Cincinnati Arts Association 2023 Report to the Community

2023 REPORT TO THE

IN MEMORIAM

STANLEY J. ARONOFF

1932–2024

Ohio Senate President (1989–1996), Lawyer, Civic Leader, Arts Supporter

Without Stan there would be no Aronoff Center.

Early in the 1990s, he championed a huge, concerted effort as Ohio Senate President to secure major support from the State of Ohio to fund a new arts center in the city of Cincinnati, which ultimately became the Stanley J. Aronoff Center for the Arts.

Since the opening of the Aronoff in 1995, more than 11.5 million guests have experienced the arts and events in the Aronoff’s theaters, public gathering spaces, and the Weston Art Gallery. Over the years, Stan continued to support the Aronoff Center with advocacy and state funding and was a tireless supporter of all the arts in Cincinnati.

Stan once said, “I want to be remembered for more than the bricks and mortar. I want to be remembered as a person who cares about people.” As we celebrate Stan’s life and legacy, that is how we remember him. We are eternally grateful for all the ways he has made a difference in our community. Although he will be greatly missed, we know his spirit will always be a part of the extraordinary arts venue that bears his name.

DEAR FRIENDS OF THE ARTS,

During the 2022–23 season,

we were thrilled to witness an uplifting new energy in our venues. The community excitedly returned to our gathering spaces in great numbers after the collective disconnect of the pandemic—proof of the power of the arts to bring people together and of our fundamental, human need for shared experiences.

We were often reminded of how our community supports and completes the creative process. The art in and outside of our venues is meant to engage our guests, including audiences in our theaters, students in area schools, visitors to the Weston Art Gallery, and more. It is always our wish that these arts experiences will entertain, inspire, and even transform lives.

It takes an extended community of like-minded individuals to make our work as an arts promoter, presenter, and educator possible. As we look back on our twenty-eighth year of the combined operation of the Aronoff Center and Music Hall, we are deeply grateful for the many people and organizations that journey with us year after year to create unforgettable moments: our dedicated Board of Trustees; exceptional resident companies; generous members, sponsors, and donors; gifted artists, designers, and technicians; talented administrative staff; friendly volunteers; and of course, our loyal subscribers and devoted audiences.

We are pleased to present to you our 2023 Report to the Community, which highlights much of our activity during the 2022–23 season. With this report, we celebrate the intersection of the arts and community, including the people, places, and events that pull us together. We hope this Report will ignite memories about why the arts in our region are important to you.

In the early 1990s as President of the Ohio Senate, our dear friend Stan Aronoff advocated for a new arts center in Cincinnati. His dream was that such a venue would build community here and revitalize a declining downtown. Nearly thirty years after the opening of the Aronoff Center, we sincerely believe that this

“Art pulls a community together… Art makes you feel differently. That’s what artists are doing all the time, shifting and changing the way you see life.”

— Lister Sinclair Playwright, broadcaster, and Renaissance man

namesake venue has fulfilled Stan’s dream, bringing the community together year after year in a thriving and vital entertainment district.

We remain committed to continuing Stan’s legacy by serving as tireless stewards of the Aronoff Center and Music Hall. With the ongoing support of this great community, we look forward to hosting world-class artists and events that continue to shift and change the way we all view life for years to come.

See you at the theater!

S.

Chairman, Board of Trustees

Stephen A. Loftin

Dudley

Taft President

Cincinnati Arts Association Cincinnati Arts Association

CAA PRESENTS

From music and dance to ghosts and circus performers, our CAA Presents season offered diverse members of our community an eclectic mix of entertainment choices to complement an impressive year of arts and entertainment in the Tri-state. Audiences were thrilled to be back at the Aronoff Center and Music Hall again for these unforgettable shared experiences.

OCTOBER 5

MasterChef Junior Live!

Fans, families, and foodies alike enjoyed this all-new, high-energy, interactive stage version of the hit culinary TV show, which featured Season Eight Winner, Liya, along with finalist Grayson and favorites A’Dan and Molly in cooking demonstrations and fun (sometimes messy!) challenges.

OCTOBER 24

Life with the Afterlife: A Supernatural Evening with Ghost Hunter Amy Bruni

The week before Halloween at haunted Music Hall was the perfect time and place for the hair-raising tales from Amy Bruni’s countless hours hunting ghosts at America’s most supernatural locations. The paranormal investigator and podcaster had audience members questioning what they thought they knew about the spirit world.

MUSIC HALL BALLROOM

NOVEMBER 15

ARONOFF

Black Violin: Give Thanks Holiday Tour

Audiences were grateful that violist Wil B. and violinist Kev Marcus returned to Cincinnati for the third time with their distinctive multi-genre sound that is often described as “classical boom.” The performance featured playful storytelling, whimsical string melodies, and hard-hitting beats to highlight the unifying pillars of the holiday season.

DECEMBER 2–4

CENTER – PROCTER & GAMBLE HALL

Cirque Dreams Holidaze

This Broadway-style holiday spectacular dazzled audiences of all ages with a worldrenowned ensemble of aerial circus acts, sleight-of-hand jugglers, fun-loving skippers, breath-catching acrobatics, and much more, accompanied by an original music score that included new twists on seasonal favorites.

DECEMBER 20

ARONOFF

Million Dollar Quartet Christmas

A nearly sold-out audience joined music legends Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Elvis Presley as they journeyed through a story of Christmas past, present, and future. The night was jam packed with unforgettable performances of classic holiday hits and favorite chart toppers, including “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” “Blue Christmas,” and many more.

ARONOFF

The Simon & Garfunkel Story

This immersive, concert-style theater show chronicled the amazing journey shared by the acclaimed folk-rock duo Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. Using state-of-the-art video projection, photos, and original film footage, the show featured a full live band and two remarkable actor-singers performing Simon & Garfunkel’s greatest hits, including “Mrs. Robinson,” “Cecilia,” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”

MARCH 31–APRIL 2

Riverdance—25th Anniversary Show

This thrilling new 25th Anniversary production of the beloved international dance and music event mesmerized audiences all over again during five performances. The production’s creative team completely reimagined the ground-breaking show with innovative and spectacular lighting, video, stage, and costume designs, creating an immersive experience of power and grace.

CAA COMMUNITY

“Supporting the Cincinnati Arts Association is important to Ameritas because it has a great social impact on the community. Art brings us together, drives creativity, and fosters growth.”

Dave Voelker, Senior Vice President, Individual Operations, Ameritas

ALICE F. AND HARRIS K.

