Californians for the Arts, in partnership with local organizations, is holding four regional conversations to discuss the state of the nonprofit performing arts in California. In San Francisco we are working with Theatre Bay Area. Bringing together organization leaders and artists to discuss the current crisis, provide background on how we got here, what the current situation is including a recent data report, and how through public policies and resources, philanthropy and innovative business models we can move forward to a more sustainable and equitable future. Highlights of the program include a presentation on a recent report by CVL Economics on the state of California nonprofit performing arts, the introduction of the CA Nonprofit Paymaster Program, recent legislative efforts including SB1116, the advocacy needed to build awareness, and a panel discussion with local leaders on new approaches and resources needed to sustain live nonprofit performing arts in California.
Partner: Theatre Bay Area and ODC Theater
READING RECOMMENDATIONS
Decomposition Instead of Collapse: Dear Theatre, Be Like Soil | RESCRIPTED | One of the biggest obstacles to systemic change is the unwillingness to move beyond the current paradigm we inhabit. We won’t be able to identify solutions or viability / scalability of those solutions until we move beyond an economic paradigm driven by scarcity.
Center Stage: The Role of Live Performing Arts In Revitalizing California Communities |**Full report that was presented in the session** California’s live Performing Arts sector is crucial to the state’s economic, social, and cultural wellbeing. The economic activity generated by the Performing Arts sector has often been undervalued or overlooked, but it can and should play a central role in economic development planning. Three years after the onset of COVID-19, it is clear that a return to a pre-pandemic economic landscape is unlikely.
Speakers
Sean Fenton is an arts professional with over two decades of experience in the San Francisco Bay Area theatre community. As executive director of Theatre Bay Area, a service organization that supports nearly 200 theatre companies and thousands of individual theatre practitioners, he works to unite, strengthen, promote, and advance the arts across 11 counties in and around the San Francisco Bay Area. Sean has been a guest speaker and panelist for TYA/USA; a production supervisor and communications manager for Kaiser Permanente Educational Theatre; a director, music supervisor, and performer for Bay Area Children’s Theatre; and a board member for Crowded Fire Theater. As the director and manager of the Intrinsic Impact program at WolfBrown, Sean co-authored a study on the audience impact of choral music concerts and provided audience research services to over 100 arts organizations around the globe, including Center Theatre Group, Cornerstone Theatre Company, San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Ballet, Arts Club Theatre Company, and Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. He has presented at nine national arts conferences, including the Tessitura Learning & Community Conference, the Theatre Communications Group National Conference, the National Arts Marketing Project Conference, and the One Theatre World Conference. An award-winning actor, Sean has performed at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, San Francisco Playhouse, 42nd Street Moon, Ferocious Lotus Theatre Company, Community Asian Theatre of the Sierra, and more. He combines his experience as a theatre artist with expertise in research, program development, and community outreach. He is a passionate advocate for building a more equitable and inclusive theatre community that is both artistically vibrant and financially empowered. Sean holds a BA in Cultural and Social Anthropology from Stanford University and is a member of Actors' Equity Association and SAG-AFTRA.
Meredith Suttles (she/her/hers) is an arts leader with extensive background in creative and performing arts in the areas of development, management, strategic planning, fundraising, and performance. She has held senior leadership roles at TheaterWorksUSA, Soho Repertory Theatre, Theatre Communications Group (TCG), and the New York City Opera. Meredith is a proud graduate of the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) and former EmcArts: Arts Leaders as Cultural Innovators (ALACI) Fellow. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and a Steering Committee Member of the Black Theatre Commons.
Martha Demson is the board president of Theatre Producers of Southern California (TPSCA). In this capacity, she spearheaded the advocacy campaign to enact and fund California Senate Bill 1116 The Equitable Payroll Fund, a sustainability program designed to reimburse a sizable percentage of small nonprofit performing arts organizations' payroll expenses. TPSCA was joined in this effort by Actors Equity Association (co-sponsors) and Californians for the Arts and Arts for LA (principal supporters.) The Governor signed the bill into law last September, but it remains unfunded at this time. She also works at Californians for the Arts as their Program Specialist for the California Nonprofit Performing Arts Paymaster (CANPAY), a program designed to eliminate the sizable administrative burden of managing payroll for small performing arts organizations. For the past 26 years, Martha has held the position of Producing Artistic Director at Open Fist Theatre Company, a company known for producing large-scale, vibrant theatrical productions in an intimate setting. And finally, Martha is also a board member of the Hollywood Media District Business Improvement District, where she chairs its Arts Committee. Martha is a champion of creative placemaking, believing that by embedding the arts in communities, we can transform lives and create a stronger sense of civic engagement and identity.
