American Repertory Theater Sees Two New Executive Appointments

On March 16, it was announced that two promient theater producers, one from London's famed Royal Court Theatre and one from Broadway and Broadway Across America have been named to new leadership posts at American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) by Artistic Director/CEO Diane Paulus. Last fall, Paulus created two new senior level positions; named to the new posts are Diane Borger as Producer and Tiffani Gavin as Director of Finance and Administration.

Diane Borger joined the A.R.T. last fall as the Executive Producer for Sleep No More, and will now be taking on the full-time position of Producer for the A.R.T. Diane spent over a decade as General Manager at The Royal Court Theatre in London, where she produced over one hundred and fifty productions, including The Seagull, Rock'n'Roll, and The Weir, which she also transferred to Broadway in New York. Previously Diane spent thirteen years as Deputy Head of the National Theatre of Great Britain's Studio, where she oversaw the readings and workshops and classes for some of the most prominent playwrights, actors and directors in the United Kingdom. Diane Borger has a Master of Arts in Theater from Ohio State University. Now, thirty years after to moving to London to begin a career in British theater, she returns to the US to take on the mantle of Producer.

Tiffani Gavin most recently served as the Senior Director of Professional Licensing at Theatrical Rights Worldwide, where she engaged in strategic planning to grow the business, branding the company in a competitive marketplace and marketing the artists' work represented by the company. Prior to that work, Tiffani was the Executive Producer for Clear Channel Entertainment where she focused on business development, and executed the day-to-day responsibilities of administering Clear Channel's Broadway and Off-Broadway shows. She was the architect of the ‘Urban Broadway Series' project that focused on reaching out to and introducing more diverse audiences to the theatre. After graduating from Brown University, she began her theater career at the New York Shakespeare Festival/Public Theater. Later, she was Company Manager for Blue Man Group and spent two seasons as Engagement Manager for the multiple national tours of Phantom of the Opera.

Diane Borger and Tiffani Gavin are joining the A.R.T. at a key juncture as the theater rides on the success of Diane Paulus's inaugural season as Artistic Director, gears up for Johnny Baseball, the world premiere of the new musical about the Red Sox, and plans for next season.

Diane Paulus reflected: "After an extensive national search, and the review of literally hundreds of highly qualified candidates, I am honored to be moving forward with an executive team of this caliber and experience. I have every confidence that Diane and Tiffani are the right people to lead the theater in this transformational moment. As we work towards expanding the boundaries of theater, and revolutionizing the theater experience, I am so thrilled to have Diane and Tiffani as part of the leadership of the A.R.T."

The American Repertory THEATER (A.R.T.) is one of the country's most celebrated resident theaters and the winner of numerous awards - including the Tony Award, the Pulitzer Prize, and numerous local Elliot Norton and I.R.N.E. Awards. It was recently named one of the top three theaters in the country by Time magazine. Founded by Robert Brustein in 1980, the A.R.T. has welcomed major American and international theater artists whose singular visions generate and define the theater's work, presenting a varied repertoire that includes new plays, progressive productions of classical texts, and collaborations among artists from many disciplines. The A.R.T. has performed throughout the US, and worldwide in twenty-one cities in sixteen countries on four continents.

In 2008 the organization welcomed its new Artistic Director, Diane Paulus, under whose helm the theater began its 30th Season. Under the leadership of Diane Paulus, A.R.T. developed a new initiative, EXPERIENCE THE A.R.T., which seeks to revolutionize the theater experience through a sustained commitment to empowering the audience. This audience-driven vision has transformed the way the company develops, programs, produces, and contextualizes its work. This speaks directly to the A.R.T.'s core mission - "to expand the boundaries of theater." A.R.T. resources give equal importance to the social aspects of theater and the potential for a full theater experience, including interaction and engagement with its audience before, during, and after the production. The initiative involves producing theater cycles that create a festival atmosphere and allow audiences to experience productions in the context of a larger event. By producing and promoting these cycles as citywide events, A.R.T. seeks to attract larger audiences from the greater Boston area and from the rest of the country and world.

Photo Credit: Lauren Antler

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