Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) is hiring a General Manager (GM) which is a leadership role on the CPT staff and will make a meaningful contribution to life at CPT and its success. For the appropriate candidate, this role could evolve into a Managing Director role. 

Review of candidates will begin immediately. To apply for the position, send an email to Raymond Bobgan at rbobgan@cptonline.org. Subject line should read: YOUR LAST NAME, General Manager. Your email should include two attachments: a resume and a two-page cover letter giving examples of work that illustrate the experience required in the description and explaining why you are interested in this position. We will be reviewing candidates immediately and will close the search on March 11, 2024. No phone calls, please. 

General Manager Job Summary 

CPT is hiring its first General Manager in eighteen years, and as a result is recharacterizing and broadening the role as it currently exists. CPT has a history of defining positions around the strengths of the best candidates and current staffing. The following job description acts as a guideline for CPT’s search process, but it will evolve based on the skills and experience of the finalist. 

The GM reports to and collaborates with the Executive Artistic Director for the implementation of CPT’s mission and programs. The GM works collaboratively with other leadership staff to create forward-thinking modes of operation and action steps to achieve a sustainable future.  

As a mid-size theatre, CPT requires that leadership staff not only supervise employees, but also perform tasks in a “hands-on” manner. The GM will supervise managers or staff of some or all the following departments: Front of House, Facilities, Financial Management, Human Resources, and Audience Engagement/Marketing. This role has day-to-day responsibility for all or some of the following: artist contracts, vendor management, hiring and human resources, information technology, work environment and office operations. Details follow below. This role will have a strong partnership with the Director of Finance and be involved in the budgeting process. The GM will represent CPT at meetings and discussions with certain external organizations. This role will have the opportunity to make significant changes to processes and develop new practices at the organization after completing one year in the position. 

CPT is primarily interested in candidates with at least six years of theatre administration experience. CPT will also consider exceptional candidates with less or different experience who may be well positioned to make a leap forward. CPT sees this hire as a step in restructuring the organization’s staff. For the appropriate candidate, this role could evolve into a Managing Director role in the future. 

Salary range for this position is $60k to $70k based on work experience and determined range of responsibilities. Using the MIT Living Wage Calculator, this salary range is equivalent to $77k-$91k in major job markets like New York, Chicago, San Francisco, and Atlanta. Benefits include medical insurance, paid time off and more. (Benefit details listed below.) CPT is looking to fill this position by April 2, 2024. 

About Cleveland Public Theatre 

CPT’s mission is to raise consciousness and nurture compassion through groundbreaking performances and life-changing education programs. We are serious about “groundbreaking” and “life-changing” and espouse innovative and unique views about programming compared to the field.  

CPT Executive Artistic Director Raymond Bobgan has been in the role for 18 years and with Director of Finance Denis Griesmer (formerly also General Manager) has tripled the size of the organization. During that time, Bobgan reinvented existing programs and innovated new community-based programs. Bobgan’s leadership has been recognized both within and outside the field at local, state, and national levels.  

CPT’s annual theatrical season features between 6-10 adventurous professional productions (mostly world premieres) a robust series of new play development programs that support writers and devisers at multiple points in the creative process. CPT is home to three internal companies: Teatro Público de Cleveland, Masrah Cleveland Al-Arabi, and the Cleveland CORE Ensemble (a BIPOC majority ensemble led by Bobgan). CPT produces two large community events a year, Día de Muertos and Station Hope. CPT also hosts Pandemonium, our annual fundraiser that features hundreds of artists across a dozen and half stages, grossing over $400k annually. 

CPT’s acclaimed education programs engage communities in devising new works that speak to contemporary issues and empower participants to work for positive change in our community. These programs serve hundreds of youths and their families who live in public housing, offer free programs for Cleveland youth, engage teenagers in a robust job training summer program, and engage formerly homeless adults in treatment for addiction through theatre creation.  

CPT is recognized as one of the Midwest’s most progressive and innovative performing arts institutions that centers social concerns as well as innovative performances and plays a leadership role in the field both through its modeling of change and community connection, and through Raymond’s leadership service for Theatre Communications Group and The National New Play Network.  

Most CPT artists, staff, and board are people who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. CPT has a long history of producing work by mostly BIPOC theatre creators.  

CPT has expenses of $2.8M a year with twenty-five full-time employees, eighty plus part-time and seasonal employees, and hundreds of independent contractors. CPT owns and operates nearly 75,000 square feet of facilities which include three buildings built between 1910 and 1930. The facility includes two flexible-seating theatres, a chapel, a church social hall, classrooms, rehearsal spaces, a scene shop, offices and support spaces. In the last decade, CPT has made significant progress improving accessibility and functionality of the buildings. CPT is developing a capital campaign to address its remaining accessibility concerns and continue to modernize the campus for artists and patrons.  

