TCG Announces Diane Rodriguez as Board Chair

Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for theatre, announces new leadership of its board of directors and three new members. Diane Rodriguez, associate producer/director of new play production at Center Theatre Group, succeeds Phillip Himberg, producing artistic director of The Sundance Institute Theatre Program, as board president. Robert Hupp, producing artistic director of Arkansas Repertory Theatre, joins playwright Lydia. R. Diamond as joint vice presidents. Tim Jennings, managing director of Children's Theatre Company, succeeds Roche Schulfer, executive director of Goodman Theatre, as treasurer. Ralph Bryan, managing director-investments of Wells Fargo Advisors, remains as secretary.

"TCG's board brings an invaluable breadth and depth of experience to empower TCG's mission to strengthen, nurture and promote the not-for-profit American theatre," said Teresa Eyring, executive director of TCG. "The aesthetic, cultural and geographic diversity of our movement is reflected in our board, helping TCG to inclusively serve our rapidly changing field."

TCG's new board members include: Patrick A. Bradford, attorney, New York, NY; Joshua Dachs, president, Fisher Dachs Associates Theatre Planning and Design, New York, NY; Larissa FastHorse, playwright and choreographer, Santa Monica, CA; Heather Randall, actor, producer and theatre activist, New York, NY; Tim Sanford, artistic director, Playwrights Horizons, New York, NY; and Paul G. Wolf, principal, Denham Wolf Real Estate Services, New York, NY.

"My career and the career of so many other artists and theatre workers has been the result of TCG's innovative thinking and generosity so the opportunity to sit at the helm of the TCG Board is a chance to give back," said Diane Rodriguez, board president of TCG. "I look forward to the next couple of years as we move the group forward to truly being an activist organization that engages our diverse communities through theatre."

Members of TCG's board serve three two-year terms. Board officers serve terms of one-year, concurrent with the fiscal year of July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014.

Returning board members include: Sarah Bellamy, associate artistic director - education, Penumbra Theatre Company, St Paul, MN; Ralph Bryan, managing director - investments, Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC., La Jolla, CA; Mark Cuddy, artistic director, Geva Theatre Center, Rochester, NY; Lydia R. Diamond, playwright, Evanston, IL; Teresa Eyring, executive director, Theatre Communications Group, New York, NY; Cynthia Fuhrman, director of marketing & communications, Portland Center Stage, Portland, OR; Joseph Haj, producing artistic director, Playmakers Repertory Company, Chapel Hill, NC; Andrew D. Hamingson, executive director, St. Ann's Warehouse, Brooklyn, NY; Aimée Hayes, artistic director, Southern Rep, New Orleans, LA; Michelle Hensley, artistic director; Ten Thousand Things Theater Company, Minneapolis, MN; Ed Herendeen, producing director; Contemporary American Theater Festival, Shepherdstown, WV; Philip Himberg, producing artistic director, Sundance Institute Theatre Program, Sundance, UT; Robert Hupp, producing artistic director, Arkansas Repertory Theatre, Little Rock, AR; Chris Jennings, managing director, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Washington, DC; Tim Jennings, managing director, Children's Theatre Company, Minneapolis, MN; Marshall Jones III, producing artistic director, Crossroads Theatre Company, New Brunswick, NJ; Kwame Kwei-Armah, artistic director, Center Stage, Baltimore, MD; Max Leventhal, general manager, ALLIANCE THEATRE, Atlanta, GA; Kate Lipuma, executive director; Writers' Theatre, Glencoe, IL; Kevin Moriarty, artistic director, Dallas Theater Center, Dallas, TX; Jonathan Moscone, artistic director, California Shakespeare Theater, Berkeley, CA; Lynn Nottage, playwright, Brooklyn, NY; Ralph Peña, artistic director, Ma-Yi Theater Company, New York, NY; Diane Rodriguez, associate producer/director of new play production, Center Theatre Group, Los Angeles, CA; Eric Rosen, artistic director; Kansas City Repertory Theatre Company, Kansas City, MO; Michael S. Rosenberg, managing director, La Jolla Playhouse, La Jolla, CA; Sean San Jose, program director, Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco, CA; Roche Schulfer, executive director, Goodman Theatre, Chicago, IL; Mark Valdez, executive director, Network of Ensemble Theatres, Los Angeles, CA; Clyde Valentin, executive director, Hip-Hop Theater Festival, Brooklyn, NY; Megan Wanlass, executive director, Siti Company, New York, NY; Angel Ysaguirre, deputy commissioner for arts planning, City of Chicago - Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Chicago, IL.

For over 50 years, Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the American theatre, has existed to strengthen, nurture and promote the professional not-for-profit American theatre. TCG's constituency has grown from a handful of groundbreaking theatres to nearly 700 member theatres and affiliate organizations and more than 12,000 individuals nationwide. TCG offers its members networking and knowledge-building opportunities through conferences, events, research and communications; awards grants, approximately $2 million per year, to theatre companies and individual artists; advocates on the federal level; and serves as the U.S. Center of the International Theatre Institute, connecting its constituents to the global theatre community. TCG is North America's largest independent publisher of dramatic literature, with 11 Pulitzer Prizes for Best Play on the TCG booklist. It also publishes the award-winning AMERICAN THEATRE magazine and ARTSEARCH®, the essential source for a career in the arts. In all of its endeavors, TCG seeks to increase the organizational efficiency of its member theatres, cultivate and celebrate the artistic talent and achievements of the field and promote a larger public understanding of, and appreciation for, the theatre. For more information visit www.tcg.org.