Michael S. Rosenberg Appointed As La Jolla Playhouse Managing Director

The Board of Trustees of La Jolla Playhouse announces the appointment of Michael S. Rosenberg as the Playhouse's new Managing Director. A veteran producer in both the not-for-profit and commercial theatre worlds, Rosenberg will begin full time duties on May 4, 2009.

"After an extensive national search, the Board of Trustees is delighted to welcome Michael Rosenberg to the Playhouse. A highly accomplished theatre producer and administrator, Michael shares the Playhouse's vision for the future, and I am confident that the institution will thrive under his leadership during this important time in our history," said Playhouse Board Chair David Dolgen.

Michael S. Rosenberg was Co-Founder and Executive Director of Drama Dept., where he produced 21 productions, including As Bees in Honey Drown by Douglas Carter Beane, June Moon by George S. Kaufman and Ring Lardner, The Book of Liz, by David and Amy Sedaris, and the Tribeca Theater Festival in partnership with Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, Craig Hatkoff, the Tribeca Film Festival and American Express. After twelve years at Drama Dept., he went on to run the theatrical arm of East of Doheny, a theatre and film production company, where he oversaw numerous projects, including the Tony Award-winning Broadway hit Grey Gardens. Prior to Drama Dept., Rosenberg worked on the management teams for Broadway's The O'Neill Plays and off-Broadway's The Real Live Brady Bunch and Stars in the Morning Sky. He also spent several years in Washington, DC, where he produced and managed educational theatre programs for the National Dance Institute at The Kennedy Center, Kaiser Permanente and the Shakespeare Theatre. Most recently he was a producer of the 2008 Broadway revival of American Buffalo, starring John Leguizamo, Cedric the Entertainer and Haley Joel Osment.

"I have been a longtime admirer of La Jolla Playhouse and am deeply honored to be joining this remarkable institution," said Rosenberg. "Although our nation is going through a difficult economic period, the Playhouse has remained devoted to its mission of producing compelling, adventurous new work and to providing extraordinary theatre artists with a safe haven to explore their craft. I look forward to working alongside Artistic Director Christopher Ashley, the Board of Trustees and staff to help continue this legacy and to build on the Playhouse's already well-established national reputation."

Ashley commented, "I am thrilled that one of America's top theatre producers and arts administrators will be joining the Playhouse team. Michael's unique combination of passion and pragmatism, along with his extensive experience shepherding to the stage both large-scale musicals and innovative works in development, make him ideally suited for the position. I can't wait to begin our partnership."

The process for recruiting the new Managing Director began in September, 2008, where the Board of Directors formed a search committee and contracted the services of BHK Arts Consultants, Inc., an executive search firm specializing in the arts, led by Benita Hofstetter Koman.

In partnership with the Artistic Director, the Managing Director is responsible for directing overall strategic planning, financial management, marketing, development, production management and labor relations for the organization.

The nationally-acclaimed, Tony Award-winning La Jolla Playhouse is renowned for its tradition of creating the most exciting and adventurous new work in regional theatre. The Playhouse was founded in 1947 by Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire and Mel Ferrer, and is considered one of the most well-respected not-for-profit theatres in the country. Numerous Playhouse productions have moved to Broadway, including Big River, The Who's Tommy, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, A Walk in the Woods, Dracula, Billy Crystal's 700 Sundays, the Pulitzer Prize-winning I Am My Own Wife, Jersey Boys, The Farnsworth Invention, Cry-Baby and 33 Variations. Located on the UCSD campus, La Jolla Playhouse is made up of three primary performance spaces: the Mandell Weiss Theatre, the Mandell Weiss Forum and the Joan and Irwin Jacobs Center for La Jolla Playhouse, a state-of-the-art theatre complex which features the Sheila and Hughes Potiker Theatre.

 

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