WESTON ART GALLERY

The Weston Art Gallery’s

2022–23 season was highly successful, with a continued rebound in attendance. More than 18,000 guests enthusiastically returned to engage in the Weston’s programs after the lengthy period of COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings. Events previously cancelled due to the pandemic, including the FotoFocus Biennial and BLINK® Festival in October, the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts’ (NCECA) annual conference in March, and the CANstruction ® display in May drew thousands, and in the case of BLINK®, millions of visitors to downtown Cincinnati.

The Weston benefited from this public resurgence by presenting programs that connected directly to these events. Michael Coppage’s provocative solo exhibition American+ captivated both FotoFocus and BLINK® audiences. His fifty-feet-high outdoor vinyl mural (Care Bear), linked to his photographic series BLACK BOX, extended his exhibition from the gallery into the outdoor plaza of the Aronoff. Activated with projection mapping during BLINK®, the mural attracted thousands of visitors during the fourday festival, many of whom ventured inside the Weston to see the full exhibition.

The NCECA Annual exhibition, I Contain Multitudes, was presented at the Weston in conjunction with its annual conference in downtown Cincinnati. More than 3,600 people attended the exhibition during the four-day conference, which included a record-breaking crowd of 1,263 in attendance at the opening reception.

In addition, the Weston kicked off its 2022–23 season with the unveiling of a new logo and refreshed website. The updated site highlights the Weston’s variety of programming, including its outstanding exhibitions, intriguing public Gallery Talks, lively opening receptions, engaging Families Create! workshops, the award-winning Docentitos youth docent academy, the ever-popular CANstruction®, and the ongoing music series featuring the Southbank Quartet.

Responding to an increasingly complex world, the Weston’s featured artists explored pertinent and thought-provoking topics such as social and racial justice, family ancestry and historical mythologies, and personal space and sanctuary.

SEPTEMBER 16–NOVEMBER 6

Michael Coppage: American+

This exhibition of new and ongoing lens-based projects by Coppage (Cincinnati, OH) explored the negative archetypes and stark racial disparities still operating in the language and psychology of contemporary American culture.

SEPTEMBER 29–OCTOBER 31

Liz

Roberts: Post Blonde

An outdoor, site-specific commission by Liz Roberts (CA—formerly Columbus, OH) was presented in conjunction with the FotoFocus Biennial. Installed in an open lot in the Cincinnati neighborhood of Camp Washington, this uninhabited drive-in tableau featured a series of salvaged car windshields to form a large movie screen.

NOVEMBER 18–JANUARY 15

Candace Black: Accoutrements

Black (Columbus, OH) created cast architectural and bodily forms that metaphorically animated the Weston’s street-level exhibition space.

Steven Thurston: Lost in Translation— Deception and Desire

Through an ongoing series of iconic porcelain busts depicting the founding fathers of the United States, Thurston (Columbus, OH) examined translational misunderstanding and conflicting mythologies surrounding the subjects.

Mary Jo Bole: Family White Elephants

Bole (Columbus, OH) explored her family’s industrial history and the lineage of women who preserved it through video, drawings, and sculpture. JANUARY 20–MARCH 5

Joshua Penrose: Shadow Works

Penrose (Columbus, OH) presented a variety of media with sculptural installations informed by the digital domain, including sound, video, light, and digital automation.

Emil Robinson: Evidence

Robinson’s (Cincinnati, OH) paintings and sculptures captured a spiritual intensity using light, color, and form in his work to uncover a nobility in objects that reside in his personal environment.

Katherine Colborn: Sheltering in Smoke

Colborn (Cincinnati, OH) employs painting as a means of quiet resistance. Through her intimate paintings, she reflected upon transience and domestic life, protected spaces, and themes of threshold and sanctuary. MARCH 14–MAY 7

2023 NCECA Annual: I Contain Multitudes

Curated by Garth Johnson, the Paul Phillips and Sharon Sullivan Curator of Ceramics at the Everson Museum of Art (Syracuse, NY), this group exhibition of fortyseven ceramic artists from across the United States and beyond was presented in conjunction with the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts annual conference in Cincinnati from March 15–18.

MAY 16–JUNE 4

CANstruction®

Organized by the Cincinnati chapters of the American Institute of Architects and the Society for Design Administration, CANstruction® is an international design/build competition of the architecture and engineering industry that benefited the FreeStore FoodBank.

MAY 20–JUNE 4

Weston Works Art Challenge

The first annual Weston Works Art Challenge was a community outreach project designed as an upcycling event. Participants created artworks from past Weston marketing materials which were displayed in the Gallery.

JUNE 16–AUGUST 20

Mychaelyn Michalec: Not to Stifle, but to Clarify

Michalec (Dayton, OH) created large-scale textured wool rugs

depicting the mundane matters of domestic life, translating documented scenes of midlife

women examining the effects of time on the body, self-identity, and sexuality.

Anissa Lewis: Open Lots (We All Rise)

Through her photographs and immersive video installation, Lewis (Covington, KY) revealed the decline and transformation

IN MEMORIAM

KATHY Y. WILSON

1965–2022

Writer, Commentator, Art Collector

Kathy Y. Wilson was a truly unique character who enlivened Cincinnati for so many years with her acerbic wit and considerable talents as a writer. Her apartment in Walnut Hills with her amazing floor-to-ceiling art collection, along with her personal collection of racist memorabilia, personified her life. This remarkable space, where she lived with her beloved partner Kandice, was a sanctuary for her writing and musings, which often extended to the very walls that defined it.

We were fortunate to feature her exhibition Sanctuary: Kathy Y. Wilson Living in a Colored Museum in 2017. Organized and curated by her

in her neighborhood through abandoned homes and empty lots resulting from social, economic, and racial disparities.

Melvin Grier: It Was Always About the Work

Grier (Cincinnati, OH) spent over thirty years honing his skills as a photographer working for The Cincinnati Post, documenting news events and people. This survey of his work featured the people and places that captured Grier’s photographic journey throughout his long and accomplished career.

close friend Emily Buddendeck, it was one of the most memorable exhibitions we have had the pleasure to present in the Weston’s twenty-eight year history.

Kathy was a powerful force who confronted difficult subjects with equal parts veracity and humor, and we will miss her dearly.

