Announcing the 2020 Slate of Nominees
For the Western Arts Alliance Board of Directors.
The Governance Committee report will be presented at the forthcoming WAA Member Meeting which will take place online in November 2020. More information regarding the digital Election of Directors and Officers, the Annual Membership Meeting's confirmed date, and the agenda will be announced following the Arts Midwest + WAA 2020 Conference. In the meantime, please take some time to read the statements and bios for the nominees for President and Vice President (respectively), Joe Mclalwain and Antonio Gómez, and the nominees for Director, David Mack, Courtney Ozaki, Robin Pomerance, and Nadhi Thekkek.
2020 Slate of Nominees for the Board of Directors
President (two-year term expiring 2022)
Joe Mclalwain, Edmonds Center for the Arts
It has been my honor to serve on the Board of Directors of Western Arts Alliance since 2016, and be a proud member of the organization since 2003. And I am humbled to be nominated for the role of President of the Board of Directors. I know that we stand at a remarkable and unexpected crossroads as an organization and as an industry. We are navigating a completely uncharted course to restart, rebuild, and reimagine our entire ecosystem. It is critical that we partner together, as we always have, to ensure that artists are reunited as soon as possible with the audiences that need them now more than ever.
As we look forward to emerging from the health crisis, it is also critical that we center and lift up the people and the voices, especially those of our BIPOC artists and colleagues, that demand to be heard, seen, and honored at this moment, and forever. And while WAA has taken important steps in recent years to address issues of equity and social justice, we recognize that we are only at the beginning of a journey and are committed to taking the necessary actions to advance this critical work both internally and externally.
When I consider the months and years ahead and reflect on the patience, perseverance, and hard work that we need to invest together to address the challenges we all face, I can’t think of a stronger, more creative, more resilient network of people to do this work with than the Members, Staff, and Board of Western Arts Alliance. I want to thank Eleanor Oldham for her extraordinary leadership over the past two years, and all the members of the WAA Board, past and present, who have devoted their time to this important work. And I want to thank you, our members, in advance for your continued partnership and support of WAA as we begin the next part of our journey as an organization and as a field.
Joe Mclalwain has proudly led Edmonds Center for the Arts (ECA) in Edmonds, WA, through its first fourteen seasons. In his role as Executive Director, McIalwain oversees program development, audience development, community partnerships and outreach, fundraising and general operations. Prior to his current position, McIalwain served as Assistant Professor of Theatre Management for the University of Alabama; Managing Director of Cincinnati Shakespeare Company; and Director of Development for Kirkland Performance Center. Joe earned his MFA in Theatre Management from The University of Alabama / Alabama Shakespeare Festival. He has also served as an Assistant Professor for the Seattle University Arts Leadership MFA Program, and is the Past Board President of Theatre Puget Sound and Leadership Snohomish County. Joe has been a member of WAA since 2003, and is honored to serve the organization as a member of its Board of Directors.
Vice President (two-year term expiring in 2022)
Antonio Gómez, Tacoma Arts Live
What a year. The twin pandemics of COVID 19 and racial injustice have re-shaped how our field – like much of society - operates. But, they have also underscored the value of what we do and why we do it. The economy and the platforms for arts experiences are forever changed. Yet, there is a promising through-line: the arts and civic dialogue that our field offers will continue to be essential for communities as they reckon with uncertain times. As presenters, artists and agents, our work is to provide opportunities for expression and dialogue; to give form to grief, sorrow, hope and aspiration. The tactics we use to convene and connect people are transforming quickly. The security of established models has given way to the urgency of innovation. While COVID 19 tests our structures, glaring racial inequities challenge our core. Our so-called diversity work must step out of season brochures and annual reports and into executive offices and boardrooms. I think about this moment from the point of view of our youngest audiences. They are the most pluralistic generation in U.S. history, yet they are living with an administration that is quick to admonish Black Lives Matter and slow to definitively reject white supremacy. How do we ensure that our shared work espouses the hope and possibility of the emerging plurality rather than the divisiveness that fears it?
Our moment demands intentionality if we are to shape a prosperous and just future for performing arts. It’s time for challenging conversations and establishing empathy between artists, agents and presenters. Time for collaboration across roles and regions. Time to share the shining successes and the absolute dumpster fires that will abound as we reinvent the economics and relevance of our field. It’s a time to listen intently to one another, and even more importantly, to those who have been shut out of previous conversations altogether because of race, ethnicity, gender, or other factors. This is what’s on my mind as I prepare for the privilege of serving WAA as an officer. Yes, we are facing challenges we have never faced before, but we are in one of the most exciting moments of our shared history as our field and our society grapple with what they can become.
