Director of Marketing and Communications
Position Profile
About the Opportunity
Playwrights Horizons, one of the most prolific Off-Broadway theaters in New York, is seeking a creative and strategic Director of Marketing and Communications to lead marketing and audience development efforts that deliver on the goals of the company and continue to position Playwrights at the center of the New York and National theatre landscape.
The ideal candidate has a passion for theater and will apply this passion to developing marketing campaigns and content that are as creative as the work on Playwrights stages. The Director of Marketing and Communications will lead efforts to drive engagement, diversify audiences, expand attendance, and meet ticket sales goals. Alongside creativity, the ideal candidate also possesses analytical skills, understanding how to leverage data to maximize the impact of campaigns and ensure that Playwrights is reaching its intended audiences.
The Director of Marketing and Communications leads an in-house team of three and manages external vendors to deliver marketing campaigns, content, and communications that align to and deliver on the company’s objectives. This role also works closely with colleagues from across the company to ensure institutional branding and communications are reflective of the mission and values of Playwrights.
About Playwrights Horizons
Playwrights Horizons is a writer’s theater dedicated to the support and development of contemporary American playwrights, composers, and lyricists, and the production of innovative new works. Since its founding in 1971, Playwrights’ production history includes more than 400 new plays and musicals, including seven premieres that earned the Pulitzer Prize. A Strange Loop, which won the Tony for Best New Musical in 2022, and Stereophonic, which became the most Tony Award-nominated play of all time in 2024, both premiered at Playwrights Horizons.
Playwrights is now in a period of creative and strategic evolution and growth with the appointment of Artistic Director Adam Greenfield in 2020 and Casey York joining the company as Managing Director in August 2024. While not immune to the volatile financial realities of producing in a post-COVID theatrical landscape, Playwrights Horizons has benefited from the prudent and resourceful stewardship of its Executive and Board Leadership in recent years, leaving the company in a relatively strong financial position as it approaches its next chapter. Its continued stability will require continued creativity, fiscal discipline, and cross-departmental collaboration to meet the demands of the current moment for the field and the artists served.
Chaired by Sam Gonzalez, Playwrights is led by a 30-member Board of Trustees and has a full-time staff of 47 and a theater school faculty of 37. In addition to its Off-Broadway season which plays to over 33,000 audience members a year, Playwrights offers affordable rental spaces for the arts community, and training programs for the next generation of artists and arts managers through their Theatrical Fellowship Program and the Playwrights Horizons Theater School, in partnership with NYU’s Tisch School Undergraduate Drama Department. All of these components are critical expressions of Playwrights Horizons’ centrality to the New York theatrical landscape, and its singular contribution to the continued health of the city and the country’s cultural and theatrical ecosystem.
Job Description
The Director of Marketing and Communications leads the team responsible for delivering marketing and communications for Playwrights Horizons. This position will manage cross-departmental initiatives that advance the company’s mission, brand, and programs across paid, owned and earned channels.
Reports to: General Manager
Oversees: Associate Director of Marketing, Marketing Manager
Duties & Responsibilities
● Marketing and Communications Strategy
o Develop the institution’s communications strategy and marketing objectives, strategy, and tactics, while fostering buy in from executive leadership and the marketing team
o Collaborate with the leadership team and department heads to ensure that all projects have strategic marketing and communications components and support, in consideration of project goals, audience, and resources
● Team Leadership
o Identify, anticipate, and resolve challenges for the marketing team across all its functions – from copywriting to design, ticketing to website management
o Ensure timely and successful execution of all team deliverables
● Content Strategy
o Serve as chief wordsmith for the company, generating and editing strong short- and long-form copy for use across all channels and applications
o Oversee the company’s content calendar, including email, social media, direct mail, etc., to ensure streamlined and effective messaging to all audience constituencies
o Oversee the company’s digital presence, including the website, email communications, and social media
● Sales and Audience Development Strategy
o Direct the company’s ticket sales strategies, including leading the annual season package campaign, setting ticket pricing, and devising impactful single ticket sales campaigns
o Establish and track key performance indicators and goals across all channels and audience segments
o Set, track, and analyze clear and measurable metrics to regularly inform marketing and sales strategies
o Collaborate with Artistic staff members to identify and activate opportunities to build community and increase diversity among show audiences and institutional advocates
● Digital Programming
o In partnership with Artistic staff, manage the creative, technical, and budgetary process for the development and production of digital-native artistic programs and content, as well as other dramaturgical, documentary, and educational media
Qualifications and Attributes:
● 5+ years of marketing experience, preferably for a performing arts organization, agency, or similar
● A strong track record of accomplishments that show increased responsibility and the ability to successfully deliver complex projects
● Exemplary written and oral communication skills
● High aptitude and curiosity for CRM systems and data analysis (familiarity with Tessitura a plus)
● Proficiency in digital metrics and analytics
● Familiarity with Excel and/or other quantitative tools
● Strong organizational, multi-tasking, prioritization, and time management skills
● Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to build relationships and relate well to people across the organization
● Collegiality, collaboration, patience, and a sense of humor
A Note from Tom O’Connor Consulting Group:
Not sure you meet 100% of our qualifications? Research shows that men apply for jobs when they fulfill an average of 60% of the criteria. Yet, women and other people who are systematically marginalized tend only to apply if they meet every requirement. If you believe that you could excel in this role, we encourage you to apply.
We are dedicated to considering a broad array of candidates, including those with diverse workplace experiences and backgrounds. So, whether you’re returning to work after a gap in employment, simply looking to transition, or taking the next step in your career path, we will be glad to have you on our radar.
Please use your cover letter to tell us about what you hope to bring to this role.
Compensation
The salary range for this position is $90,000-100,000.
Playwrights Horizons offers a comprehensive benefits package including 15 days (three weeks) of vacation, four personal days, and 10 sick days, as well as 10 holidays. Employees have access to individual medical, dental, and vision coverage, with various plan options available through Oxford Health Plans. Playwrights Horizons partially subsidizes health and dental insurance and provides vision insurance at no charge to employees. The benefits package further includes life insurance policy, a 403b retirement plan, and flexible spending accounts for medical, dental, and dependent care expenses. Other perks include half-day Fridays, health reimbursement accounts, Transitchek for transportation expenses, and complimentary and staff-rate tickets to Playwrights Horizons productions.
Application Instructions
The search for the Director of Marketing and Communications is being conducted on behalf of Playwrights Horizons by Tom O’Connor and Rani Haywood of Tom O'Connor Consulting Group, a New York-based executive search and consulting firm specializing in the arts and culture industries.
To apply, visit the online application (https://tinyurl.com/2kvu4jr9) and submit your materials. Please use your cover letter to tell us about what you hope to bring to this role, and how your background and experience responds to the desired skills and qualities.
The priority application deadline for this search is August 30, 2024. Applications received by this date will be given priority consideration. While we will still accept and consider applications received after this date, we encourage you to apply as early as possible for the best chance at being considered for the position. Please note that meeting the priority deadline does not guarantee an interview. No phone calls, please.
Playwrights Horizons is committed to building a more just future for everyone – particularly those from historically oppressed communities, by employing a broad spectrum of voices that will enrich the quality and vitality of our work. Playwrights Horizons is an equal opportunity employer that has a strong institutional commitment to uprooting all systems of oppression by demonstrative equitable and inclusive practices.
The organization is interested in receiving applications from people of all races, sexual orientations, gender identities, ages, classes, religions, and people with disabilities. The facilities at Playwrights Horizons are fully accessible and ADA compliant.