EDUCATION & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

The Cincinnati Arts Association’s

Education & Community Engagement (ECE)

department is focused on equitable recovery and sustainable growth by igniting, nurturing, and celebrating creativity with passion and dedication. Our ECE programs promote life-long participation in the arts while contributing to individual, organizational, and community well-being.

Since its inception in 1996, ECE has served more than two million youth and adults and continues to seek new opportunities to expand and improve arts engagements for the community.

ECE’s programs and services reached 64,235 persons and contracted seventy-eight regional artists to serve our Tri-state communities during the 2022–23 season—our first year of complete in-person programming since the COVID-19 shutdown in March 2020. This exciting return allowed us to rekindle longstanding community relationships and develop new ones. Our programs supplied much-needed opportunities for community members to reflect upon and recover from pandemic disruptions and trauma, as well as the compounding traumas of systemic poverty, racism, and inequity.

Amidst these barriers, CAA extended its footprint and embarked on new opportunities, including outdoor performances and an afterschool program, Afterschool Expand, that used the arts to help elementary school students learn about their and others’ human needs, emotions, actions, and reactions based on emotional responses. The program provides training to artists in Social Emotional Learning, Classroom Management, and Trauma Informed Care. During its first season, Afterschool Expand reached 510 students during 5,152 instructional and arts engagement hours. The program allowed CAA to add forty-two new regional artists to its team.

Pillar Programs (foundational and ongoing)

SCHOOLTIME presents national touring performances at our venues that support the academic curriculum. This program reached 7,401 students and teachers from ten counties and sixty-seven schools with a sold-out capacity for all performances. For the second year, we tracked student demographic data, including the percentage and number of BIPOC students and the percentage and number of students who qualify for free or reduced lunch. This data displays the diversity of communities our programs reach and our commitment to arts access for underserved populations.

ARTISTS ON TOUR

secures work for local artists and supplies quality arts engagements for schools and community organizations at their locations, increasing arts access and contributing to the cultural vibrancy of our region. The first season of complete in-person Artists on Tour programming since the pandemic saw a growth of 12% from the 2021–22 season. We reached 15,227 persons serving eighty schools (including twenty-eight for the first time) in fifteen counties throughout the Tri-state.

THE OVERTURE

AWARDS recognizes and rewards excellence in the arts among Greater Cincinnati students in grades 9–12. In its twenty-six year history, the program has awarded $932,500 to support artistically talented students pursuing their dreams, and an additional $51,000 has been awarded to educators and arts programs. During the 2022–23 season, 333 students from fifty-five schools in eleven Tri-state counties competed in the area’s largest solo arts competition across six arts disciplines: creative writing, dance, instrumental music, theater, visual art, and vocal music. A total of 519 youth, volunteers, adjudicators, and audience members were part of the Overtures.

ARTS IN HEALING INITIATIVE

(AIH) is a non-clinical artistin-residence program with a “Focus on the Art” to serve patients, medical and education staff, youth, and families for improved health and wellbeing. This year, AIH continued programming both virtually and in-person, as COVID-19 still presented health challenges for our medical partners and limits in-person environmental play. During 29,665 arts engagement contact hours, the Arts in Healing Initiative reached 15,878 youth and adults.

Services and Partnerships

Ensuring Access

Providing access to the arts and our venues for all schools, afterschool programs, senior homes, hospital facilities, and arts organizations is crucial to CAA’s movement towards equity and inclusion in arts engagements. This is the purpose of service programs such as Ticket and Transportation Subsidy, Artists on Tour Grants, The Greater Cincinnati Foundation Aronoff Center Rental Subsidy, Arts in Healing Initiative Participation Support, and our community service committees—Building Diverse Audiences Advisory Committee (BDAAC) and The Greater

CAA COMMUNITY

ADALIA POWELL-BOEHNE

CAA Teaching Artist

“It is refreshing to be part of CAA’s unique Afterschool Expand program, and my experience has been nothing but incredible and uplifting. I have found CAA’s support to be unmatched, from providing ample resources for music classes with students to stellar communication. CAA is an exceptional organization committed to providing outstanding arts programming to the Cincinnati community.”

64,235

TOTAL REACH— EDUCATION & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Cincinnati Foundation Aronoff Center Rental Subsidy Community Committee.

Program and funding partnerships that support our ECE programs are essential as we return to inperson arts engagements. Through the generosity of these Community Partners, 92% of CAA’s education and community program participants received financial assistance. Our Arts in Healing Initiative and Afterschool Expand engagements have remained 100% free to the partners and persons participating.

CAA’s commitment to strengthening regional creativity and well-being includes partnerships with regional artists.

CAA distributed nearly $294,000 in artist fees and facility support through employment opportunities and training in 2023.

ECE’s arts programming is “with, by, and for” our valued community. Building trust through honesty, humility, honor, and humor, we are always ready to “play” with our engaged partners— audiences, artists, funders, schools, students, medical and social service organizations, and more—to build a wellbeing community. We strive to listen, learn, and explore with those we serve to allow all involved to discover and experience the arts in authentic ways.

“Thank you so much for the opportunity to attend Black Violin. The kids loved it, and I even overheard some kids saying they wanted to learn how to play the violin.”

—

Local school teacher

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

SEPTEMBER 24–25

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

Mahler’s Resurrection

Music Director Louis Langrée and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra ushered in the Orchestra’s first full season since the COVID-19 pandemic with Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, Resurrection, joined by massive choral and orchestral forces and a large, in-person audience not seen since March 2020.

OCTOBER 25–NOVEMBER 6

ARONOFF CENTER – PROCTER & GAMBLE HALL

TINA – The Tina Turner Musical

Broadway in Cincinnati kicked off its season with a high-energy Broadway smash that brought the story of the Queen of Rock ’n’ Roll to the Queen City. A testimony to Tina Turner’s incredible legacy, TINA gave audiences an uplifting comeback story like no other and a show-ending concert that had everyone on their feet, rollin’ on the (Ohio) river.

NOVEMBER 11–13

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

Get Happy: Judy Garland Centennial

Michael Feinstein joined the Cincinnati Pops for its 100th-birthday tribute to Judy Garland. The multimedia show included family photos, neverbefore-seen film footage, rare audio recordings of Garland singing, and orchestrations of music from her vast catalog.

FEBRUARY 10–19

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

ALICE (in wonderland)

Cincinnati Ballet welcomed thousands of guests to Music Hall for a trip down the rabbit hole into the fantastical world of choreographer Septime Webre’s ALICE (in wonderland). The colorful production featured dancers from the Ballet’s Main Company, Second Company – CB2, and students from its Otto M. Budig Academy.

