SITI Company Executive Director Michelle Preston will step down from that position at the end of October after 10 years of leadership. On November 1 she will become the executive director of the José Limón Dance Foundation, where she will work alongside Artistic Director Dante Puleio.
Preston began her tenure at SITI as the deputy director in 2012 and was named executive director in 2014 following the departure of Megan Wanlass. While at SITI, Preston has helped produce nine world premieres, 17 domestic and international tours, and five New York City seasons. She also helped oversee SITI’s education programs and helped to articulate SITI’s Legacy Plan, which envisioned an organized and celebratory transition for the organization after 30 years of programming and operations.
Preston’s departure was coordinated with the end of SITI Company’s ensemble and producing operations, which will happen December 31. SITI Producing Director Megan E Carter will guide the final two months of producing activities.
“We are grateful for Michelle’s vision and integrity in her years of service to SITI,” said Board Chair Jessica Hanna. “We are excited for José Limón Dance Foundation—they have a talented, thoughtful, and determined arts leader coming on board.”
“It has truly been a privilege to spend the last 10 years learning from this amazing group of artists who champion rigor and innovation in everything they do,” Preston added. “I am so grateful for the opportunity to work alongside the ensemble, the board, and the staff to plot a course for the future and ensure that generations of artists will be able to access the legacy of SITI Company.”
“Since becoming our executive director, Michelle has led SITI Company with an unequaled innovative brilliance. She maneuvered us wisely and robustly through many challenges and obstacles while keeping the momentum of growth, through effective budgeting, healthy board development, ongoing fundraising, and strategic planning,” said SITI Co-Artistic Director Anne Bogart. “In particular, during the pandemic, she kept the company afloat, the actors on salary, and the wheels turning for all of our plans, which included exciting final productions, an archive, and a structure to ensure that SITI would continue to exert a positive impact on the field into the future.”
Visit SITI.org for more information on SITI Company and the Legacy Plan.
