Kenneth J. Foster Named Board President of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters

Feb. 9, 2000


The Association of Performing Arts Presenters, a national service organization providing support to presenting organizations around the world, has elected Kenneth J. Foster, executive director of UApresents, to a two-year term as president of the board at the organization's annual membership meeting in January.

Foster succeeds Tom Tomlinson of the Performing Arts Center of Greater Miami.

UApresents is the performing arts presenting series of the UA. "I'm very honored by this appointment," said Foster. "This is an exciting and challenging time for all of us in the arts, and I look forward to serving the organization in this new capacity "

A member of Arts Presenters since 1985, Foster has been a vice-president of the board for the last four years, and also has served as Members Conference Chair (1991), Professional Development Committee chair and as a faculty member for the Association's Presenting the Performing Arts course.

With more than 2,000 members, ranging from large performing arts centers in major urban areas to small presenters in rural communities, as well as performing artists, artist managers, and other arts professionals, the Association of Performing Arts Presenters provides a focal point for the exchange of information among presenters, and offers assistance to its members in bringing performers to the public.

As board president, Foster will preside at all membership and board meetings and serve as an ex-officio member of all committees. He is also responsible for the administration of the Arts Presenters' annual conventions in New York City, which feature presentations by exhibitors, workshops and seminars and a wide range of resources for the organization's members.

Foster became director of UApresents in 1994 after serving for seven years as director of the Center for the Performing Arts at Pennsylvania State University. Foster also serves as chair of the UA's President's Council on Diversity. In his six years with UApresents, Foster has brought more than 150 leading performing artists and companies to Southern Arizona, including classical and jazz musicians, opera, ballet and modern dance, Broadway musicals, experimental performance art, and renowned artists from the world's many diverse cultures. In that time, the organization has become stronger both financially and artistically, with larger audiences, more ambitious productions, commissions of original works, and expanded education and outreach programs and an annual budget that has grown from $1.2 million to more than $6.6 million.

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