role at American Stage starts at $100,000 and includes a full benefit package commensurate with other organizations of its size. The organization hopes to make a hiring decision by the first quarter of 2021, with the selected candidate assuming the Producing Artistic Director role shortly thereafter.
American Stage is an equal opportunity employer that celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. BIPOC candidates are highly encouraged to apply. (An offer of employment will be conditional upon satisfactory completion of a background check, including references, past employment, education, credit, and criminal histories.)
HOW TO APPLY
Jonathan West is the consultant from Management Consultants for the Arts who will be leading this search. Interested and qualified candidates should submit the following items for consideration:
- A current résumé
- Cover letter (no more than 1 ½ pages)
- Four professional references
- Salary expectation
Submissions should be made through Management Consultants for the Arts’ website at:
https://www.mcaonline.com/searches/producing-ad-american-stage
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