Lied Center director retires

 9 comment(s)  
 E-mail Story
 Print Story
  Share

 digg it!
 Facebook
 del.icio.us
Seed Newsvine
Fark It
Reddit

Text Size: 

Tools Sponsor

By MELISSA LEE / Lincoln Journal Star

After surprising his staff Monday morning with the news he’s resigning, Charles Bethea spent the afternoon enjoying a long lunch, reading and gearing up to plant his spring garden.

It was a breather at last for the man who’s guided the Lied Center for Performing Arts since 1997 through ups, downs and, most recently, a $1 million-plus downsizing that included six layoffs and significant program reductions.

Bethea’s resignation was effective immediately. He says he’s done his best to get the Lied back on track after financially tough times and that it is now appropriate to let someone else take the Lied into the future.

[+]Enlarge

Charles Bethea

Charles Bethea

“This freshens up my own creativity, and gives the Lied a chance to freshen up their ideas too,” said Bethea, 59. “A refreshing of the leadership role will make for a stronger recovery.”

Leaving was his decision, Bethea said. He said he discussed the idea with University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Harvey Perlman and Perlman agreed new leadership was the best course of action for the Lied.

Bethea will stay on in an advisory capacity until mid-September to ensure a smooth transition of leadership, the university said. Day-to-day management will be handled by associate executive director Laura Sweet until Perlman appoints an interim director.

Sweet said she’s decided not to be a candidate.

Bethea’s job hasn’t been easy lately, Sweet acknowledged.

“He’s been through a lot,” she said. “He’s gotten us through the worst of it. As with any course correction, there comes a point where you need to look ahead, and he realized this was a good time for him and for the Lied to forge new ground.”

It’s true the past few years have been difficult, not just for the Lied, but other performing arts venues in Lincoln as well.

A sluggish economy, troubled housing market and rising gas and food prices mean the public’s disposable income is shrinking, Bethea said.

And when people cut back, “unfortunately, the first things that go are the things we like to spend on our pleasure,” he said. “A lot of times, the arts just suffer.”

Ticket sales at the Lied have slipped about 20 percent in the past three years, Bethea said in February, when the Lied announced low ticket revenue had forced it to lay off six of its 31 staff members.

The layoffs trimmed about $200,000 from the Lied’s $4.9 million budget. To trim another $1 million or so, Bethea said the Lied would reduce artists’ fees by 30 to 40 percent and reduce the number of events it hosted from about 40 this season to 32 for the upcoming season.

The Lied will announce this season’s events next month.

Financial restructuring will continue, Sweet said, though she expressed confidence the worst of the budget woes had passed.

“Our course is stabilizing,” she said. “We’re looking to the future now.”

She and others called Bethea’s announcement a surprise. Indeed, he gave no public indication his departure was imminent, even vowing several times in recent months to help the Lied step up its marketing and community outreach efforts as part of its plan to reverse the drop in ticket sales.

“I have to say this takes my breath away a little bit,” said Barb Ludemann, a Friends of Lied Executive Committee member. “But the Lied has a strong base, and change is not always a bad thing.”

Added Robert Rook, managing director for TADA Productions: “I’m extremely disappointed. Charles is a brilliant resource and firm anchor to the arts community. I think this will be a shock to a lot of people.”

Sweet had high praise for Bethea, who helped the Lied become this year’s Nebraska Arts Council Organization of the Year. He also was the 2006 recipient of the Lincoln Arts Council Leadership in the Arts Award.

Bethea has worked to align the Lied with UNL’s academic mission through events like “Project X,” a 2007 symposium that brought scholars and artists to campus to discuss the Pentagon Papers with faculty, students and the public. He also implemented AdventureLIED, a series of statewide outreach programs to connect artists with new audiences.

“First and foremost, we recognize that Charles has made an amazing contribution to the Lied Center,” Sweet said. “What we need to do is appreciate the work he’s done.

“We’re just taking a deep breath now, and we’ll come to work tomorrow morning ready to push up our sleeves and go to work.”

Bethea, for his part, isn’t leaving the workforce just yet. After taking some time for himself, he said he’ll seek another arts-related job — perhaps with one of the several institutions that’s already shown interest in him.

“I need to get some breathing space,” he said. “Then I’ll look forward.”

Reach Melissa Lee at 473-2682 or mlee@journalstar.com. Journal Star reporter Jeff Korbelik contributed to this story.