Annual Report
2023
CONTENTS
Table of Contents
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
03. Who We Are
08. Education
09. Mainstage
10. Creativity Through Diversity
11. Strategic Planning
12. Next Steps
13. Donors and Sponsors
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WHO WE ARE
Central Florida Vocal Arts and Opera del Sol exist to create a better community through arts education, performance and appreciation. We believe all persons deserve the opportunity to have a rich life through equitable access to meaningful arts experiences. The foundation of our work is Education, through which we train and inspire artists of all ages, abilities and economic means. Students leave our programs with increased confidence, creativity and self-efficacy, which positively impact their lives in innumerable ways. Our programs reach hundreds of students weekly including students in Title I schools in Orange and Osceola County, Pace Center for Girls, the Boys & Girls Club and the Winter Park Library. These programs cultivate a diverse talent pipeline in Central Florida, overcoming systemic and economic barriers to access. The students we serve go on to lead and shape our community. Our Mainstage productions provide a paid platform for skilled performing artists and an opportunity for youth artists to emerge alongside these professionals. We intentionally select repertoire that incorporates youth actors or has an educational message while prioritizing the presentation of new works and regional premieres. Our sister company, Opera del Sol envisions a more inclusive and exciting definition of the opera genre, while using our productions to create tangible social good. We affirm that all people are artists and deserve access to quality arts experiences, regardless of income, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, religion or age.
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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OUR MISSION
All people are artists and art belongs to all people. But those who need it most - the lifechanging and saving impact of the arts- are often those who have least.
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Our MISSION is to create a more connected and caring Central Florida community through arts education for all and professional performances that inspire. Our OBJECTIVE is to provide the highest quality training to all aspiring artists and produce inspiring professional productions for a diverse and inclusive audience, all while providing paid opportunities to our community’s artists. Our VISION is that of a community transformed - more connected, empathetic and creative - by transforming those who live in it, through broad and equitable arts access.
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Every year seems to fly by more quickly than the last and every year I feel a deeper sense of pride and purpose in the work we do at Central Florida Vocal Arts and Opera del Sol. This season marks our eleventh year serving our community through the power of performing arts and as we embark on this new decade and next chapter, we have much to celebrate. We are currently in the process of an in depth, 6-month strategic planning, led by Board Member, Molly Yuska. This will help steer a course for the pivotal next three years of programming and growth. We have also elected a new Board President, Sean Meder of City National Bank and we are actively seeking passionate Board members to join our team and further our mission. In 2023, we were the only, first-year recipient of the Orange County Cultural Tourism grant and are pleased to report that we will receive the grant again in 2024, for twice the amount of the original grant. This has also led to a supplement grant award for our “Where Community Takes Center Stage” programs in partnership with Black Theatre Girl Magic. These funds will support the inspiring professional programming we offer, as well as arts education for communities that are often excluded from arts access. Because of my work with Central Florida Vocal Arts, this year I was recognized as one of the fifteen Most Influential people by Winter Park Magazine and a Woman of Achievement in the Arts by the Women’s Executive Council. It is my hope that these recognitions will shine a spotlight on the extraordinary work of the whole CFVA team and the amazing students whom we serve. Finally, (and I can’t fully articulate my sense of excitement and accomplishment here) Central Florida Vocal Arts has been selected as one of the top ten finalists for the Victory Cup Initiative! This honor will allow CFVA to share its story and impact with some of Central Florida’s most impactful and influential leaders and funders in early February. This is an incredible opportunity and I whole-heartedly believe it will open doors to new horizons, allowing us to serve our whole community! On a personal note, I have applied for the Victory Cup for eight years running, so this was an achievement we have had in our sights for some time; I definitely cried a few happy tears when I received the news. I continue to wake up every day with a deep and abiding passion because I KNOW how powerful the arts can be, because I know how life-changing they were for me! I am the powerful, confident and empathetic woman I am today because of the role music education played in my life. Imagine the student artist struggling with trauma, poverty or mental health concerns. Imagine the aging adult battling a deep sense of loneliness, feeling the world has forgotten them. Imagine the young person who has aged out of foster care but doesn’t know what life really has to offer and whether there is any reason to go on when it only seems to offer hardship. How much MORE might these people need the inspiring, confidence-building, self-actualizing outcomes that our arts programs offer? It is no exaggeration when I say our programs save and change lives. It is my firm belief that art belongs to all people and all people are artists. Thank you for being a part of the CFVA family and supporting our work. Cheers to another amazing year!