Antonio Gómez is an educator, percussionist, arts administrator and public media producer who is passionate about connecting communities and learners with compelling cultural stories and arts experiences. A former K-12 teacher, he manages economically and culturally accessible education programs at Tacoma Arts Live, and has designed curricula for PBS and the Museum of Pop Culture. As a percussionist, Tony specializes in Afro-Latin and Mediterranean genres. He performs with Trío Guadalevín and Tango del Cielo. He has been a frequent speaker for Humanities Washington and a Jubilation Foundation Fellow in arts education. He holds an MA in education from the University of California, Berkeley, a BA from the University of Puget Sound, and has done musical study in Mexico, Cuba, Argentina, Panamá, Spain, Italy, and Morocco.
Director (three-year term expiring 2023)
David Mack, Invertigo Dance Theatre
I am humbled and honored to be nominated to serve on WAA's Board during this transformational time for our region and arts ecosystem. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to engage with WAA in a variety of ways during last year's conference in LA - helping to organize the Black Arts pre-conference, recruiting local artists to register as first-time attendees and serving on the Juried and Black Arts showcase committees - and I was pleased to be invited to continue supporting the conference this year on the Black Arts @ WAA committee. In addition, my experiences serving on the Board of the Dance Resource Center and as Council Chair Elect of Dance/USA's Managers Council (-$750,000) has offered me insight into the dynamics, challenges and opportunities facing arts membership organizations in this ever-changing climate. I am excited by the prospect of bringing my unique perspectives as a community-based nonprofit arts administrator, producer, consultant and entrepreneur to support WAA in its staff leadership transition, sustainability planning and cultural equity journey. I look forward to the opportunity to work with the Board on reimagining the presenter/performer relationship and taking advantage of outside-of-the-box innovations that can help successfully drive the organization towards its new, exciting chapter.
David Mack is the Executive Director of Invertigo Dance Theatre, based in Los Angeles County. Previously, he has managed some of LA’s most innovative arts organizations, including: The Industry, Watts Village Theater Company and Heidi Duckler Dance. In addition, he has consulted for many arts and civic organizations throughout Southern California, including: the Cities of West Hollywood and Santa Monica, Center Theatre Group, L.A. Dance Project, DIAVOLO | Architecture in Motion, Ate9 Dance Company and the Dance Resource Center. A graduate of Southern California Leadership Network's Leadership L.A., Mack currently serves on the National Black Arts @ WAA committee and volunteers as Founder of the Culver City Arts Alliance. He is a graduate of Cornell University (BA) and California Institute of the Arts (MFA).
Director (three-year term expiring 2023)
Courtney Ozaki, Japanese Artist Network
It’s an honor to be nominated to serve on the Board of Directors for the Western Arts Alliance. Iappreciate the opportunity to contribute to the evolving needs and goals of WAA as a primaryconnector for performing arts professionals throughout the West. I am motivated by the impetusto explore innovative ways to foster meaningful relationships between artists and audiences and to build inclusive and equitable arts platforms and spaces. WAA's vision and values align with and exemplify these ideals which encourage a more productive and empathetic society. As anAsian American arts professional and a Japanese Taiko drum artist, I am interested in adding value to conversations at the table from my lived experience and look forward to expanding my understanding of the needs of the field at large. I am grateful for the diverse facets of WAA that are integral to the work that we as professionals and artists do, and I look forward to offering experience from leadership roles I have held within Boards, Committees, and initiatives for organizations including APAP (as a 2019 Leadership Fellow) and the U.S. Japan Council. I am committed to lifting up and supporting marginalized voices within the arts, and helping to build and develop a strong eco-system for sustainable collaboration between artistic and cultural communities across generations
Courtney Ozaki is a cultural connector and creative producer based in Denver, Colorado. After studying at Brooklyn College and receiving an MFA in Performing Arts Management, she worked as a project manager and dance producer for Joyce Theater Productions with whom she developed and toured new works for artists including Wendy Whelan (NY City Ballet), Daniil Simkin (American Ballet Theater), and Malpaso Dance Company from Cuba. A professional taiko musician with over 25 years of experience, she has performed across the globe in Dubai, as well as in major cities throughout the United States. Courtney is the founder of the Japanese Arts Network (JA-NE) - a national resource for artistic collaboration and connection which provides access to resources and develops programs and platforms that support, advance, and strengthen visibility for Japanese Artists in America. She also serves as the Business Director for the Taiko Community Alliance, a national non-profit organization that empowers and advances the art of taiko in North America. Courtney is passionate about the melding of ideas and exploration of the intersection and interdependence of arts sectors. She looks forward to continuing her professional journey in multiple capacities with the Western ArtsAlliance.
