VTA and Arts Center Foundation Announce New President/CEO
Ken Neufeld began his role as the President & CEO of Victoria Theatre Association and the Arts Center Foundation on June 1, 2009. He is a 28-year veteran in executive management of performing arts centers, professional theatre companies, and civic museums both in Canada and the United States.
Ken has worked with such acclaimed theatres as Studio Arena Theatre in Buffalo, New York; Gateway Theatre in Richmond, British Columbia; The Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company, and the Vancouver Museum and Planetarium Association. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre and Environmental Studies from the University of Winnipeg, and a Masters degree in Theatre from Michigan State University. He has also completed continuing education programs at the Banff Center (Banff, Alberta) and the Harvard Business School. Ken has served as an adjunct faculty member or guest lecturer for the Banff Center, Simon Fraser University (Vancouver, British Columbia), Canisius College (Buffalo, New York), and Buffalo State College (Buffalo, New York) where he taught a course entitled "The Business of the Performing Arts.”
Ken has developed a national reputation for successfully diversifying audiences and expanding programming to include under-served and non-traditional audiences. He was widely acknowledged as one of the leading presenters of Asian programming in the Pacific Northwest during his time there. A creative thinker in dealing with economic downturns and urban revitalization, Ken has a reputation for being a collaborative arts and community partner with a track record in studying ways to share services for increased efficiency.
As an active community volunteer, Ken served as President of Buffalo’s Theatre District Association, as Board member of the Market Arcade Film and Arts Center, as Treasurer of the Vancouver Cultural Alliance and as President of Tourism Richmond.
He is married to Lesley Neufeld who served as Assistant Director at the Martin House Restoration Corporation (MHRC), a non-profit organization undertaking a $50 million restoration of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Darwin D. Martin House in Buffalo, New York, where her background as an exhibit content developer and interior designer was applicable to her role as coordinator for the construction of a new visitor welcome center designed by world-renowned architect Toshiko Mori. For the MHRC, Lesley also facilitated museum planning and managed the organization’s corporate, fund raising and marketing communications.
Ken and Lesley Neufeld both believe in the role the arts play in creating a strong, vibrant community and are committed to making a lasting contribution to the Greater Dayton area.
