Alliance Theatre Announces New General Manager, Mike Schleifer

After conducting a thorough national search, the ALLIANCE THEATRE has announced that Mike Schleifer has been chosen as the new General Manager of the ALLIANCE THEATRE, beginning March 3, 2014. Schleifer steps into the position left vacant by Max Leventhal, who served the Alliance for 10 seasons before transitioning to the role of Owners' Representative to the Woodruff Arts Center in September, 2013. Schleifer brings to his new role 19 years of theatre management experience in a variety of company leadership and stage management positions.

For 13 years, Schleifer has worked for CENTERSTAGE in Baltimore, MD, first as Resident Stage Manager, and then as Production Manager for the past five seasons. Before CENTERSTAGE he was the Production Manager at Playwrights Horizons Theater School at NYU, and the Company Manager and Casting Director at The Hangar Theater in Ithaca, New York. Schleifer began his Stage Management career in 1995 and has been at the helm for productions at some of the nation's most prestigious theatres including Lincoln Center Theatre, 2nd Stage, and The Public Theatre in New York. He has over 50 Stage Management credits including Jitney, Caroline Or Change, Godspell, Grease, Much Ado About Nothing, and Intimate Apparel. Schleifer shares the Alliance's passion for new work, having been a part of premieres of plays by August Wilson, Jose Rivera, A. R. Gurney, Nilo Cruz, David Ives, Lynn Nottage, Melanie Marnich, Tina Landau, Julia Dahl, Mac Wellman, Billy Aronson, KJ Sanchez, James Magruder, Kwame Kwei-Armah, Curt Columbus, Marisa Wegrzyn, Scott Organ, Stephen Thorne and others.

"We are thrilled to welcome Mike to the Alliance family," said Susan V. Booth, Jennings Hertz Artistic Director. "Mike's extensive experience gives him a unique and thorough understanding of the internal operations of a large theatre company at every level of the production process. We are confident that his leadership will be a great asset to the Alliance's mission of shared theatre for diverse audiences."

"I am honored to be joining the leadership team of the ALLIANCE THEATRE," said Schleifer. "I deeply respect the work and mission of the Alliance and its role as a leader in both the national theater scene and the Atlanta arts community. I look forward to the opportunity to work and contribute in this exciting new role."

Schleifer will relocate to Atlanta with his wife of 15 years, theater director and educator Laura Hackman, and two children, Jack (11) and Ben (9).

About the ALLIANCE THEATRE: Founded in 1968, the ALLIANCE THEATRE has become the leading producing theatre in the Southeast, creating the powerful experience of shared theatre for diverse people. The Alliance values excellence, pursued with integrity and creativity, and achieved through collaboration. Reaching more than 200,000 patrons annually, the Alliance delivers powerful programming that challenges adult and youth audiences to think critically and care deeply. Under the leadership of Susan V. Booth, Jennings Hertz Artistic Director, the ALLIANCE THEATRE received the Regional Theatre Tony Award ® in recognition of sustained excellence in programming, education and community engagement.

Known for its high artistic standards and national role in creating significant theatrical works, the Alliance has premiered more than 80 original productions including Tony Award® winners "The Color Purple," by Alice Walker, "Aida," by Elton John and Tim Rice, and Alfred Uhry's "The Last Night of Ballyhoo." The Alliance has a reputation for developing important American musicals with a strong track record of Broadway, touring, and subsequent productions, including the world premieres of Sister Act: The Musical, Come Fly Away, Bring It On: The Musical, Stephen King and John Mellencamp's Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, and the American premiere of Zorro, with music by The Gipsy Kings. The Alliance also creates and nurtures the careers of playwrights through the Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition, producing a premiere for the competition winner as part of the regular season with national networking opportunities for four finalists. The works produced by the Alliance allow locally based artists the chance to create on a nationally watched stage, building and sustaining Atlanta's artistic community.

Each year, the ALLIANCE THEATRE Acting Program and Education Department reaches close to 50,000 students through performances, acting classes, drama camps, and in-school initiatives. The Alliance creates and produces plays for young audiences at every age level: from the Collision Project, where high school artists create and perform new work based on a classic text, to the ground breaking Theatre for the Very Young, creating interactive shows for infants and toddlers. The Alliance also offers community education classes for all ages and abilities of theatre interest; and adult student productions of unproduced plays in development, working with local and national playwrights.

An active participant in Georgia classrooms, the Alliance has developed programs using theatrical techniques to aid in student learning through storytelling and problem solving. The ALLIANCE THEATRE Institute for Educators and Teaching Artists equips teachers with theatrical techniques that link directly to school curriculum, align with the Georgia Performance Standards, and increase student learning. Other programs include GA Wolf Trap, a nationally recognized professional learning program that focuses on literacy skills for children in Pre-K - 2nd Grade, and Dramaturgy K-12, a unique program that empowers students to create research material that both informs Alliance productions and prepares peer audiences. Twice recognized by the Federal Department of Education as leaders in the field of arts education, these programs reflect the Alliance's commitment to city wide arts access.

The Alliance continuously delivers the finest talent, art and educational opportunities for Atlanta audiences-proving once again that the Alliance is where great theatre lives. For more information, visit www.alliancetheatre.org or call 404.733.4650.

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