Michael Kaiser

I have been consulting to an important arts organization for almost one full year. I have been asked to write its strategic plan in concert with senior staff and the board. This group faces serious financial challenges which arise from a poor public image that has adversely affected its fundraising...

This is my 150th blog for the Huffington Post. I am grateful to Arianna Huffington and the staff of the Huffington Post for the opportunity to write about arts management each week for almost three years. Arts management is still a young field and needs exposure, discussion and debate. Some...

It was exciting to read that Gregory Doran will become the new Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Greg is a wonderful director whose insightful productions have graced the stages of the Kennedy Center during my tenure.

But I have a more personal reminiscence of Greg that stems from...

It has struck me recently that people who ascend to high government positions -- as mayors, governors or even presidents -- could do worse than to learn from arts leaders and other not-for-profit executives about creating loyal families of supporters.

Those who come from the for profit sector are trained...

The Metropolitan Opera recently announced a new ticket pricing policy for the coming year that, among many other things, included explicit mention of dynamic pricing. This approach to pricing has been practiced for years by airlines, Broadway producers and many not-for-profit performing arts organizations. Dynamic pricing is a simple concept:...

It is difficult to read much about the arts these days without running into a discussion about engaging audiences as if this were a new concept or imperative.

It is ironic to me that this topic is the focus of so much current attention since, for decades, the mission statements...

Today is the birthday of one of my personal heroes -- Harvey Lichtenstein. Harvey, of course, was best known as the inspirational leader who turned the Brooklyn Academy of Music into one of the great arts institutions of the nation. Before becoming an arts manager, Harvey was a dancer, and...

There are so many sad stories these days about arts organizations that are closing or cutting back, artists who are not having an opportunity to do their work and children who are not receiving any arts education, that one must celebrate the truly happy arts stories with special vigor.

One...

I recently went to a performance of Mozart's Così fan tutte that was inspiring for several reasons. The most obvious was that the singers were all young, talented, "emerging" artists. They all are current or past participants in Washington National Opera's Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program, a training program for post-graduate...

Yet another American symphony orchestra has suspended operations. The Napa Valley Symphony recently announced that it was laying off its entire staff and ceasing performances for the foreseeable future. In a statement to the local newspaper, the Symphony's chairman stated, "The board of the Napa Valley Symphony Association voted to...

I have written before about the Kennedy Center's comprehensive arts education program: Any Given Child. This program assesses the arts education opportunities in a given community (offered by schools, arts organizations, community groups and others) and designs a comprehensive kindergarten through eighth grade sequence that utilizes all of these opportunities...

I am often asked whether for-profit executives can make good not-for-profit executives and my response is always the same: there are many for-profit managers who could thrive in the not-for-profit world but they must understand the differences in mission and the differences in the way corporations and not-for-profits function.

Not-for-profit...

While most arts managers and board members don't turn to financial forecasts when they are looking for a lift, I must admit that I find them inspiring. I find possibilities for change, growth and renewal in projections for income and expenses.

Of course we in the not-for-profit world should never...

I had the great pleasure of visiting the Museum of Chinese in America in Chinatown in New York City. There is much to enjoy in the beautiful facility designed by Maya Lin (the co-chairman of its board) including the interesting, and remarkably diverse exhibitions and public programs. But as impressive...

I write occasionally about the large proportion of young people who are not interested in the arts. When I do so, I am often excoriated by my readers who are young, passionate about the arts and believe that I am out of touch with their generation.

I do stick to...

Several weeks ago I read in a British publication an article about the reasons corporations support arts organizations. The central message of the piece was that corporations support the arts because they benefit from the reflected glory of the arts organization. When the corporation is visibly linked to an organization...

It makes no sense to me that the arts are not embraced more emphatically by politicians these days.

I understand that the country was founded by Puritans who believed that music and dance were evil. That has led to a separation of art and state and a far lower direct...

Last night the Kennedy Center production of Follies closed on Broadway. Follies, a musical by James Goldman and Stephen Sondheim, tells the story of a reunion of chorus girls and features one of the greatest scores ever written for a Broadway musical. Our production received strong reviews, led to the...

I spend a great deal of time writing about the imperative for arts organizations to focus on revenue. Adding revenue allows arts organizations to pursue their missions and meet financial obligations.

Yet, unfortunately, it is far easier for boards and staffs to concentrate on expense control as a solution when...

I have written before of the work my colleague, Brett Egan, and I are doing in Muscat, Oman where we are helping manage the inauguration of the Royal Opera House Muscat.

The opera house is an astonishingly beautiful venue which has already hosted productions of Turandot and Carmen,...