Director of Strategic Partnerships & Special Productions

Position Title:  Director of Strategic Partnerships & Special Productions

Title of Immediate Supervisor:  Jenny Bilfield, President & CEO 

Full-Time, Salaried:  $105,000 per year

One part-time direct report: Mars Arts D.C. Manager

How to apply: Please read the job description in its entirety. Upload your resume and cover letter. 

Best Consideration Date: February 21, 2026

The Opportunity: Position Summary 

The Director of Strategic Partnerships and Special Productions serves as a cornerstone of Washington Performing Arts's mission as a leading arts producer, creative convener, and community builder within the region's creative economy. Reporting to the President & CEO, and a member of the senior management team, the Director will be a key representative with D.C. institutional and civic stakeholders and partners. The ideal candidate possesses an entrepreneurial mindset and brings a portfolio of deep work experience, strong networks within the civic, cultural, and business sectors in the Washington metro area, as well as relationships with artists who live and work in the capital region, primarily within the 8 Wards of Washington D.C.. The position is the lead strategist for Washington Performing Arts’s signature community engagement program, Mars Arts D.C.. 

The Organization & Role

About Washington Performing Arts:

One of the most established and honored performing arts institutions in America, Washington Performing Arts has engaged for more than half a century with artists, audiences, students, and civic life. The city is truly our stage: for decades, in venues ranging from concert halls and clubs to public parks, we have presented a tremendous range of artists and art forms, from the most distinguished symphony orchestras to both renowned and emerging artists in classical music, jazz, international genres, and more. We also have an ever-expanding artistic and educational presence on the internet, addressing the programming challenges of this time of pandemic while envisioning ongoing opportunities for online connection and community in a post-COVID world.

Washington Performing Arts deeply values its partnerships with local organizations and other arts institutions. Through events online and in myriad performance venues and neighborhoods, we engage international visiting artists in community programs and introduce local artists to in the lives of both young people and adults through residencies and education programs. Our achievements have been recognized with a National Medal of Arts and with four Mayor’s Arts Awards from the DC Government. Celebrating our 60th Anniversary in 2026, we are ever inspired by the motto of our founder, Patrick Hayes: “Everybody in, nobody out.”

About Mars Arts D.C.

Mars Arts D.C. is Washington Performing Arts’s signature community engagement initiative. The product of a partnership between Washington Performing Arts, Jacqueline Badger Mars, and Mars, Incorporated, Mars Arts D.C. carries out its mission of presenting and elevating the dynamic vibrancy found in the local arts community and business economy through ever-growing artist engagement and long-term communal partnerships. With programmatic elements highlighting the uniqueness and beauty across all eight wards of the District, Mars Arts D.C. offers distinct performance opportunities, artist residencies, signature education programs, and robust integration with the Washington Performing Arts main stage series, all for the benefit, enjoyment, and growth of both the creative community itself and the D.C. community as a whole. 

Role within Washington Performing Arts 

The Director is a member of the Management Team of Washington Performing Arts, joining the President & CEO, Chief Financial Officer, Director of Advancement, Director of Programming, Director of Gospel Music Programs, Director of Marketing, Communications & Creative Media (CCM), Director of Arts Education and Community Engagement, and President Emeritus. Additionally, they have one direct report: a half-time Mars Arts D.C. Manager.

How you will Lead, Contribute, and Innovate

Responsibilities

The position focuses on four principal areas:  

• Developing and producing free and/or thematic programs through the Mars Arts D.C. program, Washington Performing Arts’s signature community engagement program. Director will be hands-on with production elements. Performances take place in unconventional venues (indoors, outdoors), connecting audiences and artists throughout the city; mobilized with funding through grants, donations, and in-kind partnership resources.
• Building creative, co-branded partnerships with peer cultural and civic institutions seeking to enhance programming by engaging locally-sourced performers, speakers, and cultural thought leaders.
• Initiating and growing highly customized paid curatorial services (on a fee basis) as our region’s premier go-to resource for civic, business, cultural, and myriad other organizations, and achieving annual budgeted revenue goals from existing and new sources.
• As a member of the Management Team, guiding the artistic, financial, and operational vibrancy of Washington Performing Arts; working with staff colleagues, as well as the multi-generational Board, Junior Board, and Women’s Committee to ensure the organization upholds its mission, guiding principles, and inclusive ethos in all that we do.

