Greg Weber Named Tulsa Opera Managing Director

Tulsa Opera today announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Greg Weber to the position of Managing Director. Currently Director of Production at San Francisco Opera, Weber brings more than 28 years of experience in arts management. He was hired after a nationwide executive search guided by Arts Consulting Group. Weber will assume his duties as Managing Director this October.

"It is with great pleasure that the Board of Directors welcomes Greg Weber to his new position as Managing Director," says Board President Alvina Hart. "As Tulsa Opera begins its 67th anniversary season, we are fortunate to gain the leadership of such a veteran professional as Mr. Weber, who brings extensive world class experience from his positions at San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera and Geva Theatre Center. We look forward to dynamic growth in our programming and community outreach with his proven skills in management, development, marketing, and community engagement. His knowledge of and appreciation for opera along with his commitment to fully engage the community through opera is a perfect fit for our company and region. Together with Artistic Director Kostis Protopapas, Mr. Weber will lead Tulsa Opera to new heights."

"I am thrilled that Greg Weber has accepted the Managing Director position with Tulsa Opera, and I can't wait for him to get to Tulsa. Our board and staff have worked very hard on the artistic, business and governance front in the past three years, and our company is currently poised for great growth. The fact that we are able to attract a person who is currently in an upper management position in the nation's second largest opera house says a lot. Greg has deep knowledge of the opera business, and he and I share a great passion for the art form and the determination to see Tulsa Opera grow artistically and in its relationship with audiences in Tulsa and the state of Oklahoma. My deepest gratitude goes to our Board President Alvina Hart, who has led so many positive developments in the past year, and to Search Committee Chair Scott Filstrup and the members of his committee," states Tulsa Opera Artistic Director Kostis Protopapas.

"It is with great delight that I become the next Managing Director of Tulsa Opera," says Greg Weber. "Led by Kostis' artistic excellence, the staff is of a caliber which promises endless potential. Tulsa is a place where big dreams are more powerful than any obstacle. It is a city where I am anxious to be both a part of its dreams and add a few dreams of my own."

Tulsa Opera has an annual budget of $2.7 millon and produces three operas each season, including one contemporary American or English-language opera. During its 2014-15 season, Tulsa Opera will present Rossini's Cinderella, Gounod's Romeo and Juliet and Carlyle Floyd's Of Mice And Men. Additionally, the company maintains a vibrant education and community outreach program, which includes Tulsa Youth Opera, a tuition-free training program for singers in grades 3-12, and Opera On Tour!, which annually presents a children's opera to each second grade class in Tulsa Public Schools and to more than 20,000 students in schools in Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri. Tulsa Opera also hosts the Tulsa Opera Studio training program for young professional singers and musicians.

More About Greg Weber

Greg Weber joined San Francisco Opera in February 2011 as Director of Production. He directs a budget of $20 million and leads a team of 13 managers and more than 175 personnel who create and staff more than 70 performances of ten operas annually. He brings more than twenty-eight years' experience as an arts manager, managing operations and producing theatrical events in senior leadership positions, during which he has produced 18 world premieres.

Previously, Weber was appointed Managing Director of Geva Theatre Center in Rochester, New York in 2007, where he managed all financial and administrative areas of the $7 million multi-venue complex, including a renovation of the company's historic facility supported by a $2 million lead gift from the New York state legislature. He was the theater's principal community liaison, expanding the company's local, regional, and state influence, and producing the inaugural Rochester Theatre Fest which led to his founding TheatreROCS, an alliance of 28 Rochester metro arts organizations.

Prior to his tenure with Geva, Weber served as Technical Director for Houston Grand Opera from 1993 to 2006, overseeing all production elements, as well as leading the company's labor negotiations. Working closely with the company's then General Director, David Gockley, Mr. Weber was instrumental in the development and execution of Houston Grand Opera's community outreach initiatives of PlazaCast presentations, OperaVision, its multi-media modular staging system for large outdoor venues, and the creation of customized opera supertitles.

Weber received his B.S. in theater design from Ball State University and his M.F.A. in theater technology from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He has held positions as Assistant Professor of Theater at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Technical Director for Missouri Repertory Theater and Operations Manager for VDA, The Event Design Group. He was invited to work with the Moscow Art Theatre, and spent time living and working in Moscow. His board and community affiliations include finance, marketing, and artistic planning committee member for Mercury Opera; founder and chairman of the board for TheatreROCS; chairman of the Board of Method Machine; the Rochester Community Business Forum, and coaching multiple soccer, baseball and basketball youth sports programs.

About Arts Consulting Group - Arts Consulting Group is the leading provider of hands-on interim management, executive search, revenue enhancement consulting, facilities and program planning, and organizational development services for the arts and culture industry. With locations in New York, Washington DC, Boston, Pittsburgh, Tampa, Los Angeles, San Diego, Portland, Seattle and Chicago, ACG consultants are also located in other communities throughout North America to best serve the needs of its clients. For more information, call (888) 234.4236 or visit www.artsconsulting.com.

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