Q: Describe your role(s) at MAAA:
A: I am a senior lecturer in both our graduate and undergraduate program. I specialize in the performing arts, especially opera and theater. At the graduate level, I teach Introduction to Arts Administration and Organizational Behavior, as well as Performing Arts Organizations and Arts Education Policy; and at the undergraduate level I teach Introduction to Arts Management and Community Engagement in the Arts. I also lead one of our O’Neill abroad programs, O’Neill in Israel, which focuses on arts administration and cultural policy in the Middle East.
Q: From the beginning of your career through now, how have you come to find yourself at the MAAA program?
A: I did my Doctor of Music in Voice at the Jacobs School of Music, and one of my outside doctoral fields was here at the O’Neill School in Arts Administration. I did my bachelor’s degree in Arts Administration and I worked in the field, and decided to do some more advanced study during my doctorate. When I was taking my qualifying exams and writing my dissertation, Michael Rushton (head of both the MAAA and the MPA program at the time) asked me to join the faculty as an adjunct and started teaching in this program during my doctoral candidacy year. When I graduated, I landed a full-time faculty job as an assistant professor and director of an arts administration program at a small liberal arts college in Virginia. I spent four years in that position and decided I wanted work in the field again and moved to Washington, DC to become executive director of Washington Concert Opera. After some time, I realized I wanted to return to academia; I missed being in the classroom and working with emerging arts leaders. In early 2016 I received a call that there was a job opening at O’Neill, threw my hat in the ring, and here we are!
Q: You do a lot of advocacy work for the state of Indiana. Can you tell us more about that?
A: I have led the federal level advocacy efforts for the arts in the state of Indiana for the past few years. I’ve built relationships with several agencies at the federal level including the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Department of Education, and at the state level with the Indiana Arts Commission and many arts organizations throughout the Hoosier state.
There’s something so thrilling about being able to not only provide metrics and data, but context and story about why the arts are so important. One thing that a lot of people don’t know is that in Indiana, a state that is mostly rural with a population of 6.7 million, the robust artistic output and benefits of the arts in Hoosier communities are incredible! I love when I meet with legislators and/or their staff and they have a light bulb moment where they realize the impact of the arts in the lives of their constituents.
Q: There’s a lot of misconception around what Arts Administration is. How do you explain it to your family or people you may meet that don’t understand what “Arts Administration” means?
A: I have to tell you, people have not understood what arts administration is for a long time. When I was in college and went home for Thanksgiving break, an aunt or an uncle would ask me, “How’s college?” I’d say, “It’s great. I love it.” “Have you decided on a major? What are you studying?” “I have. I’m studying arts administration.” They replied with “I have no idea what that means.” I love to say that arts administration is bridging art and audiences. We make all the magic happen. Without us, you don’t get to see Hamilton on Disney Plus. You don’t get to see artists’ world tours or major exhibitions and showcases. You don’t get to experience education and community engagement programs from your regional theatres or local orchestras.
Q: And how would you describe Arts Administration to a child?
A: I would ask a child about their favorite work of art. Whether it was a movie, which often is usually Disney, or a painting, or a dance like Nutcracker, or a musical like Sound of Music, I would ask them “Why do you love it so much?” And they usually say, “The sets are pretty, the colors are so beautiful. It just makes me feel happy. I feel like I belong when I’m part of something like this.” Then I’d tell them, “People like me are the ones that make sure you have that experience.”
Q: When you happen to meet someone who might be considering a degree in Arts Administration, what would/do you say to them?
A: The first thing I like to ask people considering arts administration is to tell me about their experience with art. I just love to start a conversation with, “Hey, what do you like about art? What do you love? Do you have a favorite piece? Do you have a favorite composer? Do you have a favorite artist?” and go from there. I also love to emphasize that arts administration is very interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary: there’s a place for everyone and what they bring to the table.
Q: What advice would/do you give to arts administration students just entering MAAA?
A: Take advantage of every arts opportunity that’s available to here at IU and Bloomington. There are shows every night, there are gallery openings every single weekend. You can see a national Broadway tour at IU Auditorium one night, then a world-class ballet at the Musical Arts Center the next. Embrace the accessibility and abundance.
I also recommend getting to know your cohort well. These are people that you will work with over the next 1 1/2 – 3 years. These are folks who will be your colleagues. They are your colleagues starting now: you’ll hire each other, be references for each other, and more. The real word doesn’t start at graduation, it starts now: act like the arts administrator you want to be and start formulating your philosophy of arts administration too.
Q: Who in Arts Administration do you look up to, and think current Arts Administrators should know more about/look into, and why?
A: I have always been in great admiration of Deborah Borda’s career. She ran the New York Philharmonic in the 1990s, went to the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and is now back at the New York Philharmonic. She is one of the most incredible forces in the field and was one of the first women to hold a C-level position at a major US orchestra. I’ve also been inspired by the work of Anne Parsons, Marin Alsop, and Francesca Zambello.
When I was living in Washington, I found a mentor in Michael Mael, the former executive director of both Washington Ballet and Washington National Opera. During my first week on the job, I got a phone call from him welcoming me to the city and inviting me to lunch. (Mind you, I wrote about his work in a paper in grad school!) That following week, we had a good two-hour long lunch and one the first questions he asked me was, “What can I do to make your job easier and what can I do to help you do your job better?” I had never had a colleague ask me that before and it spoke volumes about who he was as an arts leader. I cherish that conversation still to this very day.
Q: What books are you currently reading? (can be for professional reasons or personal enjoyment) Is there a particular book you’d recommend to a young arts administrator?
A: I just finished Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad. It’s about her experience as a 20-something being diagnosed with cancer, navigating treatment, and re-entering “normal” life in remission. It’s a poignant, beautiful read.
I always like to recommend Donna Walker Kuhne’s Invitation to the Party, which is about marketing, audience development, and audience engagement. It’s one to have in your library. I love to counteract that with Twyla Tharp’s The Creative Habit, which provides some great insights about developing your philosophy of creativity and the discipline and framework required to live a full, creative life. I think those two books play incredibly well off each other.
Q: What’s on your arts/cultural bucket list? (i.e. concert, venue, etc.)
A: I crossed off my biggest bucket list item a couple of years ago when I saw Washington National Opera’s production of Wagner’s Ring Cycle, in full, at the Kennedy Center. Almost 18 hours of opera in one week! Another one is that I have performed at Carnegie Hall, but I have never seen a show at Carnegie Hall. Hope to cross that one off the list soon.
Q: Favorite work of art (any art form, genre)
A: I can’t pick just one work of art! My favorites include anything by Leonard Bernstein (especially his symphonies), Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park with George, Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass, and most importantly, anything that my two-year-old niece makes for me.