Segerstrom Center for the Arts Names Lisa Middleton Vice President, Marketing & Communications

Tom O’Connor Consulting Group is pleased to announce that Lisa Middleton has been appointed Vice President, Marketing & Communications of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts (Casey Reitz, President), effective August 24. Lisa is an internationally renowned marketer within the arts and culture industry, and will play a pivotal role in helping the Segerstrom Center for the Arts to plan for reopening, build ever-stronger relationships with its community, and deliver exceptional arts experiences.

Middleton comes from her most recent post as Vice President, Marketing & Communications at Lyric Opera of Chicago, and was formerly Director of Marketing & Audience Development for the Stratford Festival, the largest theatre organization in North America. “I'm so thrilled to be joining the amazing team at Segerstrom,” says Middleton. “I was attracted to the organization because of the company's mission as I fundamentally believe at my core that the performing arts have the ability to transform our lives. Now, more than ever, we are all craving a sense of human connection, shared experiences, and to be wowed by spectacular performances. I can't wait to be on the ground in Orange County and work with the team to prepare for the reopening of the venues.”

“Lisa is perfectly suited to join the Segerstrom Center for the Arts as we strategize for reopening, and to usher in a new era for our marketing and communications team with an innovative approach to institutional marketing,” said Casey Reitz, President of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts. “And just as crucially, Lisa brings a great energy that will make her a fun and effective collaborator for the team and for me – I truly can’t wait to work with her.”

“Lisa is a dynamic results-driven leader within the arts and culture industry who I’ve been fortunate to know for many years, and she will be an exceptional thought partner for Casey Reitz and the entire Executive team at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts,” said Tom O’Connor, President of TOCG. “Importantly, she is also a seasoned and effective leader of marketing and communications teams, and will be a tremendous steward and champion for the great team at the Segerstrom Center as they support incredible programming in a time of tremendous change.”

About the Segerstrom Center for the Arts

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is an acclaimed arts institution as well as a beautiful multi-disciplinary cultural campus. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence, offering unsurpassed experiences and to engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of live performance and a diverse array of inspiring arts-based education and community engagement programs.

Previously called the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Center is Orange County’s largest nonprofit arts organization. In addition to its six performance venues, Segerstrom Center is also home to the American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie School.

The Center presents a broad range of programming for audiences of all ages, including international ballet and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, jazz and cabaret, contemporary artists, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, family-friendly programming, free performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on the plaza and many other special events.

Segerstrom Center is a leader among the nation’s performing arts centers for providing education programs designed to inspire young people through the arts. The Center’s programs reach hundreds of thousands of students each year in five Southern California counties. Community engagement programs developed through the Center for Dance and Innovation and Center Without Boundaries also connect the Center more comprehensively with Orange County’s many diverse communities. The CDI supports flagship artistic programming and a wide range of projects that celebrate innovation, nurture creativity and engage audiences of the future. It is home to the ABT Gillespie School and the School of Dance and Music for Children with Disabilities. The Center Without Boundaries develops partnerships with non-cultural organizations to help them in their own efforts to respond the everchanging needs of the community.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is also proud to serve as the artistic home to three of the region’s major performing arts organizations: Pacific Symphony, Philharmonic Society of Orange County and Pacific Chorale, who contribute greatly to the artistic life of the region with annual seasons performed at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.

In addition to Segerstrom Center for the Arts as a presenting and producing institution, it also identifies the beautiful 14-acre campus that embraces the Center’s own facilities as well as two independently acclaimed organizations: Tony Award®-winning South Coast Repertory and a site designated as the future home of the Orange County Museum of Art.

About Tom O’Connor Consulting Group

Tom O’Connor Consulting Group is a New York City-based arts and culture consultancy offering strategic advisory, recruiting, and leadership coaching services to organizations across the US—all with a focus on the teams responsible for revenue generation.

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TOCGJuly 14, 2020