Clive Worsley has been a leader in Bay Area performing arts non-profits as an artist, educator, and administrator for over 30 years. Under his leadership as Executive Director, California Shakespeare Theater (Cal Shakes) is now in its 49th season as a nationally recognized leader in drawing on the power of authentic, inclusive storytelling to create more vibrant communities. His long and celebrated history at Cal Shakes began in 2002 as a principal Teaching Artist. Clive collaborated with classroom teachers to create the first integrated arts residency programs, taught and directed students of all ages in the Summer Shakespeare Conservatories, and launched the popular Student Matinee Program. From 2013–2021, Clive served as Director of Artistic Learning and expanded the reach of arts education to communities around the San Francisco Bay Area. A former member of the Bay Area Transformative Justice Collective and the inaugural Cal Shakes EDI committee, Clive has been deeply involved in the evolution of the local performing arts ecosystem and its journey towards equity.
Clive served As Artistic Director of Town Hall Theatre in Lafayette from 2008-2013, where he cultivated greater integration of the Main Stage and Educational Programs, including a shadow cast program for teen actors. Under his direction, Town Hall built new community partnerships, recovered from a devastating flood, achieved financial solvency, and received numerous Shellie Awards for their mainstage productions. He most recently served as the Executive Director of the Junior Center of Art and Science in Oakland CA, a 60+ year organization providing arts and science educational engagements to at promise youth throughout the greater East Bay.
As an award-winning actor, Clive has appeared on many Bay Area stagesincluding Cal Shakes, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, TheatreWorks, Marin Theatre Company,Magic Theatre, Center Rep, Shotgun Players, and many others.
Christine Leslie brings a unique blend of performing arts experience and business management to Peninsula Lively Arts. She has been associated with Peninsula Ballet Theatre for over 40 years, beginning in 1979 performing with the professional company in productions such as Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Fille Mal Guarde, Giselle, Cinderella, and Romeo & Juliet as well as performing in numerous musical theater productions. She has served as member of the Peninsula Ballet Theatre Board of Trustees, board president, and now as Executive Producer & CEO. In addition to a degree in Journalism and a Masters in Mass Communications, Leslie earned her Executive MBA in International Business from the University of San Francisco. After working for 25 years managing economic development, sales, and marketing programs in the high tech industry, Christine joined the PBT administrative staff full time. She continues her study of voice and dance.
Greg Stern was appointed CEO of SFJAZZ in 2020. Long a supporter, and previously a 3 term board trustee, Greg has been fortunate to be able to turn a passion into a vocation.
He built his career in advertising and marketing services, and is co-founder and chairman of BSSP, an independent creative advertising agency. For 30 years, BSSP has developed award-winning marketing solutions for clients including Blue Shield, Mitsubishi, Priceline, MINI Cooper and others. He served as Board Chair of the industry trade organization, the 4A’s from 2017-2020.
Greg’s experience also includes multinational agencies, where he was based in New York, Hong Kong and Indonesia, working with clients including American Express, Unilever and Nestle. Greg has been featured in major media, and has guest lectured at many universities and graduate schools.
Julie Baker, CEO, CFTA & CAA
As CEO of California’s statewide arts advocacy organizations since 2018, Julie has worked to increase the legislative clout and visibility of the arts and culture communities by building coalition across the for and non-profit sectors of California’s creative industries, producing a month long arts awareness and advocacy campaign every April, and fighting for resources and legislation to serve and protect artists and cultural workers. She serves as the California State Captain to Americans for the Arts' National Arts Action Summit and on the State Arts Action Network Council and as the co-chair of the Western Arts Advocacy network for WESTAF. She is on the board of California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project, a founding member of the Nevada County Relief Fund advisory council and was elected to the Nevada County school board in November of 2020.
Over the years, Julie has owned a fine arts gallery for emerging artists, co-founded Flow art fair — a satellite to Art Basel Miami Beach — opened a consulting firm Julie Baker Projects and curated an annual music series at the Crocker Art Museum. Earlier in her career she was President of her family’s arts marketing firm in New York City and worked at Christie’s Auction house before moving to California in 1998. Julie also served for eight years as the Executive Director of The Center for the Arts, a non-profit performing arts venue and California WorldFest, an annual music and camping festival located in Grass Valley, CA. She is the recipient of the inaugural Peggy Levine Arts & Community Service Award from the Nevada County Arts Council. And the 2021 Alene Valkanas State Arts Advocacy Award from Americans for the Arts, which honors an individual at the state level whose arts advocacy efforts have dramatically affected the political landscape.
Nikki Meñez, Curatorial Director, Z Space
Meredith Suttles, Managing Director, Marin Theatre Company