LOS ANGELES: Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles (SCLA) has named Amanda Susskind to be the company’s managing director, succeeding Dana P. Goland in the role, and joining a leadership team that includes artistic director Ben Donenberg. Susskind is the former president of Teach Democracy, a national civic education provider, and before that was the Los Angeles regional director of the Anti-Defamation League. A throughline in her career as a lawyer and nonprofit leader has been programming for students and teachers in underserved communities. She began at her SCLA post earlier this year.
Susskind will oversee a transformative renovation of the SCLA downtown Los Angeles headquarters that will create a new 299-seat state-of-the art multimedia and live performing arts and community center. The newly renovated studio will also support the expansion of a wide range of SCLA’s White House-awarded youth employment programs and transitional arts employment on-the-job training experiences, which aid the city’s most severely unemployed populations.
“It is thrilling to be part of the transformation of a community,” said Susskind in a statement. “The new space will bolster the Shakespeare Center’s long history of providing world-class theatre and life-transforming education and workforce programs. We also see it as providing a western gateway to the downtown arts community, anchored in the Grand Street corridor which houses the Civic Center, Cathedral of our Lady of the Angels, Music Center, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Colburn School, and the Broad and MOCA museums.”
Under her leadership at Teach Democracy, the organization adopted and implemented a strategic plan to expand external and media relations, update systems and equipment, and increase the efficacy and reach of programs. Among the immediate impacts of the plan was that Teach Democracy nearly doubled the percentage of women and people of color on its board, created a dynamic year-round marketing and fundraising campaign, and created new and reorganized staff positions.
In her 18 years at the Anti-Defamation League, Susskind oversaw a civil rights agenda encompassing anti-bias education and bullying prevention programs, Holocaust education, hate crime victim assistance, and advocacy for constitutional rights. She also conceived and convened L.A. For Good, a coalition of community leaders standing together to fight hate and create a more unified Los Angeles. Susskind also plays the violin with the Culver City Symphony Orchestra.
Since 1985, the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles has been a hub for award-winning classic theatrical productions, programs, and events designed to engage, enrich, and empower people from all walks of life. As of 2022, its budget was around $1.5 million.