FEBRUARY 14

ARONOFF CENTER –FIFTH THIRD BANK THEATER

Lovefest 2

On Valentine’s Day, Cincinnati Playwrights Initiative presented eight ten-minute plays written by local Cincinnati playwrights. Proceeds from the sold-out performance benefited the American Heart Association’s centennial celebration. Playwrights were provided written feedback after each play’s performance to help them develop their scripts.

MARCH 29–30

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

CSO Proof: Surrealist el Tropical

Choreographer Rosie Herrera, the Rosie Herrera Dance Theatre, video and production designer Clyde Scott, and lighting and production designer Luke Kritzeck partnered with the CSO for the most immersive experience of the season. Conjuring up the sights and sounds of the Havana nightclub scene, Surrealist el Tropical flipped Music Hall upside down, entertaining sold-out crowds to rave reviews.

APRIL 14

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

Classical Roots

Internationally renowned gospel music trailblazer

Donald Lawrence headlined the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s Classical Roots concert alongside his band, the Classical Roots Community Choir directed by Jason Alexander Holmes, and the CSO led by conductor John Morris Russell. The program was also livestreamed for thousands of viewers from around the world.

APRIL 22

ARONOFF CENTER – JARSON-KAPLAN THEATER

Equal/Night

Exhale Dance Tribe’s (EDT) Spring Concert included premiere choreographic works by Jennifer Rutherford, Madison Welchman, and EDT Artistic Directors Missy and Andrew Hubbard. The evening of dance, on the balance of light and dark, realigned viewers with the cycles of nature.

APRIL 28–30

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

Ragtime in Concert

The Cincinnati Pops premiered a new symphonic concert adaptation of Broadway’s Tony Awardwinning musical Ragtime. Directed by Alton Fitzgerald White, the all-star cast included a vibrant array of talent from Broadway veterans who originated roles in the 1998 Broadway production to Cincinnati-based actors, students, and rising musical theater stars from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and the American Spiritual Ensemble.

MAY 5–6

ARONOFF CENTER –JARSON-KAPLAN THEATER

Bible Stories

Revolution Dance Theatre showcased its masterful storytelling with this original ballet from the mind of Producing Artistic Director David Choate. Featuring some of the most exciting tales from the highest selling book in the world, the new ballet mesmerized audiences with its beauty and adventure, including pictured company artists AJ Gross and Garrett Steagall performing “911.”

MAY 12–20

ARONOFF CENTER –JARSON-KAPLAN THEATER

Kinky Boots

Cincinnati Music Theatre’s sold-out run of Kinky Boots was a sensation that inspired audiences by reminding them that people can change the world when they change their minds. Based on a film of the same name, with music by Cyndi Lauper and book by Harvey Fierstein, Kinky Boots showed that we all have more in common than we ever imagined.

MAY 13

Mums, Mom and Music Hall— an Outdoor Tour of Music Hall

The Friends of Music Hall hosted their first themed outdoor tour to celebrate Mother’s Day. Led by FOMH’s knowledgeable guides, this sold-out tour gave moms and their friends an in-depth look at Music Hall’s magnificent structure from top to bottom. Each mom received a gorgeous bouquet of flowers from Gia & The Blooms.

MAY 17–JUNE 4 ARONOFF

Moulin Rouge! The Musical

The Broadway in Cincinnati season ended with three record-breaking weeks of Moulin Rouge! The Musical, a show that brought the beloved film to the stage with fresh surprises and unparalleled energy. The Broadway hit took Cincinnati audiences to a world of splendor and romance, of eye-popping excess, of glitz, grandeur, and glory, where Bohemians and aristocrats rub elbows and revel. It was a true “spectacular spectacular.” MAY 20

Marin Alsop: American Voices

Conductor Marin Alsop made her May Festival debut with an all-American program that included R. Nathaniel Dett’s The Ordering of Moses, which received its world premiere at the May Festival in 1937, Samuel Barber’s Symphony No. 1 in One Movement and Knoxville: Summer of 1915 , and Aaron Copland’s “The Promise of Living” from The Tender Land

MAY 27

Mahler’s Symphony of a Thousand

May Festival Music Director Laureate James Conlon stepped in for Principal Conductor Juanjo Mena to conduct Mahler’s Symphony No. 8, the grand culmination of the May Festival’s 150th Anniversary Season, complete with an epic chorus consisting of the May Festival Chorus, Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, May Festival Youth Chorus, Cincinnati Youth Choir, and Cincinnati Boychoir.

JUNE 2–3

ARONOFF CENTER – JARSON-KAPLAN THEATER

Modern Mix

Mutual Dance Theatre (MDT)—Cincinnati’s resident modern dance company—delighted audiences with lights, ladders, and luminous dancing. Audience members were on the edge of their seats as dancers leapt off ladders and beautifully whirled around corded lights. MDT impressed audiences with its performance tenacity, picturesque lines, and collective strength as an ensemble.

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

JUNE 9–18

ARONOFF CENTER – PROCTER & GAMBLE HALL

Bold Moves Festival

The Cincinnati Ballet capped off its 2022–23 season with this ambitious Festival, which featured six rotating mainstage productions on two programs with work from world-renowned choreographers including William Forsythe, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, and Val Caniparoli, among others. The Ballet was also proud to host a very special Pride Night during the production.

JUNE 23–JULY 7

MUSIC HALL – WILKS STUDIO

The Knock

Cincinnati Opera presented the world stage premiere of The Knock , a moving new opera about a group of military wives awaiting news of their husbands, who have been deployed to Iraq. As they wait, a young Army officer makes the long journey to their gathering place to deliver difficult news. The opera received enthusiastic response, resulting in a performance being added to accommodate audience demand.

JULY 18–21

Black Tech Week

This week-long inclusive conference presented by Lightship Foundation featured more than one-hundred sessions. Attendees engaged in networking, participated in technology-based discussions, attended educational programs, and forged investor connections. Highlights included Kickstarter CEO Everett Taylor and a Keynote Session with mogul Issa Rae.

JULY 22–29

Madame Butterfly

Cincinnati Opera closed its 2023 Summer Festival with Puccini’s heartrending Madame Butterfly, which was reimagined from a groundbreaking new point of view by Japanese American director Matthew Ozawa and an all-Japanese, female design team. The dazzling new production offered a poignant and powerful perspective, earning audience ovations, critical acclaim, and a feature in The New York Times.

