Denver Center President Randy Weeks Passes Away at 59

Randy Weeks, President of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) and Executive Director of its Broadway touring division, died today, Thursday, October 9, 2014. He was 59.

Randy was in London attending the Independent Presenter's Network conference. Concern was raised when he missed a previously scheduled meeting. Colleagues requested that the hotel in which he was staying do a wellness check at which time he was discovered in his bed. Cause of death is unknown.

A letter from DCPA Chairman & CEO Daniel L. Ritchie to employees and Board members is below:

Dear colleagues,

It is with great sadness that I write to inform you that Randy Weeks passed away unexpectedly while on a business trip in London.

Randy's relationship with the DCPA began in 1978 when he started working in the Box Office while attending the University of Colorado. Despite a foray into his parent's restaurant business, Randy's first love was the theatre. He was serving as Theatre Operations Manager at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, when local Broadway presenter Bob Garner tapped Randy to take the helm of Denver Center Attractions in 1989.

Since then, Randy has presented more than 400 shows - including ten national touring premieres (The Book of Mormon, Pippin, Peter and the Starcatcher, Disney's The Lion King, Sunset Boulevard, and the revival of A Chorus Line among others) and the pre-Broadway engagement of Disney'sThe Little Mermaid.

During his tenure, he also opened the Garner Galleria Theatre in 1992 with the smash hit Forever Plaid. The venue has gone on to great success, treating audiences to such long-running shows as Always...Patsy Cline and I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change.

Randy's dedication to the DCPA came in many forms. He was one of the founding members of the Women's Voices Fund making gifts to honor his mother and aunt. He was a self-described "doer of things" with an open door policy, involving and mentoring staff throughout the organization. And, of course, he entered his very competitive and fun foursome in the DCPA's annual fundraising golf tournament.

Randy's theatre involvement extended far beyond the DCPA, including participation in the Denver School of the Arts Board, Independent Presenter's Network, The Broadway League, and Scientific and Cultural Facilities District. He was especially proud of his ongoing commitment to the Kappa Sigma Fraternity at CU-Boulder, hosting many of the young men at the theatre. But most recently, Randy spearheaded the creation of The Bobby G Awards in 2013, the Colorado regional awards program for The National High School Musical Theater Awards, which recognizes and fosters the talent of aspiring youth in the local community.

Recognized by The Broadway League with the Outstanding Broadway Presenter Award, it was obvious that Randy actively worked to expand theatre throughout the community and across the nation. The addition of the cabaret model into the DCPA's programming proved to be a wild success. He was an early adopter of new theatre, including the national tour of Traces, cementing Denver's place as a launch pad of exciting works destined for national prominence.

Randy has left an indelible mark on Denver, Colorado and the national theatre community. He will be greatly missed by all of us at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.

Sincerely,

Dan Ritchie

Please visit denvercenter.org/about-us/leadership for more about Weeks and his work with DCPA.

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