“Dayton wasn’t on my bingo card,” said van Aalst, 41. “But I wanted to find a place that had a broader canvas of the performing arts among a community that is responsive to it. Dayton is a really arts-engaged community and Dayton Live is an institution that is finding ways to reach far more people than the average performing arts organization, which is really intriguing as a leader.”
Van Aalst, who began his role in September, succeeds Ty Sutton, who stepped down as Dayton Live’s president and CEO last October to become the president and CEO of the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, FL. He arrives by way of Newark, NJ, where he served as president and CEO of the New Jersey Symphony since 2016. His numerous accomplishments included: completing a 5-year, $50 million comprehensive fundraising campaign with $61 million; spearheading the Symphony’s 100th anniversary celebrations; commissioning a series of concert films which won three Emmy awards; and securing two successive 5-year contracts with the musicians of the orchestra, the longest in organization history.
When he surveyed downtown Dayton, he immediately felt Newark vibes not only from an artistic but socioeconomic standpoint. He recognized similarities of adaptation and rebound within the city that could prove productive moving forward in order to attract business leaders and audiences alike.
“Newark has also seen its ups and downs but has done an incredible job of centering the arts as a part of the resurgence of downtown as an economic driver and leveraging the anchoring institutions there to be part of the leadership of the change of that city,” van Aalst explained. “When I look at Dayton, there were some industries that moved out in 2008 but the journey to come back from that involves (sites like) the Dayton Arcade and also Dayton Live. Dayton is a city of evolution, and Dayton Live has a vision to the future with amazing facilities. But there is work still to be done in terms of really thinking about how we engage with the community, how we bring more diverse audiences into the whole, and how we listen to the community about what it is they need from us and then respond back.”
Van Aalst would also like Dayton Live to model diversity beyond the stage. He recognizes the value of ensuring diverse representation in programming, which was vital during his tenure at the New Jersey Symphony. Even so a stronger push toward making the organization’s educational opportunities and facilities attractive in addition to open communication with the community are equally important.
“Having diverse representation stage is great and wonderful, and certainly when I was at the Symphony that was a huge issue because the number of Black and brown musicians on our stages is unconscionably low,” he said. “Obviously shows like ‘Hamilton’ (have) diverse artists but an institution like Dayton Live can go a step further by going out into the community and understanding what the community can use from us with the resources we have such as our facilities and having some level of input from what they want from us. In the 21st century there is a balance to finding out what a community wants and how we can deliver it. And I don’t know the answer to that because I’m an outsider here. I’m new to the community. I’m a foreigner. I have the lens that I view with what I think is successful, so I’m intrigued to begin having these conversations with the community and what that looks like going forward.”
Arts at his core
Van Aalst’s love of the arts was instilled in him as a child. He plays violin and piano and was principal second violin in the Sydney Youth Orchestra.
“The arts have always been at the core of who I was,” he said. “I was always the kid that was trotted out to talk about the impact of the arts in the community.”
He began his career with Andrew McKinnon Presentations, a leading Australian, for-profit, production company, where he produced and promoted over 250 performances, including a touring production of “Porgy and Bess.” He has also served as Chief Executive of Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, where he guided the London-based orchestra, following the Music Director transition from Sir Neville Marriner to acclaimed violinist Joshua Bell, while driving record income generation through increased touring and recording activity.
In addition, he serves as a trustee and executive committee member of the arts lobbying organization ArtPride New Jersey and holds a Master of Arts in Cultural and Creative Industries from King’s College in London, a Bachelor of Arts in Performance Studies from University of Sydney, and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Law from University of Technology, Sydney.
Credit: KINDRED LIGHT PHOTOS
Credit: KINDRED LIGHT PHOTOS
Assessing recent seasons on Broadway, van Aalst, who lives in Washington Twp. with his partner, is a big fan of the musicals “The Notebook” and “Kimberly Akimbo,” and he anticipates seeing “Sunset Boulevard,” “Death Becomes Her” and “Gypsy” this season. As he reflect on options that might appeal to Dayton audiences in future seasons for the Broadway Series, he doesn’t anticipate veering off in an uncharted direction from his predecessors.
“I want to make sure we continue to present amazing Broadway and world-class acts in Dayton,” van Aalst said. “Thanks to the work of Ty Sutton and (former president and CEO) Ken (Neufeld), Dayton Live has a robust Broadway Series in particular. I also want to make sure our venues are world-class. We need to make sure these jewels are polished and up to date.”
Van Aalst’s arrival occurs in tandem with Dayton Live’s “Spotlight on the Future” capital campaign which entered its public phase in September with a fundraising goal of $25 million. The campaign, which quietly launched in fall 2023, has raised $10.2 million thus far with the primary focus of updating the organization’s facilities. Dayton Live owns and operates the aforementioned Schuster Center as well as the Victoria Theatre, Metropolitan Arts Center (home to the Loft Theatre), the Arts Garage, and manages the PNC Arts Annex.
Van Aalst is confident Dayton Live’s mission to renovate its facilities will reap beneficial, long-term rewards, but he’s also contemplating how the organization can broaden its artistic and social footprint.
“As one of the largest, activated real estate owners in downtown Dayton, are we only doing work in our spaces or are we prepared to go off campus and go out into the community and do work there?” he said. “Are there opportunities to make the Dayton Live campus bigger and make more spaces, whether that is traditional theatres or going out in the community and expanding our reach? We’re doing great work having people come to us but is there work we can do in engagement formats like conversations with the community or arts activities out in the community in other spaces not necessarily controlled by us, which I have seen work very well at the New Jersey Symphony. Maybe Dayton Live can be somewhere people can live at all levels of their existence in addition to just going to the theatre to see a show at the Schuster or the Loft.”
‘Let’s celebrate being an arts community’
Van Aalst is particularly excited about Dayton Live’s involvement in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Spring Parliamentary Assembly that will take place next Memorial Day weekend. The Schuster Center will be one of the venues expected to house 1,000 guests.
“It’s going to be such an amazing showcase for Dayton,” he said. “This huge international group has chosen to come here. We have the resources and facilities, and to be able showcase that to the world is huge for this city and this community. When we think of the eyes of the world being on this city it’s such a unique opportunity. Most people have no idea about our facilities or the history of the innovation of Dayton. As a leader and a part of the anchoring institutions involved, it’s very exciting.”
By and large, he aspires to make the Dayton community stronger by considering the unlimited possibilities Dayton Live has yet to explore.
“I want Dayton Live to be really integrated into the community so we are more than just somewhere people come to do a thing,” van Aalst said. “There is a hive of activity that comes from seeing Dayton Live (shows). How can we expand that energy so people feel that every time at any hour of the day? Let’s celebrate being an arts community, and as Dayton rebuilds, let’s continue to have that as the center of the story in Dayton.”
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
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