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS The members on the Board of Directors of CFVA have a legal and ethical responsibility to ensure our organization creates it's finest work possible to achieve our goals. Our goal is to consistently support Central Florida Vocal Arts and Opera del Sol in creating a better Central Florida community through arts education, performance, and appreciation. To learn how to become involved with the Board of Directors, email president@centralfloridavocalarts.org
President Vice President Secretary Treasurer
Sean Meder, City National Bank of Florida Anne Marie Ciccone, Fidelity National Information Services Kwaku Mitchell, Keller Williams John Myklush, Ambition CFO
Members
Valerie DeForest, Community Leader & Philanthropist Mike Hamdan, A. D. Solutions Lawrence Lyman, Tactical Electronics Molly Yuska, Community Leader & Non Profit Specialist
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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OUR STAFF
Meghan Hone
Sarah Lysiak
Eric Pinder
Managing Director
Director of Education
Artistic Director
Danielle Ziss
Michaela Wright
Sahid Pabon
Director of Productions
Digital Marketing Manager
Community Productions Manager
JOHN MYKLUSCH Caila Carter Community Relations Manager
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
Brady Davidson
Brian Sikorski
Production Designer
Graphic Designer
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EDUCATION Guided by our core values of Excellence, Impact, Inclusivity, and Equity, CFVA utilizes arts education as a catalyst for social good and community-building. Through our educational programming, we cultivate confidence, self-efficacy and creative problem solving outcomes, which serve students both on and off stage! We affirm that every person deserves equitable access to meaningful arts education experiences regardless of background of financial means. For this reason, we have never and will never turn away a student for their inability to pay. 75% of 2023 Summer Institute II students, and 46% of all 2023 Summer Institute students received need-based financial aid. This year's Summer Institute also boasted the highest student enrollment in organizational history. During the 2023- 2024 school year, we anticipate serving 120+ students every week through free arts education offerings. Expanded season of free lecture recital offerings at Winter Park Library, which began in Fall 2022. Partnered with Orange County Libraries to offer Summer Performance Series (new 2023 offering). Launched new Lunch & Learn Series and Music for a Joyful Life Classes at the Center for Health and Well-being in Winter Park.
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“After being a part of this Institute last year it truly changed my life and how I viewed myself and my talents; CFVA Summer Institute pushed me out of my comfort zone, accepted me for who I was and just boosted my confidence and performance level so much higher. I would truly love to experience this again.” - 2022 Summer Institute Alumna, Prophesy
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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MAINSTAGE 2023 brought a world of magic charm, a tangled web of love affairs, and a thrilling gothic romance. Throughout the year, the voice took center stage! The Secret Garden
A Little Night Music
“Stage Director Eric Pinder and Music Director Nishaa Johnson have struck gold with the casting of the leads in THE SECRET GARDEN and each bring out the best in the actors on stage.” - Joseph Harrison, Broadway World
CFVA’s seventh collaboration with Space Coast Symphony Orchestra, Stephen Sondheim’s romantic comedy enjoyed a sold out run at the Dr. Phillips Center. Attendees describe the cast as “phenomenal” and “exceptional,” with one reviewer applauding the “consummate skill and aplomb by both cast and orchestra.”
Dracula
Opera del Sol’s immersive telling of Frank Wildhorn’s Dracula was a hit with critics and audiences, with the Orlando Sentinel’s Matt Palm saying there was “much to bite into” and Broadway World’s Joseph Harrison calling the cast “the most powerful voices I have heard in a single production in quite some time.”
Coming up in March 2024 at the Dr. Phillips Center, CFVA will produce the southeast regional premiere of Derrick Wang’s contemporary opera Scalia/Ginsburg in partnership with Alterity Orchestra. This work celebrates the unlikely friendship between Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Antonin Scalia. CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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CREATIVITY THROUGH DIVERSITY CFVA believes ALL people are artists and deserve access to quality arts experiences, regardless of income, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, religious affiliation, or age. We actively strive for color-conscious casting and increased diversity and intersectionality at all levels of our organization.
2023 Performing and Teaching Artist Demographics CFVA asks our performing and teaching artists to voluntarily self-report information about their diversity and intersectionality.
