Executive Director

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Executive Director	Ms. Denice Hicks
E-mail	denicehicks@nashvilleshakes.org
Term Start	October 2009
Denice's Experience: Denice Hicks has been with The Nashville Shakespeare Festival since 1990, first as an actor, director, and teaching artist, and then as Artistic Director from 1998-2002 and since 2005. Raised in Lenni, PA, she performed as a child with her family in a traveling VFW show. Educated at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, she moved to Nashville in 1980 to perform at Opryland USA. Denice was an original company member of the Tennessee Repertory Theatre, and was among the founders of Darkhorse Theater and of People's Branch Theatre. An Ingram Fellowship award winner and advocate for Arts in Education, she has edited and directed touring productions of Shakespeare's works, developed workshops for students of all ages and created the NSF Apprentice Company Training and Shakespeare Allowed! programs. Her work has been praised by the Tennessean, Broadwayworld.com, Nashville City Search, The City Paper, and the Nashville Scene, from which she has received "Best Actor" and "Best Director" nods.

Co-Executive Director

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Co-Executive Director	Isabel Tipton-Krispin
E-mail	isabel@nashvilleshakes.org
Term Start	October 2022
Isabel's Experience:

Senior Staff

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Name	Title
Ms. Denice Hicks	Executive Artistic Director
Ms. Katie Bruno	Education Director
Mr. Robert Marigza-Yeo	Operations Manager
Isabel Tipton-Krispin	Executive Managing Director
Jan Morrison	Company Manager
Bob Roberts	Development and Database Manager
Austin Fields	Marketing Director

Staff

Full Time Staff	7
Part Time Staff	0
Volunteers	225
Contractors	1
Retention Rate	83%

Plans & Policies

Does your organization have a Fundraising Plan?	Yes
Does your organization have a Strategic Plan?	Yes
Years Strategic Plan Considers	5
When was the Strategic Plan adopted?	September 2021
Does your organization have a Management Succession Plan?	Yes
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?	No
Does the organization have a Document Destruction Policy?	Yes

Evaluation

Is there a formal evaluation for...		Frequency (if applicable)
CEO/Executive Director	Yes	Annually
Senior Management	Yes	Semi-Annually
Non-Management	Yes	Semi-Annually

Affiliations

Affiliation	Year
Actor's Equity Association	1998
Americans for the Arts	2007
Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville	2006
Belmont University	2007
Center for Nonprofit Management Excellence Network	2000
Institute of Outdoor Drama	1998
Lipscomb University	2015
Metro Arts Commission	1992
Metro Parks and Recreation	1988
Nashville Arts Coalition	1997
Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau	2023
Nashville Public Library	2008
Nashville Public Television	2007
National Endowment for the Arts	2006
NowPlayingNashville.com	2007
Room in the Inn	2014
Shakespeare Theatre Association of America	1998
Tennesseans for the Arts	2000
Tennessee Arts Commission	1996
Williamson County Parks & Recreation	2016

