emerging professionals. comradery among attendees and those within the performing arts the biggest reasons to attend PAMC, says Leslee Stewart, vice chair- man of the Performing Arts Sector Committee. “Our time together in smaller groups allow us to speak freely about
what everyone else is doing, whether it be change management, mo- much in common, so much to share, and still so much to learn regard- less of how little or how much time we have been in this business.” The closeness of PAMC attendees and performing arts managers is something that sets them apart from other venue professionals. The
Colleagues don’t tend to view themselves as competitors, so there is a great sense of collaboration within the industry. Hagler agrees and says that is why anyone who has not made the decision to attend should make plans to do so. The networking oppor- tunities are priceless. And that has been the key to PAMC’s success over its 25 year history. relationships that will endure your career,” he says. “You have the op- portunity to meet managers from all types of facilities. “The theater family sticks together. Whether you stay in manage- ment or move into consulting, the time will come when we will all work for each other and will meet several times throughout our careers.” FM
Kelly Pedone is a freelance writer based in Charlottesville, Virginia.
THE DREAM LIVES ON IN RODNEY SMITH’S LEGACY By R.V. Baugus
This year’s 25th anniversary celebration of the Performing Arts Man- agers Conference (PAMC) in Chicago would never be complete with- out remembering one of the sector and industry legends in Rodney Smith, who passed away in 2011 at age 58. Forever known as the man who coined the phrase “Living the Dream” and who in fact proceeded to live that dream every day of his life, Smith was mostly tied to the Denver performing arts scene before moving on to San Antonio to help open the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. “Rodney Smith’s name is almost synony- mous with the Performing Arts Managers Conference,” said Robyn Williams, exec- utive director for the Portland’5 Centers for the Arts and one of Smith’s long-time in Chicago in 1992. We had virtually no budget at the time so we were calling all of our friends and asking, ‘Are you com- ing to Chicago? Will you be a speaker?’ “Naturally, Rodney was tapped for a session and there was no stopping his involvement in PAMC. He hosted the third gathering in Denver and was in- volved in every PAMC in some way, shape, or form until he passed away. His real claim to fame was always facilitating the town halls. His quick wit and hilarious comments combined with a ton of venue knowledge made him irreplace- able as its impresario. “No one loved education more than Rodney Smith and he was PAMC’s biggest advocate for getting students involved by working to get free registration so local college students could attend. The high attendance of students at PAMC today are largely the result of his early involvement. “Rodney’s passion for performing arts venue management and our
industry was second to none. When asked ‘How are you?’ he always responded with ‘Living the dream!’”
It was a response that Smith’s wife, Donna, knew very well. She
traveled to the Venue Management School (VMS) at Oglebay last year to receive the Ray Ward Award on her husband’s behalf. “I knew Mr. Ward and that Rodney considered him sort of the fa- ther of the industry in so many ways and someone Rodney honor Rodney, I just blurted out ‘I want to come!’ As a spouse, you don’t go unless you are there on a vacation. For so many years your part- ner disappears every June. They said that of course I could come and accept the award. “I accepted the award and asked if I could speak. It is part of my healing, I think. Rodney wants me to move for- ward in my life and would not want me sitting in the corner moping. It is part of our pleasure and part of our duty. It is a chance to connect people to Rodney a little bit deeper than if they just read something.” As she prepares a move from Denver to Orange County in California (“…not far from the Segerstrom Center for the
Arts,” she notes) to be closer to siblings and her mother, Donna recalls the message that she delivered to Oglebay students last year.
who still cared and to see how they are teaching was so meaningful to me,” Donna said. “The volunteers don’t give
for two years; they give for decades. The students need to understand how privileged they are. They now have a support system. They now have friends and colleagues that they can call at any time. They now have a new world surrounding them. - ence, and live their dream.” Just as Rodney Smith did. FM
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