Artistic Director - Flint Youth Theatre

Position and Responsibilities
With the planned departure of long-time Executive Artistic Director Bill Ward at the end of the summer, a reorganization of Flint Youth Theatre is taking place creating co-equal leadership positions of Artistic Director and Managing Director, both reporting to the President & CEO of the Flint Cultural Center Corporation, the parent organization. The organization will seek to sustain a close-knit team environment that taps the skills and experience of each while maintaining the lines of authority and distinct roles and responsibilities of each position.

Background--Flint Youth Theatre
Ranked as one of the model youth theatres in the nation, Flint Youth Theatre (FYT) has a mission to change lives through extraordinary live theatre arts experiences. With its year-round season, FYT is a resident theatre company that has provided Flint-area residents with unique intergenerational programming since 1957, for which it has won numerous national and regional awards. Originally a program of the Flint Community Schools, FYT has been a member institution of the Flint Cultural Center Corporation since 2003.
Managing and presenting in the Bower and Elgood Theaters, FYT offers three series for the general public: The Signature Series (main stage productions for all ages), Razzle Dazzle Family Series, and Off The Press Series (staged readings of recent acclaimed plays for older teens and adults). FYT also runs a highly respected Drama School with annual enrollment of about 400, and presents the Learning through Theatre Series for school audiences. Outreach programs bring curriculum-based activities to area schools.
Average annual attendance at FYT is 50,000-55,000, of which about 20,000-25,000 are students attending Learning Through Theatre with their schools. FYT’s annual operating budget is about $900,000.
FYT has excellent facilities, with recent capital improvements upgrading fixtures and lighting at Bower Theater, and the building of a new wing in 2000 that added the 150-seat Elgood Studio Theater, two rehearsal studios/classrooms, a second green room, a costume shop, new dressing rooms, and an expanded lobby area. FYT is well-known. for its pioneering efforts in using drama to enhance K-12 education and in stimulating civic dialogue on important contemporary issues.

Flint Cultural Center Corporation
FCCC owns, manages and maintains the 33-acre Flint Cultural Center campus; coordinates campus-wide planning, marketing, and events; and governs the operations of its four member organizations: the James H. Whiting Auditorium (The Whiting), Flint Youth Theatre, the Robert T. Longway Planetarium, and the Alfred P. Sloan Museum.

The mission of the Flint Cultural Center Corporation (FCCC) is to foster cultural activity and community vitality through history, science and the arts. Our vision is to position the Flint Cultural Center as the premier regional destination, educational resource, and entertainment venue for history, science and the arts.

Responsibilities of the Artistic Director include the following:

• Establish and communicate the artistic vision for the organization and work with a collaborative team to bring that vision to fruition.
  
• Select the season of main stage Signature Series productions as well as the Off The Press stage readings series and the presented Learning Through Theater and Razzle Dazzle series.
  
• Work with the Managing Director to ensure shared team buy-in to the organization’s strategic plan, building on FYT’s 50-year history of artistic excellence and community involvement.
  
• Lead the artistic work of the theater, participating as director, playwright,and/or designer for many Signature Series productions, and selecting and overseeing guest directors, artists and designers.
  
• Hire and oversee a new senior Technical Director/Designer, as well as resident and guest artists, and Education Manager.
  
• Participate as spokesperson on artistic vision and programs, seeking to broaden awareness and increase relevance of FYT among a broad cross-section of regional audiences.
  
• Be an innovator in the building of collaborative projects and community engagement activities to deepen the importance of and ownership in the work of FYT throughout the community.
  
• Act as a principal architect of a deeper and more formalized partnership between FYT and the University of Michigand-Flint Theater Department. This expanded partnership is expected to be piloted with small initial projects for the 2008-09 season, enabling the new Artistic Director to assess, shape, enhance and build a strong, meaningful and mutually beneficial partnership, working with key faculty of the University Theater Department.
  
• Build a nurturing and engaging environment and an effective management team to facilitate the best work of the staff, and to hire and retain skilled and dedicated team members.

Qualifications and Experience

• Experience and proven success leading the artistic work of a strong, dynamic and artistically excellent theater organization.
  
• The proven ability to lead and function effectively in a close-knit team environment, and the desire to build consensus and work with colleagues to achieve shared goals.
  
• Superb leadership and organizational skills, with a natural ability to motivate and inspire.
  
• Desire to find the best creative solutions to challenges and to lead with innovation and a sense of humor.
  
• Five plus years of experience in a senior artistic position at a theater, with proven success in planning, organizing, and implementing excellent theater productions that have been well-received by audiences. A strong dedication to finding or creating great theater works and applying the right but also new and innovative solutions to bring these properties to life.
  
• A passion for the role of theater in a community, and particularly the role of theater for youth and family audiences, including a love for and commitment to theater education and community engagement.
  
• Experience and ability at sharing and representing an organization’s mission and vision, and in consistently supporting the artistic work of a cultural organization.
  
• A willingness to partner with the Managing Director and the FCCC CEO to build a growing and dedicated group of advocates, volunteers, audiences and donors.
  
• MA/MFA preferred, BA/BFA with requisite experience will be considered.

For more information about Flint Youth Theater, the Flint Cultural Center Corporation or the Flint Cultural Center campus, please visit our web sites at flintyouththeatre.com, fcccorp.org and flintculturalcenter.org. A more detailed position description can be reviewed at the fcccorp.org web site by clicking on Jobs and Current Openings.

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