Reynold Levy joined Lincoln Center in 2002. When he did so Americas leading arts venue was routinely described in terms like this:“Behind the scenes; however; Lincoln Center is a community in deep distress; riven by conflict over a grandiose 1 billion redevelopment plan… instead of uniting the Centers constituent arts organizations behind a common goal; the project has pitted them against one another in open warfare more reminiscent of the shoot-out at the OK Corral than of a night at the opera. ‘To say that it is a mess is putting it mildly; says Johanna Fiedler; the author and a former staff member at the Metropolitan Opera. ‘There is nobody running the show right now.rdquo; (Leslie Bennetts; New York Magazinecedil; February 4; 2002)To choose to be President of Lincoln Center of ones own free will was regarded by Reynold Levys friends and mentors as bordering on a self-destructive act. Rivalries abounded. Personalities clashed. Egos reigned. Reputations were badly damaged. And many of the tensions were dramatically played out in public and assiduously reported by a delighted press.Levy had just spent six years traipsing through much of the Third World and many failed states as the President of the International Rescue Committee (IRC); one of the worlds leading refugee assistance organizations. Having dealt with the Democratic Republic of Congo; Rwanda; and Serbia; even Joe Volpe; the volcanic manager of the Metropolitan Opera seemed hardly daunting. Lincoln Center; its key figures with their bombast and betrayals was not South Sudan. So he set to; and during his presidency transformed Lincoln Centers entire 16-acre campus including the city block from Broadway to Amsterdam Avenue.With the new Alice Tully Hall; the expansion of The Juilliard School; two new screening rooms and an education center for the Film Society; new dance studios for the School of American Ballet; came a beautifully designed; graceful welcome to Lincoln Centers main campus; one filled with light and life. There were new green spaces; new restaurants; a totally wifid campus that displayed 21st Century technology indoors and out. And a remodeled; utterly transformed; privately owned public space called the David Rubenstein Atrium; named after its principal donor; a new Lincoln Center Commons; opened free of charge to the public 365 days a year.This book reveals the real story behind the 1.2 billion dollar reinvention of Lincoln Center; and all the trials and triumphs along the way. It contains unique lessons for leaders in all kinds of organizations; cautionary tales for employees; volunteers and donors; and inspiring clarity for anyone who wants to lead an institution they believe in so that it can become the best version of itself.
#2393978 in eBooks 2015-05-21 2015-05-21File Name: B00TQT5G2S
Review
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Decent bookBy John S. MclachlanStandard fare from the Images of America series. Plenty of building photographs; including streetscapes in downtown. If you like old photos and have an interest in old Boston photography; pick one of these up.Chapters include:The Old South End (before the current south end was built)The City EmergesThe Great Boston Fire of 1872Banking and FinanaceHalls of CommerceLunch-hour shoppingBetween the WarsToward a New Urbanism.
