Contact: Michael Brown, Performance Santa Fe Board President | 505 984 8759

Performance Santa Fe Announces Appointment of New Executive + Artistic Director Amy Iwano

June 30, 2021, Santa Fe, NM — Performance Santa Fe, Santa Fe’s leading presenter of world-class
music, dance, theater, and performing arts education, today announced the appointment of Amy Iwano as its new Executive and Artistic Director, effective September 15, 2021. Ms. Iwano has extensive experience in curating and leading performing arts organizations, most recently as Executive Director of the University of Chicago Presents, the presenting organization affiliated with the University of Chicago.

Michael Brown, President of the Board of Directors of Performance Santa Fe, says, “Amy’s extensive experience in programming, fundraising, and management are all vital elements we were looking for in the leader who will build on Performance Santa Fe’s incredible successes and guide our return this fall to sharing live performances with our valued audiences.”

Ms. Iwano notes, “It is a great honor to join Performance Santa Fe as Executive and Artistic Director. Santa Fe has a long and distinguished history of arts and sophistication, and I look forward to working with the Board, staff, and patrons of Performance Santa Fe to build on the organization’s dynamic legacy of presenting exceptional artists and performances to enrich the cultural landscape of this thriving artistic community.”

Amy Iwano is currently Executive Director of the University of Chicago Presents, where she grew the renowned 77-year-old professional concert series to include presentations of jazz and world music, artist residencies, and multidisciplinary festivals that complement the series’ long-standing classical chamber music, early music, and contemporary music concerts. Previously, she enjoyed a long tenure as Executive Director of the Grammy-nominated Chicago Chamber Musicians. She also served as Executive Director of the Japan America Symphony of Los Angeles, taking that ensemble on its first concert tour in Japan. She began her career with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Ms. Iwano has been an active contributor to Chicago’s music scene, serving as a board member for New Music Chicago and on the curatorial board and as advisor for the 2016 and 2021 Chicago Ear Taxi Festivals. She is an Advisory Board member for the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago.

Currently a Vice Chair on the Board of New Music USA, she also served six years as a Board member for Chamber Music America as well as a grant panelist, strategic advisor, and speaker at CMA’s annual national conferences. She has been a grant panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts and many other funding organizations.

Ms. Iwano is an alumna of Pomona College (CA) and Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio. She also studied at the Goethe Institute in West Berlin, Germany, and Université de Paris, La Sorbonne.

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Performance Santa Fe is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization whose mission is to present world-class music, dance, and theater, and to provide excellent performing arts education for our community. Founded in 1937, Performance Santa Fe has presented and produced more than 1,000 events, making it a cornerstone of Santa Fe’s arts community. Performance Santa Fe’s 85th season opens September 21, 2021, with pianist Marc-Andre Hamelin in recital at the Lensic Performing Arts Center. For tickets and additional information about Performance Santa Fe, please call 505.988.1234 or visit www.performancesantafe.org.