press releases

For Immediate Release

AWARDS TO: JPMORGAN CHASE, PAYLESS SHOESOURCE, ZABAR’S;
AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE, HIGH 5, REPERTORIO ESPAÑOL, SYMPHONY SPACE; OTHERS

March 30, 2007:  A panel of arts-appreciative business leaders has just selected the winners of the 2007 Arts & Business Council of New York (ABC/NY) Encore Awards, to be presented at the annual Encore lunch, Tuesday, June 19, 2007, at Cipriani 42nd Street.  For 42 years, ABC/NY has been convening leaders from hundreds of New York City arts organizations and businesses to celebrate together and recognize Arts & Business Partnerships, Creative Business Volunteers, and Excellence in Arts Management.

Each year, ABC/NY’s more than 250 arts organization members submit nominations for the Encore Awards panel review.  In 2006, ABC/NY added a “Corporate Hall of Fame,” for which ABC/NY members vote directly. 

2007 Encore Award Winners

• Corporate Hall of Fame
  In recognition of significant arts support sustained over time, financial and volunteer, the 2007 inductee is JPMorgan Chase. The inaugural inductee was the Altria Group, Inc.
• Arts & Business Partnerships
  American Ballet Theatre and Payless ShoeSource are recognized for their collaboration to create a dynamic cobranding effort: “ABT Spotlights” dance shoes, available exclusively at Payless. Together, they are empowering children of all backgrounds all across America to reach for their dreams.
  
  Two beloved Upper West Side Manhattan destinations, Zabar's and Symphony Space, have formed a marketing partnership with the tagline, "Feed Your Body. Feed Your Soul!"  Together, they are broadening awareness of their products and programs, both city- and nationwide, as well as promoting the Upper West Side as a cultural destination via such initiatives as the Upper West Fest.
• Creative Business Volunteer
  Alexandra Tyler, vice president of customer engagement with Citigroup, joined ABC/NY’s Business Volunteers for the Arts (BVA) program in early 2006, and began working as a pro bono consultant with the Teachers & Writers Collaborative (T&W) to assist with the planning and generating of in-kind support  for a September 2006 open house/celebration of T&W's new offices and event space. Her efforts, recognized with the 2007 Creative Business Volunteer award, have grown to include chairing a committee to maximize the marketing and fundraising success accompanying T&W’s 40th anniversary. This literary arts education group has been serving children in New York’s schools and distributing publications across the country since 1967.
• Excellence in Arts Management
  For the first time, ABC/NY will be making an Excellence in Arts Management award to a triumvirate: the executive leadership of Repertorio Español, René Buch, Robert Federico, and Gilberto Zaldívar. Mr. Buch and Mr. Zaldívar founded the off-Broadway company, dedicated to Spanish-language theater and cultural exchange, in 1968. Mr. Federico first designed a production for Repertorio in 1971 and joined the leadership in 1972. At its own theater and on tour, Repertorio now serves 50,000 people each year; in 2006, they produced more than 350 performances, 115 of them as school-day matinees. 
  
  Another 2007 award goes to Ada Ciniglio, executive director of High 5 Tickets to the Arts.  Under Ms. Ciniglio’s leadership since 1993, High 5 has grown from a volunteer effort to a staff of 10 and board of 25, now serving teenagers in all five boroughs. They have provided more than 100,000 tickets (at $5 each) to teens, helped 250 arts organizations excite and build future audiences, and developed an extremely popular Teen Reviewers and Critics afterschool program.

Like these exceptional individuals and institutions, ABC/NY is committed to stimulating partnerships between arts and business that strengthen both sectors in New York. For more than 40 years, ABC/NY has accomplished this mission through programming in volunteer, professional, leadership, and economic development. Together, arts and business strengthen the leadership—staff and volunteer—of New York’s cultural treasures of every discipline and every size. Together, arts and business excite and energize existing work forces and guide fulfilling careers. Together, arts and business build capacity and effect New York’s economic growth. 

The 2007 Encore event is expected to draw more than 400 passionate arts and business leaders to Cipriani 42nd Street, at 110 East 42nd Street. On Tuesday, June 19, there will be networking and refreshments, 11:00 a.m.–noon, and a lunch and awards program, noon–2:00 p.m. Arts tickets start at $125, business tickets at $250 ($125 tax-deductible). The event is open to both ABC/NY members and nonmembers. $5,000 sponsor tables include a variety of recognition opportunities—before, during, and after the event. For information, call 212.279.5910 or visit  encore@artsandbusiness-ny.org. 

ABC/NY is a division of Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America.