Director (one-year term expiring in 2021)
Robin Pomerance, Cal Performances
I am grateful to be nominated to the board of the Western Arts Alliance. As our world has changed around us, our field struggles to find its footing. Presenters pivot to new methods of sharing the arts; revered institutions are forced to close permanently; smaller, more nimble agencies sprout up; artists are forced to embrace the technological advances that enable them to connect more closely with their audiences without obviating the need for live performance. And the challenges of survival are compounded by the need for us all to address the renewed struggle for racial justice in our nation. How can the arts and arts institutions take our place in that struggle? How can this Alliance support our members in this pursuit? This is a precious moment, when the field as we know it is in such existential turmoil, that maybe there is space to push forward a more socially-aware focus as we stabilize. I would be excited to part of the team that brings this alliance safely to the other side. My priorities would be to ensure the stability of this Alliance and to encourage the pursuit of a more diverse, equitable and inclusive community of arts professionals. It is easy to say we can’t, but we are a creative people who can.
Like many of you, I have worked in organizations on all sides of the table – presenter, producer, agent, support organization, and am able to see the industry from a 360 degree, holistic perspective. I have been a member of the staff at Cal Performances for more than 17 years. As Artistic Administrator, I look after the internal logistics necessary to getting artists to our stages, from contracts and visas to hotels, taxes, and auxiliary forces such as choruses, orchestras and performing animals. I have previously served on the boards of NAPAMA and AXIS Dance Company. Prior to my tenure at Cal Performances, I worked in opera administration at the San Francisco and Washington Opera Companies. I also worked at Columbia Artists Management.
Director (one-year term expiring 2021)
Nadhi Thekkek, Nava Dance Theatre
I am honored to be nominated for the board of WAA. I had a wonderful experience as aLaunchpad Artist over the last two years and believe WAA is positioned to continue supportingBIPOC artists and organizations, especially as the political climate continues to shift. I believeour shared goals are not only about teaching artists how to navigate a predominately whitespace, but also to 1) support established presenters so they curate and cultivate audienceshipfor BIPOC artists and to 2) engage and learn from smaller presenters who are already doingthat work. I believe my voice as a female, South Asian, hyphenated-American artist andorganizer might bring another perspective to a changing and now somewhat fragile industry.
As we explore the virtual space in the time of COVID, I am also interested in making parts ofWAA accessible to those who may not be able to afford the entire package. I am specificallyinterested in growing programs like Launchpad and Native Launchpad to support more BIPOCartists, agents, and presenters. Moreover, I want to rally presenters who are interested inculturally-specific programming and give them better access to those artists at the conferenceand throughout the year. I have met many great panelists, committee members, and boardmembers within WAA with similar goals, and I'd love to further these causes with theorganization at large.
Nadhi Thekkek is the Artistic Director of Nava Dance Theatre (NDT), a bharatanatyam dance company based in San Francisco, California (USA). She operates on the belief that bharatanatyam, while classical, is a modern medium with potential to push boundaries of how we can use traditional art forms to understand place, identity, and politics. Nadhi has performed at various venues including the Scotiabank Dance Centre (Vancouver), La Mama ExperimentalTheatre Club (NYC), Dance Place (D.C.), and Southbank Center (London). Her choreographyhas been supported through: National Endowment for the Arts, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation, Dancers’ Group, California Arts Council, CounterPulse, East BayCommunity Foundation and others.
Some of Nadhi’s artist initiatives through Nava Dance Theatre include the Dansplain Series, afestival of bharatanatyam work on social justice issues; Locally Sourced at Navatman’s DriveEast, a series of music and dance commissions featuring Bay Area-based artists; and theVarnam Salon, a dance series highlighting traditional arts repertoire. She recently created #endsouthasiansilence, where NDT produces video art and public events engaging the SouthAsian community in urgent social justice issues.
She obtained her PhD from Rice University in Bioengineering. Though she left academia for artmaking and community organizing, she appreciates the critical thinking, creativity, multitasking, fundraising, and grant writing required for both!