MUSIC HALL

MUSIC HALL – SPRINGER AUDITORIUM

OPERATIONS

From behind-the-scenes to our lobbies to inside our various spaces, members of our operations team collaborate to manage a variety of successful events. This work involves the intersection of many players—event managers, ushers, stagehands, resident companies, artists, audiences, and more. It is an intricate dance, and at its best, it produces magical experiences at our venues. As the 2022–23 season began without any COVID-19 restrictions, our teams were thrilled to welcome the community back to the Aronoff Center and Music Hall to continue the dance.

At the Aronoff Center, the season began with the much-anticipated, four-week return engagement of Hamilton, presented by Broadway in Cincinnati, which played to sold-out audiences. This massive production required thirteen semi-trucks and more than onehundred stagehands to load the show into the theater. Broadway in Cincinnati’s landmark season included nine tours that filled nineteen weeks.

During the summer, the Procter & Gamble Hall was closed for the replacement of its original stage floor, which has supported thousands of productions since the opening of the Aronoff in October 1995. Removing, replacing, and painting the nearly 8,000 individual planks of red oak lasted ten weeks. We look forward to

the next thirty years of memories on this new floor.

Music Hall also had a stage makeover with a newly refinished floor in Springer Auditorium. With its lighter, brighter color, it beautifully enhanced the dazzling red of the Pops musicians’ jackets as they opened the season.

The Aronoff Center and Music Hall were two of the local venues for the American Choral Directors Association Conference in February. During this weeklong event, we hosted 11,000 choral directors, more than 1,000 performers, and thirty-plus performances. The Aronoff’s Procter & Gamble Hall and Jarson-Kaplan Theater were turned around for multiple performances no less than twenty-six times in the span of five days. During the week, the operations staff worked nearly 2,000 hours and our tireless volunteers served 900 hours.

At Music Hall, we were thrilled to see the longawaited return of the American Financial Group Holiday Party, this year with musical guest One Republic. The always-exceptional Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and May Festival Chorus were highlighted during music director Louis Langrée’s penultimate season. In December, guests were delighted by one of their favorite holiday traditions—Cincinnati

ARTS AMBASSADORS

The Cincinnati Arts Association is supported by the efforts of a community of more than 700 active volunteers between the Aronoff Center and Music Hall. Last season, these generous arts ambassadors served 62,500 hours at our venues. The average volunteer donates eightyseven hours of their time each season. There are thirty-five dedicated founding volunteers who have served every year since the Aronoff Center opened twenty-eight years ago. Our volunteer managers have been actively recruiting and rebuilding our volunteer community after experiencing some pandemic-related attrition, and during the 2022–23 season, 101 new volunteers were onboarded.

Ballet’s The Nutcracker, which included several sold-out performances. Cincinnati Opera presented another very successful and acclaimed summer season, with opera lovers coming to Music Hall from five different countries and forty-five states.

In the middle of the Opera’s season, Music Hall welcomed back Black Tech Week for the second consecutive year. The premier event celebrated Black innovators and entrepreneurs in the tech industry, with nearly two-thousand participants. The University of Cincinnati Foundation held the Ohio Innocence Project 20th Anniversary Dinner in the Ballroom with more than eight-hundred guests in attendance. This record-setting singleday fundraiser for UC touched the hearts of many, raising a half-million dollars—$200,000 of which came from the dinner alone.

Overall, it was an extremely exciting and busy year at our venues. We saw record-breaking concession sales, six dragons and mythical beasts, an Elvis tribute, a fairy tale wedding, engagement and birth announcement photos sessions, corporate meetings, and much more. We look forward to another year of creating unforgettable memories for our guests.

RESIDENT COMPANIES

We are proud to be in community with these exceptional local arts organizations that call our venues home and inspire audiences each season.

“I’ve been volunteering for eleven months now and love it. I decided to do this because I was retiring and love the arts. I started with Music Hall and then the Aronoff. I didn’t expect the great conversations and to meet so many wonderful people. I just love the diversity, friendly advice, and help I received from the veteran volunteers. I hope I can do this for many years.”

ARONOFF CENTER

MUSIC HALL

ARONOFF CENTER/MUSIC HALL

CAA COMMUNITY

MAXINE

MOSLEY-MALONE

CAA Volunteer

DEVELOPMENT

The 2022–23 season reminded us of what we love most about the arts in Cincinnati: YOU. Your unwavering support allowed us to do what we do best—ensure access to a broad range of high quality performing and visual arts experiences, develop diverse audiences, and foster an appreciation and understanding of the arts.

By investing in the Cincinnati Arts Association, you make a difference in the lives of more than a halfmillion Cincinnatians and visitors to our region each year. Together, we provide joy and change throughout our community and strengthen our connections to each other through shared experiences as audience members and artists. Below are a few of the highlights of what your donations allowed us to provide during the 2022–23 season:

• Increased capacity for our in-person education programs SchoolTime and Artists on Tour, which reached over 22,000 students in more than fifteen area counties.

• Ticket, transportation, and Artists on Tour subsidies to schools with the highest percentage

of low-income students provided access to CAA’s education programs. More than 24,000 students were granted subsidies.

• The official launch of our Afterschool Expand program, which partners with eleven local schools and youth organizations and over forty local teaching artists. CAA provided consistent, recurring afterschool arts education and socialemotional learning opportunities to 268 lowincome students.

• The hiring of twenty-four new BIPOC teaching artists who received social-emotional learning and curriculum development training. These pinnacle areas of impact positively affected Afterschool Expand and Artists on Tour programming.

• Our ongoing Arts in Healing Initiative, which supported more than 15,000 community members through partnerships with TriHealth, UC Medical, the VA Medical Center, Hoxworth Blood Center, Hospice of Cincinnati, Make Music Cincinnati, and many more.

Membership

More than five-hundredplus CAA Members provided over $185,000 in support for our many programs and enjoyed a variety of benefits including, but not limited to, priority access to Broadway in Cincinnati and CAA Presents ticket presales, a private ticketing line, complimentary concessions and parking, discounts to CAA Presents perfor mances and other special events, access to the Aronoff Center’s private viewing suite, and special Members’ events.

Thank you for being part of a community that supports the arts through generous gifts of time, talent, or resources; ticket purchases for performances and events; the creation of art in our venues or in the community; and many other ways. You help us bring our programs to life each day.

