General Director, Opera New Jersey
POSTED: Nov 24
Salary: Open
Location: Princeton, New Jersey
Employer: Opera New Jersey
Type: Full Time - Experienced
Categories: Executive Director/CEO, Fundraising/ Development
Preferred Education: 4 Year Degree
Employer Information
About Opera New Jersey
Catherine French Group serves as consultant to performing arts organizations in the areas of executive search and recruitment. For more information, please email cfrenchgroup@ aol.com.
Job Description
Opera New Jersey welcomes nominations and applications for the position of General Director to lead the future growth and development of the Company.
Opera New Jersey www.opera-nj. org
Opera New Jersey is an exciting young professional company that has been cited for excellence, described as a model for creative collaborations, and hailed as a rising star in the New Jersey arts community. The Company offers a summer season of three fully-staged productions in Princeton, New Jersey, and brings an additional production to major venues throughout the state during the winter season. With a mission to foster the development of young artists with performances, educational programs, and related activities, the Company builds interest and serves audiences for opera in central New Jersey and beyond. Princeton is well-situated about 50 miles from Manhattan and Philadelphia and easily accessible for both artists and audience.
Opera New Jersey began modestly in the Spring of 2003 with two concerts and piano accompaniment in a 200-seat theatre on the Princeton University campus. In 2005, the Company presented its first production with professional musicians. Today, Opera New Jersey's summer season takes place at McCarter Theatre Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Princeton. Members of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra form the opera orchestra. The initial budget of $17,000 has grown to $1.7 million.
In February, 2010, Opera New Jersey will present performances of Bizet's Carmen at the McCarter Theatre, the State Theatre in New Brunswick, and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark. The Company will also bring the production to Baltimore for a performance at the Lyric Opera House. The 2010 Summer Season of Opera New Jersey will include productions of Don Giovanni, Faust and Don Pasquale in a total of ten performances in July and August at the McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton.
Education and professional development are central to the vision and mission of Opera New Jersey. The Company identifies artists in the early stages of their professional careers and provides them with invaluable performance opportunities. The Company's interactive youth education program has the ability to incorporate an entire student body, both on-stage and off-stage, with a professional touring troupe.
Opera New Jersey is governed by a Board of 13 community leaders. The full-time staff of eight is supplemented with seasonal employees and volunteers. The administrative offices are located in Princeton Junction. The Company was founded by Scott and Lisa Altman, who served as General Director and Executive Director respectively. The Altmans are relocating to Arizona, where Scott Altman will be General Director of Arizona Opera.
The Opportunity
The next General Director will take the helm of a young company that is well-positioned for growth. The summer program provides an ideal professional development opportunity for talented artists in the early stages of their careers. The Princeton location is readily accessible to audiences in the tri-state area. The next General Director will have the opportunity to build an artistic team and further develop creative collaborations that will allow the company to flourish.
The Position
The General Director provides leadership and vision to ensure that Opera New Jersey fulfills its mission and achieves its goals for excellence in performance, community engagement and financial results. S/he is responsible and accountable for the overall management and direction of the Company, both artistic and administrative. The General Director reports to the Board of Directors through the Board Chairman.
The General Director establishes the overall artistic plan for the Company. S/he ensures that the Company's repertoire, productions, artists, and educational activities achieve the highest possible standards of excellence with available financial resources. S/he actively recruits and designs opportunities for gifted artists in the early stages of their careers.
The General Director oversees the development and implementation of the annual operating budget. S/he assures that goals for both earned and contributed income are achieved. S/he monitors expenses and provides timely and accurate financial reports to the Board.
The General Director recruits, engages, motivates, trains, supervises and evaluates all administrative and artistic staff. S/he fosters an environment that allows both regular staff and guest artists to do their best work.
The General Director leads the fundraising efforts of Opera New Jersey. S/he builds positive relationships with individuals and organizations throughout the community and the state to heighten awareness about the Company and expand the base of contributions at all levels. S/he is the visible representative and spokesperson for the Company with funders, collaborating organizations, government, facilities, and the broader community.
NOTES:
Additional Salary Information: Compensation will be competitive with similar-size companies within OPERA America, and will be commensurate with qualifications and experience.
Requirements
The successful candidate will be a strong leader who wholeheartedly embraces the mission of Opera New Jersey and has the ability to set the Company's direction for artistic, financial, and organizational development. S/he will have a thorough working knowledge of opera, artists, repertoire, production, and operations, with demonstrated ability to work successfully with conductors, singers, stage directors and other creative personnel.
The successful candidate will have the ability to recognize and nurture talented artists at the early stages of their careers. S/he will have a strong personal commitment to development of young artists and to education for all ages and all audiences.
The successful candidate will have an entrepreneurial spirit and the drive to seek and find opportunities for growth, advancement and economies. S/he will be flexible, adaptable, and interested in developing partnerships and strategic alliances that further the mission of Opera New Jersey.
The successful candidate will have a demonstrated record of success with fundraising, institutional marketing, and audience development. S/he will be able to write and speak persuasively about Opera New Jersey.
The successful candidate will be an experienced manager with the ability to design and implement short- and long-term strategic plans, to recruit and develop a high caliber staff, and to ensure sound financial management and positive results.
The successful candidate will be a person with high ethical standards and personal integrity. S/he will be a collaborator with a reputation for fairness. The successful candidate will welcome the opportunity to be an active member of the Princeton community.
Please submit a cover letter that describes your interest and qualifications for the position. Send with a resume, the names of several professional references, and salary history or requirements. All applications will be treated as confidential. References will not be contacted without an applicant's knowledge. Electronic submissions are preferred.
Opera New Jersey General Director Search c/o Catherine French Group 2500 Q Street, N. W., Suite 623 Washington, DC 20007 cfrenchgroup@ aol.com
(MS Word or Adobe Acrobat attachments only, please.)
The position will remain open until filled. The Search Committee will begin to review applications in mid-December.
Apply @
http://jobbank. artsusa.org/ jobdetail. cfm?job=3238377
Dec 1st - Dinner Mtg - Gerry Crispin - CrossXroads - Gaming The System
Dec 8th Next Reg mtg - Tues - 6 pm - Carnevale Center 10 Lenox Ave Pompton Lakes 07442 Rm 009 - bring 20 copies of resume
Dec 22nd & 29th No Mtg - Holidays
Jan 12th - Recruiter Night Out - Dinner Mtg - Abby Kohut Moderator
Feb 9th Combined Dinner Mtg AWC - Rod Colon - Empowering Today's Professionals (ETP) Network