In addition, this role is responsible for;

• Representing the organization with DC civic (e.g. DC Chamber) and cultural leaders and building brand awareness.
• Identifying new partnerships and revenue streams.
• Developing and managing the department’s annual operational and program budget.

Qualities & Experience you Will Bring to the Role 

We seek a visionary cultural leader who combines deep artistic expertise and the ability to execute strategically.  The ideal candidate possesses:

Artistic Vision & Expertise

• Expansive knowledge of D.C.'s arts ecosystem, including individual artists, ensembles, and emerging talent; principally music, but also dance, spoken word, and visual arts
• Exceptional curatorial taste and proven ability to identify artistic quality and excellence
• Deep appreciation for cultural diversity and the transformative power of arts in building community 

Strategic Leadership & Partnership Building

• Experience in arts management (mission-driven and/or commercial/civic) and cultural strategy
• Skilled coalition-builder who can engage stakeholders across corporate, diplomatic, civic, and cultural sectors
• Ability to translate ambitious visions into actionable plans and tangible outcomes
• Experience pitching projects and ideas to varied partners/sectors

Operational Excellence

• Strong financial acumen with demonstrated success managing project budgets and plans
• Knowledge of event production and ability to execute seamlessly with producing partners and contractors
• Experience serving on a leadership or management team
• Experience working or engaging with a Board of Directors
• Strong case-maker and synthesizer of data and narrative, to leverage in partnering with marketing and fundraising team members

Personal Qualities

• Entrepreneurial spirit with a "make it happen" mindset—nimble, adaptive, and responsive
• Exceptional communicator who values collaboration and fosters inclusive culture
• Strategic planner who balances big-picture thinking with practical implementation
• Commitment to Washington Performing Arts's inclusive ethos, Everybody In, Nobody Out.

Organizational Values

In keeping with our mission and guiding principles, we seek, represent, and welcome a

multiplicity of voices in everything we do from programmatic content to composition of our board and staff. Accordingly, we seek to build a team that reflects — and meets the needs of — the community we are part of and serve. While we have made important progress, we continue to pursue that goal through intentional, focused learning and action. Hiring a workforce that embodies and reflects these values is but one component — we strive to make Washington Performing Arts ever more inclusive, and true to our founder’s ethos of “everybody in, nobody out.” We aspire to make every employee feel welcome and motivated to do their best work. We know that we work better together in service of Washington Performing Arts’s mission, because of our differences, not despite them.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Washington Performing Arts subscribes to a policy of Equal Employment Opportunity and will not discriminate against any employee or applicant because of race, age, sex, color, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, religion, ancestry or national origin, marital status, genetic information, political affiliation, and gender identity or expression. In addition, the District of Columbia adds protection for marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, family responsibilities, matriculation, or political affiliation. Washington Performing Arts's employment decisions are made based on the needs of the organization and qualifications of the applicants and employees.  

Benefits of Working at Washington Performing Arts

At Washington Performing Arts, we believe in the value of building a community and taking care of our people. We offer a generous employee package that includes health, vision, dental, and life insurances, long-term disability insurance, employee assistance program, 403 B retirement saving plan, paid holidays, PTO including sick, vacation (Directors receive 20 days per year the equivalent of 6.66 hours per pay period), and personal, health & wellness/professional development stipend, and free performances.

*Appointment to this position is contingent upon the satisfactory completion of a background check. Washington Performing Arts reserves the right to end its employment agreement with any candidate should the results of a background check not be satisfactory.