Dancing for the Stars Celebrates Fifteen Years

Our annual fundraising event Dancing for the Stars celebrated its fifteenth season at Music Hall during a fun-filled evening on April 22. More than 350 guests attended the event, which raised over $70,000 to support CAA’s Overture Awards and arts education programs. Based on the hit TV show Dancing with the Stars, the event paired local Cincinnati notables with local pro dancers to compete for audience support in both their performance and fundraising. The popular dance theme was Disco.

The local stars included David Kapor (Founding & Managing Partner of Kapor, Davis & Associates, LLC), Frank Marzullo (Meteorologist–Fox19 NOW), Diana Nguyen (Owner–Deluxe Nail Salon & Spa), Morgan Angelique Owens (Entrepreneur, Author, Consultant, Speaker, Brand Ambassador), Tom Parker (Director of External Communications–Lindner Center of Hope), Erin Rolfes (Director of Communication and Media Relations–The Kroger Co.), Litsa Spanos (President–ADC Art Design Consultants, Inc.), and Britton Spitler as Brock Leah Spears (Project Manager–ADM). Britton Spitler and dance pro Amanda Barraza were crowned dance champions, and Litsa Spanos won the Fundraising Champion Award.

CAA COMMUNITY

BILL MENSE

CAA Member

“As a CAA Member, I enjoy contributing to the incredible arts community in Cincinnati. My membership supports local students in the community, allowing them to experience the arts. Teaching our area’s youth about how the arts benefit them is important to me, and I hope that they will treasure these experiences always. Without the arts, our lives would be so less enjoyable!”

SUPPORT

The Cincinnati Arts Association recognizes and thanks the following individuals, corporations, and foundations for their generous support.

Individual Donors and Members

GIFTS OF $5,000 AND ABOVE

Amy Dunlea and Lois Mannon

Charles and Mary Harris

Drs. Matt and Maggie Hummel

Craig and Anne Maier

Maribeth and Martin Rahe

April Rockey

Dudley and Tina Taft

GIFTS OF $2,500–$4,999

Ms. Carol M. Beyersdorfer

Gina M. Crowley

Dr. Allison Ferree-Chavez and Mr. Rob Chavez

Phil and Christy Ochs

Claudia F. Vollmer

GIFTS OF $1,000–$2,499

Roger and Jan Ames

Jacklyn and Gary Bryson

Drs. Jean Elwing and Madhukar Gupta

H. Wayne Ferguson and Pamela D. Wiedeman

Lori and Bob Fregolle

Chris and Melissa Goodwin

Catherine Hogya

John and Sue Topits Foundation

Michael and Wanda Kinzie

Whitney and Phillip Long

Ken and Melissa Mailender

Timothy Marsh and Jessica Adams

Cindy, Nick, and Joey Mazzaro

Dr. Robert Rhoad and Kitsa Tassian

Elaine and Terry Schroeder

Linda L. Siekmann

Jordan Sosna

Susan and James Troutt

Eric and Sharon Vetter

Gary and Jane Wenk

Anonymous

GIFTS OF $500–$999

Karen Acuff and Elizabeth Acuff

Tim and Lisa Beckelhimer

James Beering and Lisa Keller

Matthew and Stacey Behrensmeyer

Lee and Lori Benmlouka

Mr. and Mrs. Mark Berliant

Virginia Brezinski

Libby and Tony Brock

Mr. and Mrs. Keith Carlson

MaryAnn Chappelear

Chris and Daniele

Cusentino

Jim and Karen Cusentino

Dr. Alex M. Della Bella and Maria Schrudder

Vince DeStefano

Emilie and David Dressler

Jason and Heidi Fancett

Kurtis Finch

Catherine Gilreath

Jon and Lisa Hall

Brent and Mary Hardesty

Paulette Homer

Laurie F. Johnston

Drs. Megan Kessler and Michael A. Thomas

Don and Kathy King

Kevin and Jackie Kopp

Mr. and Mrs.

Stephen Lazarus

Sean and Tonya Lightfoot

Matt McConville and Heidi Snow

William C. and Lynne. M. Mense

R & B Merrill

Dr. Karen Meyers and William Jones

Dave and Diane Moccia

Julie and Nate Paszczykowski

Nima R. Patel

James R. Pelphrey

Will and Sherrie Potts

Michael Powers and Kathy Muldowney

Ronnie and Donna Riddle

Robert and Karen Ripp

Joseph and Kimberly Rippe

Dennis Schoff and Nina Sorensen

Sanjay Shewakramani

John Slawter

Clay Slusher and Erika Slusher

Timothy L. and Janet E. St. Clair

Tim and Barbara Stefl

John and Jennifer Stein

Chris and Meghan

Stevens

Patrick and Jenni Strausbaugh

Dr. Steve and Rev.

Kristie Stricker

James and Melissa Summers

William and Nadya Taylor

David and Barbara Wagner

Michael and Carlisa Waldman

Camilla Warren

Ted and Teresa Werner

Barbara Weyand

Michael and Katie Wright

MAJ Maureen

Young, USA (ret.)

The Zelina Family

Anonymous (2)

GIFTS OF $250–$499

Barry and Pat Ahr

L & S Allen

Perriann Allen

Angie Apple

Roger and Debbie Benjamin

Mr. and Mrs. Rich and Janet Burr

Stephanie and John Busam

Gale Bush

Dawn Butler

Marti and Brian Butler

Jeff Cagle

Dr. and Mrs. Daniel Choo

Art Crawford

Kathy and Mike Davis

Vicki and Jeff Davis

Mike and Katie Denne

John and Maureen Doellman

Barbara Doviak

Tim and Judy Duffie

Joanne and Robin Estes

Mandy Fabry and Matt Wleklinski

Tom and Kathy Fischer

Daniella and Wayne Fisher

Kathy Fromell

Marvel Gentry Harmon

Billy and Gail Gillman

Gonzalez-Pineiro Family

Josh Goodknight

Nickolette Hackman

Dr. Stewart M. and Janice E. Harris Jr.

Amanda Hatton

Dan and Amy Hein

William Hesch, Esq., CPA

Mick and Lou-Ann Holtzleiter

Kim and Gary Horning

Dr. John Lawrence Houk

Rachel Idzakovich

Judith L. Imhoff

Stephen and Janet Jackson

Ron and Judy Johnson

Jay and Shirley Joyce

Msgr. Kurt H. Kemo

Edna and Woodrow

Keown, Jr.

