Job Description
Roundabout Theatre Company is seeking a strong business and operations leader to serve in partnership with with its Artistic Director to chart the future of the nation’s largest theatre producing organization. The Managing Director’s focus will be on the overall health and welfare of the institution with a major emphasis on operations and financial sustainability. Increasing brand awareness of Roundabout’s work and leveraging real estate holdings and other capital assets will also be significant part of the Managing Director’s portfolio of responsibilities. The Managing Director will promote an atmosphere of accountability, guiding the full staff in their roles in Roundabout’s operational success. As a commanding relationship builder, the Managing Director will communicate clearly with Staff and Board while building a strong network in New York City’s business, government, entertainment, and philanthropic communities.
OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES
Like other producing theatres, Roundabout Theatre Company has navigated changes in audience behavior, escalating costs for producing, and shifting philanthropic trends. Chief considerations for the future include:
Continuing to expand Roundabout’s brand and impact through the highest level of artistic programming, community initiatives, and leadership within the American theater community.
Leveraging Roundabout’s reputation in the field for a strong and resilient business model that allows for creative risk-taking.
Carefully managing Roundabout’s resources and using data to inform operational and financial decisions.
Continuing to evaluate Roundabout’s business model to find the most effective management structure and way for the company to deliver noteworthy, world-class theatre productions.
POSITION AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The Managing Director will serve as co-leader of the company with the Artistic Director and report directly to Roundabout Theatre’s Board of Directors. The top priorities of the role include:
Manage all the operational and financial affairs of the company.
With an entrepreneurial approach, lead a collaborative budgeting process and assure ongoing fiscal rigor, growing revenue streams to support the ongoing artistic and educational programming and impact.
Build, implement, and manage all systems and procedures with an efficient approach to ethical business practices.
Establish and maintain a relationship of trust and respect with Roundabout’s Artistic Director, Staff, and Board.
Set goals and a system for accountability for all administrative teams.
Take a significant role in making a compelling case for financial support of Roundabout as an assured public ambassador.
Take a leading role in the form and function of Roundabout’s union relationships.
Work jointly with the Board and Artistic Director to forge an ongoing strategic plan and vision and ultimately serve as the manager of that plan.
Explore new compensation and benefits strategies to attract and retain exceptional staff.
Take a lead role in Roundabout’s ongoing commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion in all business functions.
Lead by example with the highest degree of ethics and integrity.
Mediate and resolve conflicts with both peers and subordinates with a high degree of patience and listening skills.
Improve communication within and outside of the organization as a clear and transparent messenger.
Expand marketing of Roundabout’s programming in compelling and innovative new ways to capture audience interest.
Ideally, the successful candidate for this role will possess many of these skills and experiences:
Strong operations, financial management and budgeting skills.
Experience working in a co-leadership situation with insight on how to build and maintain an effective relationship with the Artistic Director.
Prior experience working in an environment of significant size and scope.
An understanding of the New York City real estate market.
A strategic thinker relative to organizational vision and growth.
A background in all areas of income generation, including contributed and earned revenue. (Experience with Broadway and New York City marketing and audience development, while not a prerequisite, will be highly beneficial.)
A demonstrated ability to build relationships with staff, trustees, donors and business partners.
A deep love of theater.
The following personal attributes are also important to the Search Committee:
Exceptional communication skills – both speaking and writing.
A transparent, collaborative, and confident leadership style.
A love of working and living in New York City, at the apex of the theatre producing world.
BACKGROUND AND CURRENT ENVIRONMENT
Roundabout Theatre Company was founded in 1965 and produces revivals and future classics on their five stages on and off-Broadway with a mission to celebrate the power of theatre by spotlighting classics from the past, cultivating new works of the present, and educating minds for the future. The company has a deep commitment to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive theatre community through both its off-stage programming and the stories told on their stages.
Todd Haimes joined the company in 1983 and served as Roundabout’s Producing Artistic Director until his death in 2023. Haimes guided the company into a move to an off-Broadway space on 17th Street and Union Square (now the Union Square Theatre) and into its current footprint as one of the most significant producing companies in the country, occupying five theatres on and off-Broadway. After a remarkable four decade run, Haimes passed away in 2023 having established Roundabout as one of the world’s most important theatre producing organizations. In response to the need for a leadership solution following Haimes’ passing, Scott Ellis was named as Interim Artistic Director and will serve in that role through the 2025-2026 Season. Christopher Ashley, longtime Artistic Director of La Jolla Playhouse, has been announced as Roundabout’s next Artistic Director and will assume full-time duties in the summer of 2026 after a transition period in which he will collaborate with current Staff and Board.
The company’s portfolio of five theatres includes the newly named Todd Haimes Theatre (formerly the American Airlines Theatre, and Roundabout’s flagship theatre with a seating capacity of 744); Studio 54 (1,066 seats); the Stephen Sondheim Theatre (originally Henry Miller's Theatre where the new Broadway musical & JULIET is running as a rental, seating capacity of 1,055); the Laura Pels Theatre (for off-Broadway works by established playwrights), seating capacity of 410); and the Roundabout Underground Black Box Theatre (for new work of emerging writers and directors, seating capacity of 62). The latter two theatres are located in the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre, which also houses Roundabout’s significant education department. The Roundabout operates on LORT A+, B, and C contracts out of these collection of performance spaces.
Roundabout is guided by a compelling Mission,Values and Vision and has expanded its commitment to a deeply inclusive culture through its robust education programs and community initiatives and efforts like The Refocus Project, a pioneering initiative launched in 2021 aimed at spotlighting 20th century playwrights who should be part of the classic canon, but who were overlooked because of their identities.
Roundabout currently operates on an approximately $56 million budget and annually employs nearly 1,300 artists, artisans, administrators, and support staff in a combination of full-time, part-time, and contracted work. Operating out of offices in midtown Manhattan, Roundabout also maintains a significant archive of its work that is used as a resource by scholars and artists. Roundabout’s current Board-designed endowment and reserves total nearly $74 million. The company’s 40-member Board of Directors includes committed supporters of Roundabout’s mission from the corporate, philanthropic, and entertainment community. More about Roundabout Theatre Company can be found on its website at .
COMPENSATION AND START DATE
The annual salary for the Managing Director will be between $600,000-$650,000 and includes a full benefits package. Roundabout Theatre Company hopes to make its decision by Spring of 2025. Roundabout wishes for the selected candidate to begin in Summer of 2025 and will work with current Artistic Director Scott Ellis, who will serve in that interim capacity through the 2025-2026 season, and incoming Artistic Director Christopher Ashley who has been engaged for transition work before assuming full-time status in the summer of 2026.
Roundabout Theatre Company is an equal opportunity employer that does not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, reproductive health decisions, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, political views or activity, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.
Roundabout Theatre Company has engaged Management Consultants for the Arts to facilitate this important search. Jonathan West (Managing Director) and David Mallette (President) are leading the process. Interested and qualified candidates are encouraged to submit in complete confidence a cover letter, resumé, and four professional references. The cover letter of no more than 1½ pages should address how the opportunities and challenges shared in this profile intersect with the candidate’s professional background and what about this opportunity is of greatest interest to them personally. Application materials should have the applicant’s name included as part of each file name and must be submitted electronically by clicking the APPLY NOW button below.
Once all materials have been submitted online, the applicant will receive a confirmation of their submission via the email address provided in the application. For clarification on any of this information, please contact Christy Wall at cwall@mcaonline.com .
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Job Tags
Full time, Part time, Interim role, Summer work, Shift work,