Performing Arts Leader Tweeddale Chosen New Executive Director of San Francisco Ballet

06/06/2019

SAN FRANCISCO, Wednesday, June 5, 2019—Aafter a five-month international search, San Francisco Ballet Board of Trustees has named Kelly Tweeddale to replace retiring Glenn McCoy as the organization's next Executive Director. McCoy will leave at the end of this month after 32-years with San Francisco Ballet.

Kelly Tweeddale. Photo credit: Jena Fair
Kelly Tweeddale. Photo credit: Jena Fair

In welcoming Tweeddale, Chair of the SF Ballet Board of Trustees Carl F. Pascarella said, "On behalf of the Board of Trustees I sincerely welcome Kelly to join us in furthering our mission, to share the joy of dance with the widest possible audience, to provide the highest caliber of dance training in our School, and to further our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusivity in the field of dance."

"I am very pleased to welcome Kelly to San Francisco Ballet," said Artistic Director and Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson. "She brings an impressive caliber of arts leadership experience to oversee the administrative and operational aspects of the organization." Tomasson added, "I look forward to working closely with her as we continue to grow the mission and artistic reputation of the Company."

Tweeddale has an impressive record of accomplishment in performing arts administration. She is currently President of Vancouver Symphony and VSO School of Music. She has held leadership positions with The Cleveland Orchestra and the Seattle Symphony during times of great audience growth and organizational transformation. She was one of the founding board members of the Tessitura Network of software for performing arts organizations and has served as an adjunct professor for Seattle University's graduate program for Arts Leadership.

In her in previous executive positions at Seattle Opera she worked in close partnership with opera impresario Speight Jenkins to position Seattle Opera as not only one of the preeminent Wagner companies in North America, but a company with one of the highest per capita opera attendance in the United States. She was also responsible for transforming the performance facility McCaw Hall, in partnership with the Seattle Center and Pacific Northwest Ballet, into what is regarded as one of the finest opera and ballet performance facilities in America. In addition, Tweeddale was responsible for the planning and fund development for Seattle Opera 's new administrative and rehearsal facility Seattle Opera at the Center, which opened last year. In 2011 she was a Puget Sound Business Journal Women of Influence awardee. She speaks regularly on the topic of women in leadership and and this year was recognized by the Metro Vancouver YWCA Women of Distinction Awards.

Tweeddale has had some personal exposure to ballet. She studied with Ruthanna Boris, a former Balanchine protégé, at the University of Washington while earning her degree in Communications and Advertising. Her daughter, now grown, studied ballet at Pacific Northwest Ballet.

"I am thrilled to be joining San Francisco Ballet, having long admired its artistic achievements and its exemplary role in pushing the boundaries in dance. Helgi's commitment to excellence and the Company's reputation as an international ambassador of San Francisco's diverse and forward-thinking community resonate with my belief that the arts have never had a more important mandate than to create connections between people and ideas both locally and globally," said Tweeddale. "I look forward to working with the Board of Trustees, Helgi and the Artistic team, the Company, the Administrative Staff, and all of Company's dedicated supporters, to lead the organization into its next chapter of growth. I am also looking forward to working collaboratively with San Francisco's dynamic arts community, because as we all know, a thriving arts community is the bellwether of a great city."

Tweeddale will assume her new role at San Francisco Ballet on September 3, 2019.

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