Dr. Kim

Victoria Knollman

Scott and Lauren Kooken

Saini Eye Care

Tatyana Skorobogat

Hayley Smith

Marsha Smith, MD, FAAN

Dr. and Mrs. Jim

Swanson

Barbara Teisl

Charlotte Thomas

Paul and Debi Towle

Jeff and Mary Tyler

The Vanderwerker Family

Varner Foundation

Nancy L. Wade

Andrea Waugh

Sharon and Rich Werner

Mike and Mary Jo Whelan

Jean and Kurt Whitford

Carol and Rich Wilson

The Wirtz Family

Shelly Woodward

Michelle Wright

Anonymous (5)

CAA Sponsors

Ameritas Life Insurance

Corporation

Fifth Third Bank

Local 12WKRC-TV

Procter & Gamble*

TriHealth

Tri-State Chevy Dealers

EDUCATION

ArtsWave

Mr. Barry Kuhn

Maggie Kuhn

Michael F. Lykins

Devon Maggio

Ellen and Ward Maresca

Mary Beth Martin and Ken Oswald

Arthur and Stephanie McMahon

Stephen T. Murphy

Alan Naylor

Mr. and Mrs. Brian Neal

Mrs. Jana Ogilvie

Dr. Sanford Osher

Mark and Sue

Ann Painter

Greg and Lori Parente

Julia and Dan Poston

Jim and Tamie Reckers

Jody Corbett and Bill Rellar

Brian and Mary Rhame

Mary Richardson

Jennifer and John Ridge

Geoff Rohdes

Nelson Rosario

Dr. Elizabeth Ruchhoft

Anthony Sewell

Joey Shelton

Chad M. Siekman and Family

Mark and Elizabeth Sippel

Fort Washington

Investment Advisors, Inc.

Maura Garuccio

Jeremy Mainous

The Otto M. Budig

Family Foundation

Jozsef Parragh

Punky’s Pixels

Summerfair Cincinnati

Josh Tilford

TriHealth

Western & Southern Financial

CAA PRESENTING

21c Museum Hotel Cincinnati

altafiber

The Cincinnati Herald CityBeat

Fairfield by Marriott Cincinnati Uptown

Heidelberg Distributing Company

Jeff Ruby’s Culinary Entertainment

Kinley Cincinnati

L2Source

Ohio Valley Wines

The Party Source

Pepsi

Philip Bortz Jewelers

Prime Cincinnati, Ticket Office Sponsor

ProSource

Rhinegeist Brewery

Skyline Chili

Bahl & Gaynor

Investment Counsel

Charles H. Dater Foundation, Inc.

The H.B., E.W. and F.R. Luther Charitable Trust, Fifth Third Bank and Narley L. Haley, Co-Trustees

Hearst Foundations

The Greater Cincinnati Foundation

The John A. Schroth

Family Charitable Trust

The Louise Taft

Semple Foundation

Ohio Arts Council

The Patricia Kisker Foundation

Procter & Gamble

Skyline Chili

Stillson Foundation

TriHealth

WOW Windowboxes

THE OVERTURE AWARDS

Accent on Cincinnati –

Joe Rigotti

Arthur Murray –Cincinnati

Doreen Beatrice

Bonita Brockert

Eleanora C.U. Alms Trust, Fifth Third Bank Trustee

Kathy Sackett

Liz and Steve Scheurer

Marilyn J. Scripps

Mu Sinclaire and the Sinclaire Family Foundation

Skyline Chili

Dee and Tom Stegman

Elizabeth Stone

Sara M. and Michelle Vance Waddell

Veritiv Corp.

Vanessa and Rick Wayne

CAA Preferred In-Kind

Garnish Catering

Harlan Graphics

Jeff Thomas Catering

LaRosa’s, Inc.

Movers and Makers

Cincinnati

New Riff Distillery

Punky’s Pixels

Skyline Chili

Vonderhaar’s Catering

WOW Windowboxes

Corporate Members

CORPORATE FOUNDER

Gifts of $5,000 and above

Street City PubMembership Program Sponsor

Thryv (formerly VIVIAL)

TriHealth

WESTON ART GALLERY

Alice F. and Harris K.

Weston Endowment

The Alpaugh Foundation

Gale and David Beckett

CityBeat

Covent Garden Florist

FotoFocus

Helen and Brian Heekin

Jeff Thomas Catering

Joyce and Roger Howe

Patricia and Jim King

A. M. Kinney, III

Kolar Design

The LaBoiteaux-Sharp

Family Foundation

Toni LaBoiteaux

Susan and John Lame

Whitney and Phillip Long

Barbara and Gates Moss

Pamela and Lennell

Myricks, Jr.

Betsy and Peter Niehoff

Ohio Arts Council

Sue Ann and Judge

Mark Painter

DAV (Disabled

American Veterans)

Fort Washington Investment Advisors, Inc.

CORPORATE PATRON

GIFTS OF $2,500–$4,999

Blank Rome LLP

Castellini Foundation

HORAN

Imbus Roofing Company, Inc.

One and Done Mask

Rare World Metals Mint

CORPORATE BENEFACTOR

GIFTS OF $1,500–$2,499 Prologis

CORPORATE FRIEND

GIFTS OF $1,000–$1,499

AlphaMark Advisors

Contractors Choice Inc.

North American Properties

Peck Hannaford and Briggs

Westside Animal Hospital

Our thanks also to our Associate Level Members.

BY THE NUMBERS

CINCINNATI ARTS ASSOCIATION STAFF

THANK YOU

DEBORAH

A. MORGAN

Vice President, Development, 2010–2023 (retired)

When Deborah joined CAA in January 2010, she quickly reenergized our development efforts and increased CAA’s donor base, memberships, sponsorships, and fundraising. She created many significant partnerships and relationships in the community that continue to support CAA and its programs.

Deborah led the efforts to dramatically grow our largest and most successful fundraising event, Dancing for the Stars, which benefits CAA’s Overture Awards and arts education programs. Since its inception in 2007, the annual event has raised more than one million dollars.

Deborah is deeply and warmly respected and admired by our staff, trustees, and sponsors. Although we cannot adequately express how much Deborah will be missed, we are very grateful for the time, talents, and dedication she has given us. We wish her all the best in her retirement!

