Pasadena Playhouse Executive Director Stephen Eich Concludes Tenure

The Pasadena Playhouse and the Chairman of the Board of Directors, announced today that Stephen Eich will conclude his tenure as Executive Director on or around February 29, 2012, and will continue in a consulting capacity through June 30, 2012.

Michele Dedeaux Engemann, Chairman of the Board, stated, “Stephen Eich has been a great partner in this organization’s extraordinary growth over the past three years. In collaboration with the Board of Directors, Artistic Director Sheldon Epps and a dedicated staff, Stephen has been a constant force in moving The Pasadena Playhouse forward into a bright and successful future. We hold Stephen in high regard, both as a professional and as a visionary and we wish him the very best in his future endeavors.”

“My time at The Pasadena Playhouse has been some of the most challenging and rewarding in my career,” Eich says. “I take great pride in knowing that the complicated and courageous journey this organization embarked upon in the last couple of years was unequivocally successful. I will leave this organization stronger than it has been in a long time, with no debt, and a bright and extraordinary future ahead. I want to personally thank Sheldon Epps, my partner here for the last three years, for his collaboration and partnership during these last thirty months. I also want to thank Michele Engemann and the Playhouse Board of Directors for providing the support, both moral and financial, during that difficult time. Finally, I am so grateful to the staff of the Playhouse, who has worked so hard to maintain and nurture our young administration. I will miss them all.”

Sheldon Epps, Artistic Director of The Pasadena Playhouse stated, “The Playhouse is currently in one of the most promising periods of its long illustrious history. I give much credit for this to the partnership that I have shared with Stephen over the past couple of years. His experience, insight, and focused thinking served the theatre well during some extremely challenging times. While I will most certainly miss our valuable partnership, I wish him well in his future endeavors and will continue to consider him a strong ally and a most respected colleague.”

Mr. Eich, in partnership with Artistic Director Sheldon Epps, The Playhouse board of directors, and the support of the community are all very proud to celebrate the successful fiscal reorganization of the theatre, which has brought The Playhouse to a place of economic stability and ongoing artistic health and vitality. During the current season, the theatre has had great success in generating both donated revenue and box office income, resulting in the establishment and implementation of an endowment for the care of the building and the re-establishment of the company’s valuable outreach and education programs.

A national search for a new Executive Director for The Pasadena Playhouse will begin shortly.

The Pasadena Playhouse was established in 1917 and was designated the State Theatre of California for bringing national and international renown to the state as a center for dramatic art in 1937. Built on a tradition of innovation and excellence, The Pasadena Playhouse is committed to continue to be the premiere theatrical experience in Southern California showcasing the most exciting theatrical entertainment in the state and being an amazing forum for launching new work onto the national stage. Broadway productions that originated at The Pasadena Playhouse include: Sister Act, Baby It’s You!, Looped and Mail. Unchain My Heart, The Ray Charles Musical, which premiered at The Playhouse, is scheduled to open on Broadway in the 2012-13 Season.

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