General Manager Responsibilities 

• Supervise leadership for all or some of the following departments: 
  • Facilities Staff to ensure the building meets the needs of artists, staff and patrons. 
  • Front-of-House Staff to ensure the best possible patron experience. 
  • Engagement Staff to support continuing growth and development. 
  • Financial Management/Human Resources Staff.  

• Execute all or some of the following: 

• Contracting 
  • Administer and execute contracts with artists and performers. 
  • Negotiate and administer contracts with vendors and partners. 
  • Ensure the implementation of the relevant terms of such agreements. 
  • Negotiate and manage rental contracts and supervise rentals and other special uses of the facility.  

• Human Resources 
  • Oversee hiring process and execute on-boarding staff. 
  • Educate staff on policies, procedures, and best-practices. 
  • Respond to employee questions. 
  • Develop and oversee employee performance evaluation process. 
  • Arrange for professional development and safety training. 
  • Oversee compensation and benefits packages for all staff. 

• Information Technology  
  • Manage and evaluate outside IT vendor. 
  • Manage and evaluate continuing improvement of existing services & equipment. 
  • Supervise distribution and manage maintenance of laptops and other hardware. 
  • Liaison between staff and outside IT vendor. 
  • Coordinate troubleshooting of issues. 

• Work Environment and Office Operations 
  • Assign appropriate departments or staff to office management tasks. 

• Other Duties  
  • Leadership of regular meetings for General Staff, Management Staff, and Senior Staff (Meeting management may be shared with other leadership staff.). 
  • Consult and participate in CPT’s ongoing strategic planning with EAD and staff. 
  • Participate in CPT’s ongoing anti-racism/pro-liberation work. 
  • Vendor management and assessment. 
  • Represent CPT at external events and meetings. 
  • Provide key support to Executive Artistic Director:  
    • Offer advice and consultation. 
    • Provide departmental perspectives. 
    • Understand and promote leadership direction and decisions among staff and wider community. 
    • Contribute as part of Leadership Staff 
  • Collaborate with Director of Finance on financial management and implementing new budgeting processes in FY26.  
  • Other duties as assigned. 

Benefits 

• Medical, dental and vision insurance with employer contribution. 
• Health Savings Account. 
• 401k retirement plan. 
• Life, STD, and LTD Insurance paid by employer. 
• 29 days paid time off including holidays, increasing after three years. 
• Free tickets to all Cleveland Public Theatre, Teatro Público de Cleveland and Masrah Cleveland Al-Arabi and CORE Cleveland productions. 
• See a beautiful view of Lake Erie from our rooftop offices. 

Qualifications 

The ideal candidate will be able to demonstrate the following: 

Personal Qualities 

• A thirst for learning and an openness to feedback and coaching. 
• A collaborative spirit and desire to work in partnership. 
• A career defined by roles of increased responsibility. 
• Love of performing arts and a strong belief in innovative programming. 
• Comfort and interest in serving as an ambassador for the institution. 
• A strategic mind able to “think forward” and identify challenges and opportunities and create plans to proactively address them. 
• Talent for empowering a team to take agency for their work while leading with clarity and decisiveness.  
• A deep desire to take a role as a cultural leader fully committed to the Greater Cleveland community. 
• Able to work efficiently and calmly in a fast-paced environment. 

Skills 

• Ability to prioritize numerous responsibilities and provide composed leadership and guidance under stressful situations.  
• Adept at handling complex personnel and artist issues.  
• Able to be an articulate and passionate representative of the theatre and its mission.  
• Willingness to work evenings and weekends for company events.  
• Attention to detail and accuracy while working on multiple projects and tasks. 
• Writing and communication skills, especially around email correspondence and follow-up. 
• Comfortable addressing large groups.  

Experience 

• College degree or equivalent is required.  
• At least six years prior theatre management experience.  
• Well-rounded level of experience with budgeting, marketing, best practice HR policies, and financial management.  
• Experience drafting and negotiating contracts. 
• Demonstrated project management or project management-like experience. 

About the CPT Staff and Cleveland 

CPT cares passionately about reflecting our community and pursuing diversity at all levels of the organization. CPT has a demanding work environment, but we have fun and love what we do. We value hard work, and strive to center courage, humanity, integrity, representation, respect, and joy, “challenging each other to do and be our collective best.” At CPT cross-department work is the norm. For applicants considering relocation to Cleveland, our city is an excellent community to live in with top-notch arts and culture, a vibrant theatre scene, beautiful public parks, a great lake, and VERY affordable housing.