This week’s Arts & Culture Connections Blog is a continuation of last week’s interview with Mikki Shepard, an independent arts consultant and writer about her work in the arts field. You will find a link to Part 1 at the end of this posting. I have had the privilege of knowing Mikki since the beginning of my career as an arts administrator, and she … Continue reading Mikki Shepard: “Activist on a Mission” Part 2

  This week’s Arts & Culture Connection Blog features Part 1 of an interview I conducted with Mikki Shepard, an independent arts consultant and a writer, about her work in the arts field. Mikki joined the Apollo Theater in 2006 as a consultant and was the Executive Producer from 2009 – 2016. As a member of the executive staff leadership, she built and implemented a … Continue reading Mikki Shepard: Arts Activist on a Mission (Part 1)

Since the inception of this blog, I have sought to share the experiences and insights of several leading voices of Diversity & Inclusion in the arts. This week, I’m sharing key points from each of the interviews I have conducted for Arts & Culture Connections with John Haworth, recently retired from the National American Indian Museum; Sandra Jackson-Dumont, the Frederick P. and Sandra P. Rose … Continue reading Current Voices of Diversity & Inclusion

This is Part II of my interview with Michael Robertson, an arts manager, artist advocate, organizational consultant and facilitator dedicated to fostering conversations, supporting training, and promoting systemic change locally, regionally, and nationally around issues of equity, access, and inclusion. Michael served as the Managing Director of The Lark for 11 years, where he oversaw finance, fundraising, human resources, strategic planning, and co-led equity, access, … Continue reading Part II: On the Path to Transforming the Landscape of the Arts; An Interview with Michael Robertson

Michael Robertson is an arts manager, artist advocate, organizational consultant and facilitator dedicated to fostering conversations, supporting training, and promoting systemic change locally, regionally, and nationally around issues of equity, access, and inclusion. For the past 11 years Michael served as the Managing Director of The Lark, an international theater laboratory based in New York City, where he oversaw finance, fundraising, human resources, strategic planning, … Continue reading On the Path to Transforming the Landscape of the Arts; An Interview with Michael Robertson

  In April of this year, I wrote a blog about the program Bite the Big Apple (BTBA), an international, joint venture between my company, Walker International Communications Group, based in New York, and Kape Communications Pty Ltd, based in Melbourne, Australia. We just concluded our 10th tour of New York by Australian arts administrators. Participants flew close to 10,000 miles(!) and endured a 12-15-hour … Continue reading Here’s to the next 10 years of Bite the Big Apple: An Interview with Fotis Kapetopolous

I had an incredible opportunity last week to reminisce about the nine years I worked at Dance Theatre of Harlem while attending a program at Columbia University that celebrated the legacy and ground-breaking contributions to the field of dance by DTH founder Arthur Mitchell. Sponsored by the university’s Columbia College Student Council, “An Informal Performance on the Art of Dance” also commemorated the donation of … Continue reading For the love of Arthur Mitchell

#TakeAKnee has been dominating the news this past week, and has become the latest frontline of our nation’s culture war. There are many stories intertwined here; but the most important thing for us to remember is this issue is bigger than the NFL and it impacts us all. However, before I discuss the implications, I want to remind everyone how we got here. Former San … Continue reading Take A Knee: Now is the time

The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and this is the second part of my interview with two of the pioneer performing arts curators, producers, administrators who were instrumental in the development of its programming. I have had the pleasure of knowing both Stephanie Hughley and Baraka Sele for many years. The rich history they shared about their efforts to … Continue reading Part II: Twenty-years of Success at NJPAC: Celebrating the pioneers who helped make it happen

As the New Jersey Performing Arts Center(NJPAC) prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary, I thought it appropriate to interview two of the pioneer performing arts curators, producers, administrators who were instrumental in the development of its programming. I have had the pleasure of knowing both Stephanie Hughley and Baraka Sele for many years. However, I was astounded by the rich history they shared about their … Continue reading Twenty-years of Success at NJPAC: Celebrating the pioneers who helped make it happen