Colleen Porter

Board Member through January 2011
PorterC@playhousesquare.org

Colleen Porter has been the Director of Arts Education at Playhouse Square since 2002. Porter is responsible for programming Playhouse Square's school and family performance series, artist residencies and community arts events. Through her work with local, national and international arts organizations, Playhouse Square annually provides programming for more than 150,000 participants. She brought the International Showcase of Performing Arts for Youth to Cleveland in 2005 and has orchestrated the event's return to the city in 2007 and 2009.

Colleen was instrumental in the development of the Idea Center at Playhouse Square™, the $42 million renovation of a historic building in downtown Cleveland's theater district into the headquarters for Cleveland's public broadcasting stations and the home for Playhouse Square's arts education programs. Through the one-of-a-kind partnership between Playhouse Square and WVIZ/PBS & 90.3 WCPN ideastream, Colleen develops innovative new programming including BackStage With and the Careers in the Performing Arts distance learning series.

Prior to her arrival at Playhouse Square, Colleen spent seventeen years in Buffalo, New York as an artist, faculty member at Canisuis College and Chair of the Performing Arts Department at The Nichols School.

Colleen is president of the Cleveland Arts Education Consortium and Vice President of Programming and Selection Committee chair for International Performing Arts for Youth. She serves on the boards of the National Education Directors of Performing Arts Centers, The Lit and The Bureau of Cultural Arts Advisory Board.