The Performance Center's 16-member Board of Directors, with experience in real estate, finance, architecture, business, fundraising, the arts and civic affairs, is leading the overall project, along with the professional staff, each of whom brings 30 years of experience on similar projects to shape our project plan.
They are joined by 17 other leading citizens on our Board of Advisors and a 32-member Resource Council, composed of civic leaders and arts and civic organizations. The boards of the Asheville Symphony, Lyric Opera, Bravo Concerts and other arts organizations have also endorsed The Performance Center.
The project is in the pre-design stage, having completed a preliminary program plan. When we complete the formal Master Plan in 2011, the design team will generate an updated scope of work, project budget and timeline.
Fall 2004
The Board of Directors of the Asheville Area Center for the Performing Arts – the (501(c)3 parent
organization of The Performance Center--officially convenes and begins the work to advance the project.
Spring 2005
Resource Council forms. Decision Support Partners, Inc. market research study conducted.
Spring 2006
Susanne Marcus Collins Foundation challenged the Board to raise $3 million by the end of 2007 and meet
other conditions to receive a grant of $1 million.
Fall 2006
Board of Advisors forms, composed of distinguished local citizens.
Spring 2007
Independent Donor Study conducted.
December 2007
$1 million challenge grant conditions met, which included resolutions of support from the Asheville
City Council and Buncombe County Commission.
June 2008
James Baudoin joined the project as Executive Director and Project Manager.
August 2008
City Council passed a resolution setting aside the 2.4-acre site south of City Hall.
June-December 2009
Design team members are selected and announced.
April 2009
Presentations by architectural finalists to lead project design.
August 2009
Performance Center Board selects Kirkegaard Associates as acoustic designer and Theatre Projects Consultant as theatre designer.
September 2009
Public announcement of William Rawn Associates as design architect and CJMW Architecture as local architect.
March 2010
Asheville Design Center assembles task force to address land conditions around Performance Center site.
May 2010
Design team members have initial meetings in Asheville to address program verification and site fit.
March 2011
Completed site analysis report issued, with update provided to City Council.
Click on any of the links below to link to the original articles.
Press release, 5/25/11 / Evolving plans for Asheville’s Performance Center
Press Release, 3/31/11 / Performance Center Site Analysis Milestone
Asheville Citizen Times, 8/2/10 / Downtown sees a wise investment and an ambitious idea
Asheville Citizen Times, 7/29/10 / Performance Center in Asheville design gets spotlight
Economic Development Now, 3/29/2010 / Persistence Keeps Public-Private Projects Moving, Even in the Recession
Mountain XPress, 11/18/2009 / Group vows to put Asheville performing-arts venue back in the spotlight
Asheville Citizen-Times, 11/13/2009 / William Rawn Associates of Boston, Calloway Johnson Moore and West picked as architects for new Asheville performing arts center
Asheville Citizen-Times, 11/8/2009 / Performance Center a huge challenge with huge payoffs
Press Release, 1/5/2009 / Progress Continues for Asheville’s New Performance Center
Press Release, 3/26/2008 / Susanne Marcus Collins Foundation gives $1,000,000
Press Release, 10/14/2007 / Glass Foundation pledges $500,000
How did you decide what to include in the new Performing Arts Center?
- At their own expense, members of the Board of Directors visited and evaluated more than a dozen performance centers in the country and identified the most critical components.
- In addition, the unique needs of the Asheville area and WNC have been evaluated and incorporated.
- The preliminary plan will be evaluated and updated as part of the final Master Plan.
Would the city or county have to subsidize a center's operation?
- Our business model does not anticipate public operating support.
- The new Performance Center in Asheville will be a presenting -- not merely rental facility -- thus generating significantly greater revenues. Other revenue-generating activities, such as facility rentals, shop and café revenues, will supplement box office revenues.
- The safety net will be an endowment fund raised through though private contributions. Greenville's Peace Center started with a $10 million endowment fund that has now grown to over $20 million.
Why do we need such a large auditorium? Can you guarantee good acoustics?
