The State of the Arts… During A Pandemic

The State of the Arts… During A Pandemic

We all know, the show must go on! But how does that show go on when no one is allowed into the performance hall- not even the performers? Join us online on Wednesday June 3, 2020, from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m to hear from four local leaders as they share their organizations’ plans for the next few months, and discuss the challenges of leading an arts non-profit during this “interesting” time.

Panelists:

Charles Fee is in his 29th season as producing artistic director of Idaho Shakespeare Festival. Idaho Shakespeare Festival has garnered significant awards under Mr. Fee’s artistic leadership, including the 1995 Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts; the 1996 and 2006 FUNDSY awards; and the 2000 Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. In 2001, Charles was honored for his work as a director with the Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts.  He received his BA from the University of the Pacific, and Master of Fine Arts from the University of California, San Diego.

Melanie Fales has led the Boise Art Museum (BAM) as Executive Director/CEO since 2008.  Fales began her career at BAM in 1996 as an art educator and was named Curator of Education in 2002.  She also served as BAM’s Interim Executive Director for 14 months from 2006-2007.  Fales holds a bachelor’s degree in art with emphases in painting and art history and a master’s degree in education concentrating on art museum education from Boise State University.  As the recipient of a Rotary International Ambassadorial Graduate Scholarship, she carried out coursework in art history and museum studies at the Ecole du Louvre in Paris, France, and completed an internship at the Musée d’art Américain Giverny.  In 2009, Fales was awarded a fellowship and attended the Performance Measurement for Non-Profit Organizations Program at Harvard’s Kennedy School.  In 2018, she was selected for participation in the Getty Leadership Institute, an international leadership program for museum executives.  She serves on the board of the regional Western Museums Association and is a member of the national Association of Art Museum Directors. 

Laura Reynolds is the Executive Director of the Boise Philharmonic. Prior to joining the Boise Phil in March 2020, she was the Vice President of Education & Community Engagement at the Seattle Symphony where she built community programs like the Simple Gifts initiative which addresses the region’s homelessness crisis through artmaking and service projects. She also led the development of Seattle Symphony and Benaroya Hall’s newest venue Octave 9: Raisbeck Music Center, a $6.7 million capital project, which explored the future of music through the intersection of technology, art and community engagement. In addition to her work at the Seattle Symphony, she has served on the boards of Compass Housing Alliance and WindSync and also served as co-chair of the League of American Orchestras' Education & Community Engagement leadership committee.   

Kurt Zwolfer has over 15 years of experience creating and administering public education programs including previous work at Idaho State Parks and The Idaho State Historical Museum.  He has a BA in Rhetoric with a minor in film studies from the University of Illinois and a MA in Curriculum and Instruction from Boise State University.  Kurt has been Executive Director of The Cabin for 4 years, and his primary responsibilities include operations and program oversight, staff management, community outreach, development, building rentals, and board relations.

The conversation will be moderated by City Club of Boise president Kâren Sander.

Program chair: Darwin Roy.

When: Wednesday, June 3, 2020, from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. This program will be delivered online using the Zoom platform.

Attendees will be able to pose questions to the panel, via the moderator, using the Zoom Q/A feature or email questions directly to morgan@cityclubofboise.org

Thank you to this program's sponsor:  

City Club thanks our Premier Sponsor, Northwest Nazarene University and the NNU College of Business and  our Annual spnonsor, St. Luke's Treasure Valley Health Systems. The 2020 Forum Series is sponsored by AARP of Idaho, Bank of Idaho, Concordia University School of Law, Echelon Group, Idaho Humanities Council, Micron, and PacificSource Health Plans. We are pleased to welcome university students to attend our events thanks to our University partners Boise State University, Northwest Nazarene University, and University of Idaho. Our media partners include Boise State Public Radio, 670 KBOI, Idaho Public Television and Idaho Statesman.

If you have any questions, call 208-364-4614 and staff can assist you.