Actors Bridge Ensemble Theater of Nashville Inc
Executive Director
| Executive Director | Ms. Vali Forrister |
|---|---|
| vali@actorsbridge.org | |
| Term Start | January 1998 |
| Vali's Experience: VALI FORRISTERVali is the chief executive officer and producing artistic director of the Actors Bridge Ensemble, which she co-founded with Bill Feehely in 1995. She has produced over 100 productions for the company, has acted and directed over 25, and authored six. She created and serves as vision-keeper of Act Like A GRRRL, a year-round autobiographical writing and performance program for teenage girls to gain public voice by articulating their lived experience.Vali was recently named 'Theaterati of the Year' for 2018 at the BroadwayWorld First Night Awards. She is a recipient of the 2016 Louisa Nelson Award from Green Brier Distillery, Nashville Business Journal's 2013 Women of Influence Award as a "Trailblazer," Vanderbilt's Women Mentoring Women Award, BroadwayWorld's STAR Award and is consistently listed as one of Broadway World - Nashville's 'Top Directors' and 'Top Actors.' She was a member of Leadership Nashville's Class of 2014.Vali is a member of Actors Equity Association, and her work as an actor has been called "a tour-de-force," and "seemingly effortless" by the Tennessean, "consistently excellent," "major league" and "expert" by the Nashville Scene, and "a lesson on the acting craft without revealing that craft," by stagecritic.com. BroadwayWorld describes her acting as 'exhilarating and heartbreaking at the same time,'Vali holds a master's degree in Performance Studies. Her thesis work in the scripting and performance of intimate personal narratives as a means of personal and social change became the research basis for the highly-praised ACT LIKE A GRRRL program.Vali is on the faculty at Lipscomb University where she teaches the Meisner Technique. Broadway World celebrated Vali's 20th anniversary as ABE'S Producing Artistic Director, praising her leadership of Nashville's "cutting-edge, forward-thinking, boundary-pushing, status quo-challenging theater company that has helped to make Music City USA somehow more creative and more welcoming to artisans who flock here to pursue their dreams."Vali is a member of the 2018 Metro Arts Racial Equity in Arts Leadership Cadre. | |
Staff
| Full Time Staff | 1 |
|---|---|
| Part Time Staff | 0 |
| Volunteers | 100 |
| Contractors | 50 |
| Retention Rate | 100% |
Plans & Policies
| Does your organization have a Fundraising Plan? | Yes |
|---|---|
| Does your organization have a Strategic Plan? | Yes |
| Years Strategic Plan Considers | 3 |
| When was the Strategic Plan adopted? | December 2017 |
| Does your organization have a Management Succession Plan? | Under Development |
| Does your organization have a Policy and Procedure Plan? | Yes |
| Does the organization have a Nondiscrimination Policy? | Yes |
| Does the organization have a Whistle Blower Policy? | |
| Does the organization have a Document Destruction Policy? |
Evaluation
| Is there a formal evaluation for... | Frequency (if applicable) | |
|---|---|---|
| CEO/Executive Director | Yes | Annually |
| Senior Management | N/A | N/A |
| Non-Management | Yes | Annually |
Affiliations
| Affiliation | Year |
|---|---|
| Actor's Equity Association | 1996 |
| Americans for the Arts | 2007 |
| Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville | 2007 |
| Center for Nonprofit Management CEO Network | 2013 |
| Hands On Network | 2010 |
| Leadership Nashville | 2013 |
| Metro Arts Commission | 1999 |
| Nashville Arts Coalition | 2000 |
| National Independent Theatre Consortium | 2007 |
| NowPlayingNashville.com | 2007 |
| Tennesseans for the Arts | 1998 |
| Tennessee Arts Commission | 1998 |
Awards
| Award / Recognition | Organization | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Best Local Theater | Nashville Scene | 2011 |
| Best Youth Theatre Movement | Nashville Scene | 2012 |
| First Night Honors - Vali Forrister | BroadwayWorld | 2017 |
| Louisa Nelson Award | Green Brier Distillery | 2016 |
| Star Award - Jessika Malone | BroadwayWorld | 2015 |
| Star Award - Vali Forrister | BroadwayWorld | 2012 |
| Theaterati of the Year - Vali Forrister | BroadwayWorld | 2018 |
| Women Mentoring Women Award | Vanderbilt University | 2008 |
| Women of Influence Award | Nashville Business Journal | 2013 |