- The financial health of any performing arts center is centered on the largest and most popular shows it presents.
- These shows make the profits that help cover the operating costs of the facilities, and the number of seats is critical to attracting such shows and to achieving those profits.
- Hall size no longer dictates acoustical satisfaction. The science of acoustics has advanced significantly in recent years.
Why do we need a rehearsal hall/multipurpose room?
- Rehearsal space is always at a premium for performers, particularly our local and resident groups.
- The main hall should not be tied up with rehearsals, reducing the number of days that events can be booked and revenue generated.
- The rehearsal room would also fill a demand for a small performance space holding fewer than 300 people, but having significant stage capacity for children’s programs, chamber recitals, and choral concerts, and could be rented out for community events.
Will you compete with the Diana Wortham Theater?
- The Diana Wortham Theater already serves the community’s need for a mid-size theater (500 seats), so we will not be building one as part of our project.
- The leadership of the Diana Wortham Theatre is supportive of our project. We believe our programs will complement each other, not compete.
Won’t this take away from the other arts in the community?
- The Market Study completed by Decision Support Partners, Inc. showed that the various local arts groups have different primary supporters and attendees.
- Our community is growing with a constantly increasing and varying base of supporters. Asheville is a regional and national attraction. When tourists come to see the Biltmore House and the mountains, they’ll stay to see a show or concert if the experience is first class.
AACPA President Bill Miles
F. William (Bill) Miles III, President
Retired from Bank of America, most recently as a Regional Executive
Officer managing the bank’s real estate portfolio in various domestic and international markets.
Michael H. Stoll, Vice President
Retired Vice President, AT&T and Lucent Technologies, with responsibilities in the areas of operations, sales, and mergers
and acquisitions.
John J. Sherman, Jr., Treasurer
Manager, Asheville Antiques Fair. Retired stockbroker active in Venezuela and Asheville.
Carol A. McCollum, Secretary
Civic Leader. Former President, Asheville Symphony Orchestra Society and Asheville Choral Society. Former member of Asheville
Citizen-Times Editorial Board, YWCA, Kids Voting, and Asheville Area Arts Council. Former buyer Lord & Taylor.
Joyce R. Dorr, Ph.D., President-Elect
Retired founder and Chair of the Music Department, University of North Carolina Asheville; former head of the Music Theory
Dept. Former Vice Chair of the Civic Center Commission. Served as president of the Asheville Symphony and BRAVO Concerts.
David Cappiello
Retired Orthopedic Surgeon with Blue Ridge Bone & Joint in Asheville. Former program chairman of Asheville Community Concert
Association and current program chairman of Asheville Bravo Concerts.
Linda Alford
Retired as Director of Philanthropic Grants and Research, Asheville School. Formerly Managing Director, Michigan Partnership
for New Education.
J.K. MacKendree (Mack) Day
Vice President of Human Resources, Akzo Nobel Chemicals North America, retired. Formerly Attorney and General Counsel, Akzo
Nobel Chemicals North America; Attorney – Akzo Nobel America (Formerly Akzona, North America.)
Tom Maher
Former partner of Eastern Development, a MA based real estate development company that developed/invested in over 100 projects in
New England, primarily office buildings and shopping centers. Currently has own business focusing on commercial real estate and equity investments.
Carole Marcotte
Interior Designer with vast board experience within the arts. As an actress, particularly interested in the addition of a well designed performing
arts center for Western North Carolina.
John K. Martin
Retired architect, Principal with three firms, responsible for the design and contruction of public and corporate facilities in seven
states and Saudi Arabia, and the first LEED Gold Design-Build public elementary in New Jersey.
James G. Mathews
Retired chief financial officer of ADC Telecommunications, Inc. Formerly corporate controller and treasurer at Delta Air Lines, chief accounting
officer at Northwest Airlines, and chief financial and administrative officer of CARE-USA, an international relief and development agency.