Nonbinary 5.7%
Transgender 2.9%
20%
53%
Person with a Disability
Heterosexual or Straight
Male 20%
Female 68.6%
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Asian 8.7%
African American/Black 10.9% Caucasian/White 47.8%
“You produce a positive and professional work environment and you're flexible with your coworkers who have kids and your hiring is based on merit as opposed to trying to fill a role based on skin color or favoritism.” - Anonymous Survey Response
Hispanic/Latinx 28.3%
Organizational Diversity Profile Board Members 38% Female 62% Male 61% White/Caucasian/European 13% Asian/Asian American 13% Black/African American 13% Mutiracial/Multiethnic
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
Staff Members 57% Female 43% Male 65% White/Caucasian/European 21% Hispanic/Latino/Latina/Latinx 14% Black/African American
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STRATEGIC PLANNING
Led by board member Molly Yuska, our Strategic Planning Committee is a combined effort of the Board of Directors and Staff. As CFVA heads into it’s second decade, we are identifying ways we can improve and grow, and setting clear objectives and goals for the future. FOUR GOALS FOR THE NEXT THREE YEARS
To create a robust infrastructure inclusive of a highfunctioning board and staff, allowing CFVA to grow from founder-led to long-term sustainability.
To ensure fiscal sustainability and viability through diverse and sustained revenue streams, with reserve to weather downturns and cash flow fluctuations.
To sustain, and ultimately expand, critical programming to better serve CFVA’s primary audiences and beneficiaries while focusing resources exclusively on those activities critical to mission and future growth.
To create a shared understanding and consensus of the CFVA & Opera del Sol brand identity both internally and within the community.
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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LOOKING AHEAD Central Florida Vocal Arts has a lot to look forward to in 2024, and we couldn’t be more excited! From the Victory Cup Finals, to premiering new works, CFVA is growing more than ever before thanks to support from Orange County Ars and Cultural Affairs and United Arts of Central Florida, and partnerships with community organizations such as the Winter Park Library, the Center for Health and Wellbeing, and Black Theatre Girl Magic.
01
Where Community Takes Center Stage
02
New Works and New Audiences
03
Committed to Equitable Access
This program represents an ongoing and deepening synergy between Black Theatre Girl Magic and CFVA, which will allow us to launch community voice classes at three recipient sites, including the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida and Pace Center for Girls. The second stage of this program will also increase intentional efforts to pre-frame and follow up on audience inclusion initiatives.
In March 2024, CFVA will present the regional premiere of the contemporary opera Scalia/Ginsburg by Derrick Wang in partnership with Alterity Orchestra. We are thrilled to announce that we have been selected for the 2024 Orlando International Fringe Festival and will be premiering a pop-phenomena inspired work, certain to attract non-traditional opera audiences.
In the 2023-24 school year, CFVA received the largest allocation of any arts group to continue our Arts 1:1 program. We are also expanding our partnerships with the Winter Park Library and the Center for Health and Well-being to increase free public art offerings. We are committed to the continued growth and success of these programs which ensure ALL aspiring artists are able to access life-changing arts experiences and training.
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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OUR DONORS AND SPONSORS Central Florida Vocal Arts is honored to be supported by the following organizations:
We are continually striving to create a better Central Florida community which would not be possible without our donors: Winter Park Health Foundation Central Florida Foundation Ginsburg Family Foundation Bradford and Jennifer Benn The Mayflower Winter Park The Harvey and Carol Massey Foundation The Woman's Club of Winter Park Behavior Concierge Mr. and Mrs. H. Brent Levin Molly and David Yuska Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Smith Bonnie and Van Church William and Michelle Doster Dr. Beth Phillips and Mr. Terry Rogers Paul and Terri Danola Gontran and Isabelle Durocher Andy Stetzinger Rachel Hunter Terry and Paul Creighton
Anne Marie and John Ciccone Lawrence Lyman Mr. Sean Meder Mike and Autumn Hamdan Alyssa and Jonathan Zegers Mike and Valerie Smith DeForest Ms. Terry Garberg Dave and Sue Murray Maegen and Ryan Pierce Barbara and Matthew Scott Richard and Patricia Walsh Sarah Grafton
Lean how to support CFVA at centralfloridavocalarts.org/donate CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT
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SAVE THE DATE! March 15-17, 2024
Derrick Wang’s Scalia/Ginsburg
Dr. Phillips Center
May 2024
Original Work
Orlando International Fringe Festival
August 9-11, 2024
Pirates of Penzance
Dr. Phillips Center
THANK YOU!
We thank you for your continued support in our efforts to create a better Central Florida community through arts education, performance and appreciation.
CONTACT Central Florida Vocal Arts P. O. Box 363 Winter Park, FL 32790
CentralFloridaVocalArts.org Info@CentralFloridaVocalArts.org
863-510-7236
@CFLVocalArts
CFVA | 2023 ANNUAL REPORT