Administration

Stephen A. Loftin

President

Brenda A. Jones

Executive Assistant

Human Resources

Brenda A. Carter, SPHR Vice President, Human Resources

Courtney A. Craig Human Resources

Assistant

Jennifer L. Schalk

Benefits/HR Administrator

Erin Fannin Office Coordinator

Finance & Information Systems

Benjamin T. Reece Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

Robert L. Hall, Jr. Controller

Kendra R. Best Accountant – Operations

DeLisa J. Bracy Accountant

Darrell E. Frye

Accounting Specialist

Krystalyn S. Goodson Payroll & Accounting Specialist

Thomas J. Huber Director of Information

Technology

Brian N. Geisler Information Technology Support Technician

Development

Sarah C. Miller Vice President, Development

Jacob Bajwa

Associate Director, Development

Laura J. Gerhold

Individual Giving Manager

Madison G. Smith Grants Coordinator

Amanda S. Ross

Administrative Assistant & Project Coordinator

Education & Community Engagement

Joyce M. Bonomini Vice President, Education & Community Engagement

Jared O’Roark Afterschool Expand Program Director

Ryan N. DuPree Community Programs Manager

Emily K. Spooner Youth & School Programs Manager

Lindsay N. Wielonski

Education & Community

Engagement Program Coordinator

Marketing & Communications

Van Ackerman Vice President, Marketing & Communications

Curtis L. Trefz

Graphic Design/ Marketing Manager

Chloe A.L. Otterback

Videographer/ Photographer

Shelbey E. Phillips

Digital Marketing Manager

Weston Art Gallery

Dennis Harrington Director, Weston Art Gallery

Vanessa P. Holmes

Assistant Director

Sylbester K. Yeo Exhibition Preparator

Ticketing Services

Benjamin E. Vetter Vice President, Ticketing Services

Matthew E. Burton

Senior Manager, Guest Relations

Teresa M. Myers

Senior Manager, Client Relations

Micaela S. Evangelista

Senior Manager, Broadway Ticketing

Michael E. Sawan Ticketing Systems

Manager

Hannah R. Martin

Client Relations & Presenting Specialist

Melissa L. Lyons

Client Relations

Specialist

Megan E. Ulrich

Client Relations

Specialist

Laurel M. Ellis

Call Center Supervisor

Chloe Basel

Guest Relations

Supervisor

Jordan J. Stinson

Guest Relations

Supervisor

Operations

Todd J. Duesing

Vice President & Chief

Operating Officer

Odayues D. Leonard

Director of Safety & Security

Aronoff Center

Bridget Rosella Benton

General Manager –Aronoff Center

Jennifer M. Picone

Senior Event Manager

Emma C. Garry

Event Manager

Scott Slucher

Event Manager

Raneboe H. Maul

Rentals Manager

Grace A. Miller

House Manager

Charles E. Lock

Concessions &

Hospitality Manager

Mykayla E. Kroeger

Volunteer Manager

Megan E. Vormbrock

Administrative Coordinator

Elam J. Mechley

Technical Director

Jonathan Chevalier

Head Carpenter

Michael K. Meuche

Audio Engineer

Bleu Pellman

Production Technician

Steven J. Schofield

House Electrician

Bryan C. Fisher

Chief Engineer

Joseph E. Miller

Maintenance Technician

Barry Guggenheimer

General Maintenance

Technician

Cory C. Baldwin

Safety & Security Coordinator

Karessa K. Helton

Security Associate

Gary D. Jenkins

Security Associate

Michael S. Montegna

Security Associate

Joseph D.R. Parsley

Security Associate

Brenda G. Kelsor

Custodial Services Manager

Tyrone Robinson

Lead Custodian

Torino L. Middlebrook

Custodian

Parish J. Denham

Custodian

Larry North

Custodian

Paula A. Young

Custodian

Music Hall

Molly McGraw

General Manager –

Music Hall

Helen T. Kidney

Senior Event Manager

Richard V. Endres

Event Manager

Angela G. Sandmann

Event Manager

Bethany Troendly

Rentals Manager

Kaitlyne C. Jones

House Manager

Christopher R. Jackson

Concessions & Hospitality Manager

Spenser W. Smith

Concessions & Hospitality Coordinator

Hope R. Holman

Volunteer Manager

Alynn T. Rousselle

Administrative Coordinator

Thomas G. Kidney

Technical Director

Kevin W. Eviston

House Electrician

Paul D. Stafford

Head Carpenter

Jeffrey R. Enderle

Chief Engineer

Paul Sweet

General Maintenance Technician

Ray L. Toepfert, III

Building Engineer

Charita Schiele-White

Safety & Security Coordinator

Patrick W. Berus

Security Associate

Angela M. Felts

Security Associate

Lamar L. McRae

Security Associate

Tony Dees

Custodial Services Manager

Terra N. Ruff

Lead Custodian

Airel Seeback

Lead Custodian

Shawn A. Booker

Custodian

Winifred B. Freeman

Custodian

Kevin C. Ruwe

Custodian

TRUSTEES

Officers

Dudley S. Taft

Chairman

Maribeth S. Rahe Vice Chair

Otto M. Budig, Jr. Treasurer

Carol M. Beyersdorfer

Secretary

Richard L. Kiley

Special Vice President Jeanette Altenau

Special Vice President, Community Relations

Stephen A. Loftin

President

Benjamin T. Reece, CPA Vice President & Chief Financial Officer

Board of Trustees

Laura A. Carr

Robert S. Chavez

J. Stephen Dobbins

Matthew J. Geerlings

Marvel Gentry Harmon

Toilynn O’Neal Turner

Emeritus

Edward G. Marks

Ex-Officio

Mayor Aftab Pureval

IN MEMORIAM

PHILIP J. SCHWORER, 1955–2023

Lawyer, Dancing for the Stars 2009 Champion, Cincinnati Arts Association Trustee, Arts Supporter

We celebrate the life of Phil Schworer, an environmental attorney who danced his way into the hearts of all of us at CAA who had the pleasure of knowing him. We are grateful for his passionate support over the past fifteen years as he helped us build our Dancing for the Stars fundraising legacy. From winning the dance competition in 2009 and serving as a vital member of the event’s planning committee for more than a decade, to joining CAA’s Board of Trustees, his positive energy and caring influence will be felt for years to come. Phil will be dearly missed.

Photos: Karen Adams, Exhale Dance Tribe, Friends of Music Hall, Philip Groshong, Manuel Harlan, Hiromi Platt Photography, Keoni Keur, JP Leong, Mark Lyons, Roger Mastroianni, Mark D. Motz, Matthew Murphy, Mutual Dance Theatre, Chloe Otterback, Colin Peterman, Tyler Secor