FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 18, 2024
CONTACTS: Corinna Schulenburg | [email protected] | 212-609-5941
TCG Announces New Co-Leadership Structure and Staff Transitions
Laurie Baskin, Director of Advocacy at TCG, to Retire
Erica Lauren Ortiz to Return to TCG as
Interim Senior Programmer, Advocacy and Governance
New York, NY - Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for theatre, has announced a new executive structure in which three directors will serve as co-leaders of the organization. The search process for these leaders will be led by Creative Evolutions in partnership with TCG’s board, launching in July 2024. Additionally, after 27 years at TCG, Laurie Baskin, longtime arts advocate and director of advocacy, will retire at the end of June 2024. Erica Lauren Ortiz will return to TCG as interim senior programmer, advocacy and governance through June 2025, after previously serving as TCG’s director of marketing and production from 2020-22. TCG’s new shared leadership model is part of a broader organizational realignment to adapt to significant changes in the nonprofit professional theatre ecology, with more announcements to be made soon.
Embracing the need for a new paradigm, TCG will move to a shared leadership model. Three directors will collaborate on TCG’s functions with the titles Co-ED: Programming Impact, Co-ED: National Engagement, and Co-ED: Operations and Business Development. Acknowledging that both TCG and the national theatre field need bold leadership in multiple areas beyond the realistic capacities of any one individual, these three leaders will bring their own unique strengths and provide multiple points of contact and perspectives for all of TCG’s constituents. More details on these positions and the search process will be announced after the national conference.
“In order to meet the challenges and opportunities of this moment of radical shift, TCG must evolve,” said Karena Fiorenza, interim chief executive officer. “In service of that evolution, we’re thrilled that TCG’s board has committed to a shared executive leadership model, inspired by our work with Creative Evolutions and TCG’s staff. The diversity of our theatre ecology and the complexity of TCG’s role within it require an expansive structure that takes advantage of multiple modes of leadership and expertise. To ensure that these new leaders inherit a strong organization capable of leading in new ways, we’ll be announcing additional organizational changes in the near future.”
“I’m grateful for the collaborative process with the board and staff, facilitated by Creative Evolutions, that has led to this new leadership structure for TCG,” said Harold Steward, board chair of TCG and executive director of New England Foundation of the Arts. “Now is the time for us to be bold as a theatre ecology, letting go of what no longer serves us and moving toward systems and structures that foster abundance for all of us. As we move through this transitional period, we’re fortunate to have strong interim leadership from Karena Fiorenza and LaTeshia Ellerson, who are strategically aligning staffing and culture to meet the moment.”
Laurie Baskin joined TCG in 1997 and fostered key relationships with elected officials and executive branch agencies while mobilizing the theatre field to take action. In her advocacy leadership role, Laurie led many advocacy cohorts to Capitol Hill over the years, including hundreds of theatre people at the 2016 National Conference, and most recently this April for the first-ever Theatre Week. Baskin also created a wide range of programs, including TCG’s Education Programs, teleconferences, Blue Star Theatres, and Special Reports. She conceived and led Building a National TEAM: Theatre Education Assessment Models and, from 2013 through 2020, led TCG’s research. Laurie was also a major contributor to the Fall Forum on Governance, and championed TCG’s relationship with trustees, including the National Council for the American Theatre. Laurie has also served as a TCG liaison with the Performing Arts Alliance, the Cultural Advocacy Group, the League of Resident Theatres, and more. TCG represents the not-for-profit professional theatre field in Washington, DC, advocating for a range of issues, including increased funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and for Arts Education at the US Department of Education, visas for foreign artists, tax incentives for charitable giving, and much more. Learn about TCG’s advocacy here.
“It’s difficult to imagine our theatre ecology without the many legislative wins for which Laurie has led the fight, including: access to FEMA funding for theatres; wireless microphone protections; sustained funding for the National Endowment for the Arts; and the inclusion of theatres in the historic levels of COVID-19 relief funding,” said LaTeshia Ellerson, interim chief growth officer. “We’re cheering Laurie on as she transitions into her well-earned retirement, and deeply grateful to Erica’s willingness to return to TCG in this new role. We’ll be working with Erica and Laurie closely to ensure a smooth transition for this critical part of TCG’s work.”
“Advocating for the theatre field for the past 27 years has been a labor of love and a great honor,” said Baskin. “I’ve been inspired by the partnership and collaboration of theatre leaders from across the county in telling their stories to policy-makers and, together, we’ve had some significant advocacy wins. I’m confident that TCG will carry on this essential work on behalf of the entire field.”
“There could not be a more important time to strengthen our advocacy for the theatre field, to champion access to critical resources that will allow our theaters to thrive, and to imagine infrastructure that supports our artistry,” said Ortiz. “I am honored to serve in this new capacity, and I applaud Laurie Baskin for making an incredible impact during her years of service.”
Erica Lauren Ortiz joined TCG as director of marketing in 2020 and played a critical role in navigating TCG’s response to the pandemic. Her leadership led to an expanded role as director of marketing and production, a role she held until leaving TCG for a leadership position in equity, diversity, and inclusion. In addition to these areas of Erica’s expertise, she also has extensive experience as an arts advocate, including her service as a former member of the National Board of Directors of the NAACP. Erica also led one of the advocacy cohorts to Capitol Hill in TCG’s April conveying in Washington, DC. Erica will serve in an interim capacity as TCG moves through an executive leadership transition and organizational change process.
Creative Evolutions is a "human centered adaptive ecosystem that creates actionable solutions for creative individuals and organizations". They have recently pioneered new business models and business practices for many cultural activities and organizations. Among other initiatives, this includes new approaches to executive searches that include direct compensation to semifinalist and finalist candidates, engaging industry panelists who participate in candidate selection and who become mentors to new leadership, detailed transition planning that covers the entire first year, and inclusive structures that bring staff and board together in respectful and collaborative ways throughout the process. www.creativeevolutions.com
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Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for theatre, leads for a just and thriving theatre ecology. Since its founding in 1961, TCG’s constituency has grown from a handful of groundbreaking theatres to over 700 Member Theatres and affiliate organizations and over 7,000 Individual Members. Through its programs and services, TCG reaches over one million students, audience members, and theatre professionals each year. TCG offers networking and knowledge-building opportunities through research, communications, and events, including the biennial TCG National Conference, one of the largest nationwide gatherings of theatre people; awards grants and scholarships to theatre companies and individual artists; advocates on the federal level; and through the Global Theater Initiative, TCG's partnership with the Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics, serves as the U.S. Center of the International Theatre Institute. TCG is North America’s largest independent trade publisher of dramatic literature, with 21 Pulitzer Prizes for Drama on the TCG booklist. It also publishes the award-winning American Theatre magazine and ARTSEARCH®, the essential source for a career in the arts. TCG believes its vision of “a better world for theatre, and a better world because of theatre” can be achieved through individual and collective action, adaptive and responsive leadership, and equitable representation in all areas of practice. TCG is led by Interim Chief Growth Officer LaTeshia Ellerson and Interim Chief Executive Officer Karena Fiorenza. www.tcg.org.
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