NewHavenBIZ

n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m | S e p t e m b e r / O c t o b e r 2 0 1 9 | n e w h a v e n B I Z 41 LWT board chair Pappano: The future in audience development is offering programming that engages younger theater-goers. at is our work." But how will an audience accus- tomed to a menu that was strong in Western world classics, react? "We're going to be in conversa- tion with our current audience and working hard with messaging and outreach," says LWT board chair Laura Pappano, "so no one feels excluded. We welcome all who want to come along for the ride." Adds Padrón: "We're not trying to create hard edges [between] those coming from the neighboring countries to those who are hy- per-local. It's a space for all." Checkbooks & balances Response so far has been strong from those wielding the check- books. "Jacob has garnered much atten- tion and large national foundations are paying attention to Long Wharf in a way they haven't in a long time," says acting managing director Kit Ingui. e Andrew Mellon Founda- tion has awarded LWT a six-figure grant to support new initiatives and Padrón's early tenure. e theater's major philanthropists are sup- porting Padrón and his team "to a person," says Pappano. (A six-figure grant from the Doris Duke Founda- tion for Islamic Studies was secured before Padrón's arrival, but dovetails with his inclusive agenda.) Most interestingly, a five-fig- ure grant in seed money from a major media corporation will be announced shortly, Pappano says. is will support the theater in the development of a pilot program for stage talent to work across multiple platforms. "is will be an unprecedented partnership," says Pappano. And one of the reasons Padrón was hired. "Our leadership structure across the field is changing," he says. "ere was a time when artistic directors were stage directors and the theater companies that they ran were platforms for their own artistry. What happened was the institution was really about that, rather than building out a vision of what was best for the company and the community. "ere is a trend that is now happening of [hiring] producers who understand the business of running a theater but who also have the artistic background," Padrón adds. "I come to this as a creative producer." Downtown bound? Where does all this leave key LWT strategic objective established long before Padrón's arrival? Last spring, Long Wharf — in a partnership with the Shubert e- atre and Albertus Magnus College — bid on a College Street/Crown Street space that had became avail- able. When that deal didn't happen the consortium looked at other properties downtown and even revisited at the original property when the awardee of the earlier bid pulled out of the deal. When asked if the board and Padrón feels an imperative to have a presence downtown, Pappano is circumspect. "We want the right solution at the right price and the right time frame," she says. "We're looking at all the different actions and we're doing it very aggressively. ere are a lot of conversations [happening] with people around town. New Haven real estate is...complicated." Pappano also says there are no plans to undertake a search for a new managing director. Since Borenstein le, Ingui, who was the theater's associate managing direc- tor since 2017, has served as acting managing director. "I think we have a great leader- ship team in Jacob, Kit and Betty [Elizabeth Monz, LWT's director of external affairs] and we have tremendous confidence in Kit," Pappano says. "We will make a decision about the future of that [position] later. Read into that what you will." Will the LWT board allow sufficient time to let Padrón's vision succeed? e board is there to support Padrón's vision, but developing a new audience without losing the old one may take time, Pappano acknowledges. Consumer tastes and habits have greatly changed since the 1980s, when Long Wharf had 15,000 subscribers and an audience that would fill the seats no matter what was on stage. It now has but 4,000 subscribers and attracts some 50,000 to 60,000 ticket-buyers a year to its mainstage and Stage II performance spaces. "ere's going to be a lot of excitement from the get-go [when the new season is announced]," Pappano predicts. "ere's going to be some people who are early adapters who will be right there — and others will take longer to figure it out." Says Padrón, who has a four-year contract with the theater: "In order to be a theater company for all the people it's going to take time. But we are committed in investing that time and developing a new social contract with our community." Pappano points to dynamic theater happening in New York and the success those shows have had — especially for younger audiences, who are now majority non-white. "e future in audience develop- ment is offering programming that speaks to them." n Padrón was a producer before being named LWT's artistic director. 'I come to this as a creative producer,' he says. " W h a t t h e A m e r i c a n t h e a t e r i s r i g h t n o w, i s r e a l l y i s u p f o r g r a b s w i t h c u l t u r a l i n s t i t u t i o n s a s k i n g t h e m s e l v e s : W h a t a r e w e d o i n g ? H o w a r e w e d o i n g i t ? A n d a r e w e r e a l l y b e i n g o f s e r v i c e t o o u r c o m m u n i t y ? Jacob G. Padrón ARTS & CULTURE

• Cover