William G. McMinn, FAIA
Former Dean of the College of Architecture at Cornell University. Founding Dean of the School of Architecture at Florida
International University. 2006 recipient of the national AIA/ACSA Topaz Medallion for outstanding contributions to architecture education.
John Rogers, FAIA
Retired architect, Rogers/Chenevert Architects P.C., responsible for the design of a number of major projects in Western
North Carolina.
LaVoy Spooner
Regional Director, External Relations, AT&T North Carolina. Formerly with Bell Atlantic (now Verizon) in Washington, D.C.
James Baudoin, Executive Director/Project Manager
Responsible for facility planning, fundraising and marketing for the new Performance Center, serving as consultant from 2004 and as staff
since 2008. Background in new facility planning, startup and ongoing operations. Experience in past three decades includes theatrical productions
and presenting programs in jazz, classical, contemporary music and comedy tours. B.S. and M.F.A. degrees from the Florida State University.
Janice E. Milin, Administrative Coordinator
Former Executive Director of Asheville Bravo Concerts; Master of Arts in Theatre. Previously worked in a variety of artistic and
administrative capacities, including theatre instructor, designer and/or assistant at Loyd Artists; Pack Place Education, Arts & Science Center; Lexington
Children's Theatre; NC A & T State University; Ashland University; Mansfield Playhouse, and Oberlin College.
Louis Bissette
McGuire Wood & Bissette
Thomas C. Bolton
Thomas C. Bolton & Co.
Laura Boosinger
Madison County Arts Council
Peter D. Collins
Civic Leader
Kit Cramer
Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce
Cornelia C. De Land
Civic Leader
Ron Edgerton
Financial Advisor
George Goosmann
Mayor, Biltmore Forest
C. Jerome Jones
Brig. Gen., USAF, Retired
John Luckett
Grand Bohemian Hotel
Rick Lutovsky
Civic Leader
J. Craig Madison
President & CEO, Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa
Tourism Development Authority
William P. Massey
Former President, AACPA
Tina McGuire
Pack Place Education, Arts & Science Center
Steve McManus
Southeastern Development Corporation
George W. Morosani
George W. Morosani & Associates
Doug Orr
Former President Warren Wilson College
Carole Roskind
Civic Leader
Pat Smith
Civic Leader
Virgil Smith
Gannett Publishing
Chuck Tessier
Tessier Associates
Asheville Sustainable Economic Development Commission
Herman Turk
Renaissance Asheville Hotel
S. Miller Williams
COO, CFO, Cable & Wireless Holdings Bermuda, Ltd.
Charles R. Worley
Worley & Associates, PA
Dorel Abbott
Civic Leader
C. J. Breland
Asheville High School
Charles Briedis
Asheville Chamber Music Series
Janis Bryant
A. C. Reynolds High School
Jan Davis
Asheville City Council
Ann Dunn
Asheville Ballet
John Ellis
Diana Wortham Theatre
Charlie Flynn-McIver
NC Stage Company
Wanda Green
Buncombe County Manager
Graham Hackett
Asheville Area Arts Council
Steve Hageman
Asheville Symphony
Susan Harper
Asheville Community Theatre
Bruce Hazzard
Asheville Downtown Commission
Brock Himan
Merrill Lynch Wealth Management
Gary Jackson
Asheville City Manager
Tracey Johnston-Crum
Asheville Bravo Concerts
Suzanne Jones
Asheville Chamber Music Series
Barbara Love
Civic Leader
Kitty Love
Asheville Area Arts Council
Hilary McVicker
Media Arts Project
Jack Meyer
Nederlander
Mack Pearsall
HUB Alliance
Donald Reed
Northwestern Mutual Life
Robby Russell
Wachovia Bank
Ed Sheary
Libraries of Buncombe County
David Starkey
Asheville Lyric Opera
Emberley Strong
Asheville Puppetry Alliance
Karen Tessier
Market Connections
Volunteer
You can help us build The Performance Center by volunteering your time in a number of ways. Host an informal gathering to introduce your friends to the Performance Center (we’ll provide the program), share your expertise – share the form below to indicate how you wish to help.