Awards

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Award / Recognition	Organization	Year
Best of Nashville - 'Best Actor: Brian Russell, The Tempest'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2010
Best of Nashville - 'Best Actor: Eric Pasto-Crosby, Macbeth'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2013
Best of Nashville - 'Best Actor: Kamal Bolden, Coriolanus'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2008
Best of Nashville - Best Actor: Nat McIntyre (Othello, Midsummer, As You Like It)	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2014
Best of Nashville - 'Best Actress: Denice Hicks, The Tempest'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2010
Best of Nashville - 'Best Actress: Emily Landham, Romeo & Juliet'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2012
Best of Nashville - Best Actress: Evelyn Oneal Brush (Much Ado About Nothing)	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2014
Best of Nashville - Best Cheap Date	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2017
Best of Nashville - Best Cheap Date	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2014
Best of Nashville - Best Cheap Date	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2015
Best of Nashville - Best Cheap Date	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2016
Best of Nashville - 'Best Director: Mark Cabus, Coriolanus'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2008
Best of Nashville - 'Best Free Fun'	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2008
Best of Nashville - 'Best Free Fun'	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2009
'Best of Nashville' - Best Free Fun	Nashville Scene Reader's Poll	2006
'Best of Nashville' - Best Free Fun	Nashville Scene Reader's Poll	2005
'Best of Nashville' - Best Free Fun	Nashville Scene Reader's Poll	2004
Best of Nashville - Best Local Stage Actor/Actress: Denice HIcks	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2016
Best of Nashville - Best Local Stage Actress/Actor (Denice Hicks, David Compton)	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2015
Best of Nashville - 'Best Place for a Cheap Date'	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2009
Best of Nashville - 'Best Place for a Cheap Date'	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2012
Best of Nashville - 'Best Place for a Cheap Date'	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2013
'Best of Nashville' - Best Place for a Cheap Date	Nashville Scene Reader's Poll	2004
Best of Nashville - Best Place to See a Play	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2015
Best of Nashville - Best Place to See a Play	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2016
Best of Nashville - Best Shakespeare (Twelfth Night)	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2015
Best of Nashville - 'Best Shakespeare Starring a Former NFL Running Back: Julius Caesar'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2012
Best of Nashville - 'Best Shakespearean Shake-Up: Richard the Third'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2009
Best of Nashville - 'Best Shakespearean Spectacle: Macbeth'	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2013
Best Professional Theater Company; Best Director of a Musical: Denice Hicks, Much Ado about Nothing; Best Director: Beki Baker, Julius Caesar; Best Ensemble Performance: Julius Caesar	BroadwayWorld.com Nashville Readers' Poll	2012
Best Relocation (Writers' Choice)	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2019
Best Stage Actor/Actress - Denice Hicks (1st), Megan Murphy Chambers (2nd), Tamiko Robinson Steele (3rd)	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2018
Best Theater Company	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2018
Best Theater Company (local) (3rd Place)	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2019
Board Member of the Year 2004 - Donald Capparella	Center for Nonprofit Management	2004
First Night Award - Show of the Year 2014: As You Like It	BroadwayWorld.com	2014
National Coverage	The Wall Street Journal	2010
National Coverage	Sports Illustrated	2012
National Coverage	The New York Times	2013
National Coverage	The New York Times	2014
National Coverage	The New York Times	2015
National Coverage on '60 Minutes Sports'	CBS News	2014
National Coverage on 'All Things Considered'	National Public Radio	2012
Official North American Selectee for 'Shakespeare on the Road' Documentary	Shakespeare's Birthplace Trust	2014
Theater Company of the Year	First Night Awards	2019
Top Ten Outstanding Actresses - Caroline Amos, Carrie Brewer (Richard II)	BroadwayWorld.com Nashville Critic's Pick	2017
Top Ten Outstanding Directors - Sean Martin (Richard II)	BroadwayWorld.com Nashville Critic's Pick	2017
Top Ten Outstanding Nashville Theatrical Events of 2012: Julius Caesar	BroadwayWorld.com	2012
Top Ten Outstanding Plays - Richard II	BroadwayWorld.com Nashville Critic's Pick	2017
Best Stage Fight Choreography MACBETH	Nashville Scene Critics' Pick	2020
Best Theater Company (3rd)	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2020
Best New Arts Partnership (Nashville Shakespeare Festival and Kennie Playhouse Theatre)	Nashville Scene Writers' Choice	2021
Best of Nashville - Best Theater Company (3rd Place)	Nashville Scene Readers' Poll	2023
Best of Nashville - Best Modern Twist on a Classic Comedy	Nashville Scene Writers' Choice	2023

CEO/Executive Director/Board Comments

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The staff of the Nashville Shakespeare Festival has always been small and mighty. Dozens of seasonal and contract employees, plus hundreds of volunteers with the guidance of the staff, make the work of the company possible. With the addition of several new programs in recent years, there are now 7 full time staff members plus a contracted accountant and a dedicated volunteer Volunteer Coordinator. The strategic plan involves more revenue and grant-worthy education, as well as fundraising programming that will support the administration of those programs while improving the quality of the presentations.