McCarter Theatre Center Welcomes New President of the Board of Trustees

At its final Board of Trustees meeting of the season, McCarter Theatre Center welcomed Leslie Vought Kuenne as its new President. A Princeton resident and engaged community activist, Kuenne has been a McCarter Trustee since the 2012-2013 season and assumed her new duties as of July, 2016.

Kuenne received her BA in Biology from University of California San Diego and her MS in Genetics from Sarah Lawrence College and worked as a genetic counselor in both New York and Philadelphia-area hospitals. Members of the Princeton arts and non-profit communities already know Kuenne for her board service with the Arts Council of Princeton and the Stony Brook Garden Club, as well as her volunteer activities with Trinity Counselling Service and Princeton Day School. An avid painter, photographer and patron of the arts, Kuenne is married to Princeton businessman Christopher Kuenne and is the mother of three sons. The McCarter family is delighted to welcome Kuenne as a passionate and extraordinarily qualified Board President.

The Board also bid a fond farewell to BrIan McDonald who began his service at McCarter as a Trustee in 2002 and assumed the role of Board President in 2012, just as the full impact of the financial crisis hit arts organizations. McDonald worked tirelessly to support the theatre and reestablish financial stability. His talents as an entrepreneur, a business man, as past Vice President for Development at Princeton University, and as an artist made him an invaluable leader of the McCarter Board of Trustees. McCarter has benefited from by his immense dedication and advocacy for the theater's mission. In keeping with McCarter tradition, McDonald will remain on the board as Immediate Past President.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Emily Mann and Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, McCarter Theatre Center is recognized as one of the nation's premier theater companies. Renowned for major contributions to the theatrical canon, McCarter premieres include such works as Christopher Durang's Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (winner of the 2013 Tony Award for Best Play) and McCarter was honored in 1994 with the Regional Theatre Tony Award. Thanks to the efforts of Special Programming Director William W. Lockwood, McCarter Theatre Center is also a premier presenter of artists renowned around the world and across genres as varied as dance, classical, pop, jazz, performance art, comedy, magic, children's theatre, and much more.

McCarter is supported by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, Princeton University, and over 3,000 individuals, corporations, community leaders, and foundations. For more info visit www.mccarter.org.

Pictured: Incoming Board Chair Leslie Kuenne with outgoing Board Chair BrIan McDonald. Photo by Matt Pilsner.

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