LA Stage Alliance CEO Terence McFarland to Step Down

LA STAGE Alliance Chief Executive Officer Terence McFarland will be stepping down effective April 30 after an 11-year tenure at the not-for-profit arts service organization, it was announced today by the LASA Board of Directors. On June 1, McFarland becomes Associate Executive Director at Valley Performing Arts Center, California State University, Northridge. He will join Executive Director Thor Steingraber in leading VPAC with multiple and varied responsibilities which include business development, institutional fundraising, box office, finance, community and campus engagement, and a variety of programming initiatives.

"Our thanks to Terence for his decade plus of service to our organization and to our community," said Board Chair and La Mirada Theatre Producing Artistic Director Brian Kite. "He is an incredible leader and has guided us through many challenges and successes. I'm pleased that Terence is staying within the Southern California arts community and look forward to continued work with him as a colleague, artist, and friend."

"What a thrilling time I've had leading this organization for the last eleven-and-a-half years," said McFarland. "I want to thank the members of the board, the remarkable artists, administrators and leaders of our membership, and the tremendous staff I've had the extraordinarily good fortune to work with and learn from during my time at LASA. It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve this robust and dynamic community." He continued, "I'm proud of the many partnerships we've developed during my years at LA STAGE Alliance and the nimbleness with which the staff and I have been able to address the shifting needs of the community with the resources at hand. My tenure has been dedicated to raising the floor for the entire community while focusing on building capacity for the 'accidental arts administrators' who lead so many of our cultural organizations. I'm most proud of our success at strengthening and diversifying our contributed income in service to the community and I thank the long list of funders who have enabled our programs to serve Los Angeles. What a joy to know that I depart having recently secured the single largest donation in LASA's history - the gift from Bill Bordy - a gift that secures five years of operational support for the arts journalism program." McFarland concluded, "I look forward to seeing the resilient LA STAGE Alliance organization adapt and thrive under new leadership."

The LA STAGE Alliance Board has engaged Karen Constine, an arts/culture management consultant, to serve as the Consulting Interim Director. Constine provides strategic counsel and management consulting to entertainment and economic development nonprofits, government agencies and corporate clients, and has served in leadership capacities including Interim General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs. Constine and the board will also draw upon the extensive resources of the LASA staff among others to help carry out the mission and programming of LA STAGE Alliance during the transition. Board Chair Brian Kite also announced a search committee will be formed immediately to identify the next Executive Director.

Since 1975, LA STAGE Alliance has empowered artists and engaged audiences through a series of programs, events, and advocacy efforts. All of its initiatives aim to serve and strengthen the sector - both at an individual and community level - providing resources that facilitate audience engagement, collaborative marketing, community building, and professional development. Among its accomplishments, LA STAGE Alliance produces the annual Ovation Awards, organizes LA STAGE Day to train and support arts administrators, offers convenient and clear access and pricing for rehearsal space, rents set and costume pieces to member and non-member companies and partners with technology firms such as Patron Technology and TRG for ticketing and database solutions for all member organizations. The major funders of LA STAGE Alliance include The Shari and Les Biller Family Foundation, Bill Bordy, California Arts Council, California Community Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, The James Irvine Foundation, DEW Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, The Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Walt Disney Company, NBC/Universal, and RSF Social Finance.

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