Asolo Rep Elects New Board President and Adds Five New Members to Board of Directors

Asolo Repertory Theatre has announced that Carole Crosby has assumed the leadership of its Board of Directors, on July 1, 2020. Ms. Crosby has served on Asolo Rep's Board for the past seven years. Principal harpist with the Detroit Symphony while simultaneously pursuing her law degree, she later became a partner at a major Detroit law firm. Carole has served as an Asolo Rep Endowment Trustee and on Asolo Rep's Nominating & Governance Committee and Executive Committee prior to being named President Elect in the 2018-2019 season.

Five new members have been added to the Board of Directors roster. The elected members are all esteemed regional and national leaders, selected to serve alongside an already impressive list of Sarasota arts and civic influencers to guide the Theatre into an exhilarating future.

The new Board members who began serving their three-year terms on July 1, 2020 are:

· Kathleen France, served on the Boards of the Fine Arts Society of Sarasota (now Arts Advocates) and the Ringling College Library Association as Chair of the Art Lecture Series

· Deb Kabinoff, entrepreneur and CEO for GulfStar Homes, a real estate development, construction, and management company, who serves on the Board of the Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation

· Lucie Lapovsky, economist, consultant, writer and speaker who chairs the Board of the KnowledgeWorks Foundation and also serves on the Boards of the American Public University System, the Tuition Exchange and the Suncoast International Women's Forum

· Joel Morganroth, academic cardiologist who also serves as a Trustee for the Ringling College of Art and Design, the Sarasota Memorial Hospital Foundation, The Marie Selby Gardens, and The Jewish Federation of Sarasota

· Jim Wadsworth, Chairman of the John R. Oishei Foundation, one of the largest foundations in the Buffalo area, as well as Chairman of the Shaw Festival Foundation, Director of the Albright Knox Art Gallery, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra Society, and the Boys and Girls Club of Buffalo and Erie County.

"Our remarkably dedicated Board of Directors is an essential part of Asolo Rep's strength and growth," said Asolo Rep Producing Artistic Director, Michael Donald Edwards. "As the theatre works through the current challenges raised by the pandemic and we look ahead to reopening our stages as soon as safely possible, it is vital that we have a wide variety of strong leaders. We are delighted that Carole Crosby will be taking on the Board Presidency and our new members are already working on Board committees and in other ways to share their knowledge, expertise, and enthusiasm."

"It is with tremendous excitement and great humility that I accept the position of President of Asolo Rep," said new Board president Carole Crosby. "I am delighted and truly grateful to be chosen for this honor. It is an exciting prospect to play a role in ensuring the distinguished legacy of Asolo Rep, as a vital contributor to the cultural and educational landscape of Sarasota. I embrace the task wholeheartedly."

To download a high-resolution photo of Carole Crosby, please click here.

"Asolo Rep is poised for staging yet more impressive and engaging productions as soon as audiences and actors can return, said immediate past president Ann Charters. "In the meantime do check out the Asolo Rep Engage on our website and see what theatrics we have online. It has been an honor to be President for the past two years and I look forward to serving in many ways with this talented board."

Asolo Rep's 2020-21 Board of Directors

Carole Crosby - President

Lawrence Haspel - Vice President

Jules Price - Vice President

Dennis Dirks - Treasurer

Giselle Huberman - Secretary

Betsy Marshall - General Counsel

Ann Charters ­- Immediate Past President

Robert Baer

Beverly Bartner

Bob Bartner

David I. Bavar

Terry Brackett

Mary Braxton-Joseph

Susan C. Buck

Terrance Burzynski

Jim Chandler III

Warren J. Coville

Jaime DiDomenico

Susan Dweck

Andrew M. Economos

L'Tanya C. Evans

Kathleen France

Herman Frankel

Ronald Greenbaum

Gary Heard

Nona Macdonald Heaslip

Judith Hofmann

Charlie Huisking

Mark Irwin

Deb Kabinoff

Carolyn Keystone

Beverly L. Koski

Ruth Kreindler

Lucie Lapovsky

Flora Major

Nancy Markle

Elenor Maxheim

L. Scott Merritt

Joel Morganroth

Melanie Natarajan

Paul E. Nelson

Carol Phillips

Joanne Powers

William Sandy

Nikki Sedacca

Stephanie L. Shaw

Mort Siegel

Eva T. Slane

Chet Thompson

William S. Villafranco

Jim Wadsworth

Marysue Wechsler

Mary Lou Winnick

Margaret Wise

Joan Wood

Geri J. Yonover

Patricia Anderson Ex-Officio

John Thrasher Ex-Officio

James Frazier Ex-Officio

Stanley Kane Honorary Member