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AT&T Performing Arts Center Board of Directors Elects Nine New Board Members
AT&T Performing Arts Center Board of Directors Elects Nine New Board Members
New directors bring a diverse range of talent and backgrounds to the board, including its first professional artist
(DALLAS) – The nonprofit AT&T Performing Arts Center announced today that its Board of Directors approved the addition of nine new board members. They include local leaders in the arts, health care, communications, government and community relations and more.
New members are:
- Rebecca Acuña, Director of Government Affairs at PepsiCo
- Denise Lee, Actress/Singer/Producer at Denise Lee Onstage
- Ayanna Lonian, Director of Content Acquisition and Head, WW Major Studio Licensing Strategy, Amazon Prime Video
- Leonor Márquez, Chief Executive Officer, LBU Community Clinic
- Miguel Solis, Chief of Staff, The Commit Partnership
- Linda McIntosh Todd, Community Volunteer
- Laurie Marine Wallace, Global Digital Transformation Leader – Thomson Reuters
- Carol West, CPA, Community Leader, & Volunteer
- Radhika Zaveri, Professor of Practice, SMU – Consumer Strategy and Innovation
“We are always striving to achieve an engaging mix of professions, talent, and experience on our board, and from different parts of North Texas,” said Danny Tobey, Board Chair for the AT&T Performing Art Center. “We especially work to include people who have a passion for culture and for what we do here at the Center. All of these new directors will be a great fit with our Board.”
Rebecca Acuña is a Director of Government Affairs for PepsiCo where she represents the global portfolio before public policy makers and opinion leaders in seven states and the commonwealth of Puerto Rico. During the 2020 election season, she took a sabbatical to lead the Biden for President campaign in Texas. Prior to joining PepsiCo, she was the Executive Director of the Latino Center for Leadership Development, an organization that develops a diverse pipeline of policymakers and thought-leaders. A veteran of the Texas State capitol, Rebecca served as a Chief of Staff and Communications Director for three members of the Texas House of Representatives and one Member of Congress. Rebecca is the Chair-Elect for the Board of Directors for the Childcare Group of Dallas, the Workforce Solutions of Greater Dallas, and the Texas Retailers Association.
Denise Lee is an award-winning Dallas based actress/singer who has performed in all genres of entertainment for more than three decades. She has performed on stages in almost every theater in the metroplex. She is the founder and Executive Producer of the Denise Lee Onstage Cabaret Series and the Dallas Cabaret Festival. She is a 4-time recipient of the Dallas Voice’ ‘Best Vocalist’ in the Reader’s Voice Awards. She also has the distinct honor of being the 1st recipient of the Sammons Center for the Arts Cabaret Artist of the Year. She also has an extensive film and television resume. She has delighted international crowds with performances in jazz clubs in Shanghai, Beijing, Switzerland and France. Lee has recently added ‘playwright’ to her list of accomplishments. Her first play ‘Funny, You Don’t Act Like A Negro’ had its World Premiere at Historic Theatre Three in February of 2020.
In addition to her work as an Artist, Denise established ‘Community Conversation’, through her non-profit Visions For Change, Inc a 501©(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to create, promote and support programs and activities that build bridges to bring communities together. Entering it’s 7th year, Community Conversation brings people from all walks of life together for respectful, open, honest dialogue in order to heal racial and community tension. For these efforts, she has been awarded the Rudy Eastman Diversity Award by the Live Theater League of Tarrant County, a Special Citation of Recognition by the DFW Theater Critics and, in August of 2019, she was the recipient of Cathedral of Hope’s Hero of Hope Award. In 2022, Black Tie Dinner awarded Denise the Dale Hansen Ally of the Year Award. She has served as a member and Board Chair of the Dallas Street Choir and is the Social Justice Strategist for the Dallas Children’s Theater.
She is the very proud mom of 2 dedicated artists in their own right, Traci Elaine Lee & Janelle Nicole Gray.
Ayanna Lonian is a Director of Content Acquisition and the Head of the Worldwide Major Studio Licensing & Strategy Team for Amazon’s Prime Video streaming, subscription on-demand (SVOD) video service based in Dallas with significant experience in business strategy, content distribution, business development and corporate development. Ayanna leads a team of content acquisition executives which is responsible for negotiating global content licensing agreements with US major studios and TV network groups to secure the SVOD streaming rights to popular TV series and movies which Amazon makes available on its Prime Video streaming service on a worldwide basis. In addition, she oversees the daily business activities, general management and business functions for Prime Video Direct (PVD) on a worldwide basis. Ayanna leads a content program management team which is responsible for facilitating the internal execution and ingest of all of Prime Video’s worldwide SVOD licensing agreements with internal stakeholder teams and systems (e.g., Accounting, Video Supply Chain, etc.) post deal-execution/deal-signature. Ayanna is also responsible for managing the dedicated team of content acquisition executives who acquire locally produced Nigerian/Nollywood, South African, etc., and US/Hollywood content on behalf of Prime Video’s service in sub-Saharan Africa. Ayanna is an alumna of Phillips Exeter Academy, Harvard College and the Kellogg School of Management.
Leonor Márquez runs Los Barrios Unidos Community Clinic, a West Dallas non-profit that operates on a $25 million annual budget, serves 30,000 patients yearly, and employs several hundred people. Leonor is a previous Board Director at the Center, serving as resident company representative for Anita N. Martinez Ballet Folklorico from 2018-2022. Leonor has been a great asset as an active member of the Education & Community Engagement Committee and community partner in the ArtsBridge program.
Miguel Solis has served the residents of Dallas in the areas of education, housing, and transportation. He began his professional career as a member of President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign and soon after was selected as a Teach For America corps member in Dallas, TX where he taught 8th grade social studies in the Dallas public schools. Solis would later serve as special assistant to the superintendent of the school system; co-found the non-profit Latino Center for Leadership Development; and run the urban policy think tank Coalition for a New Dallas. In 2013, Miguel was elected to the Dallas ISD Board of Trustees at the age of 27. During his tenure he was elected by his colleagues as the Board President and Vice-President making him the youngest person to ever hold these roles. Miguel is involved in numerous non-profit activities including serving on the Children’s Medical Center Foundation Board, the Teach For America national board of directors, and is President-Elect for Dallas Assembly.
Linda McIntosh Todd is an MBA who retired in 2018 as global manager of oil and gas accounts for Xerox after 34 years of service. Linda has served the community on a number of boards including: Dallas Black Dance Theatre (since 1989); The Dallas Arboretum & Botanic Garden (since 2018) serving as Chair, of the first annual Black Heritage & Cultural Event; The Links Incorporated (since 2003) currently serving as their President.
Laurie Marine Wallace is a digital transformation leader who has been at the forefront of information technology for over 20 years. Building corporate culture that supports innovation, technology-driven initiatives, with dynamic sustainability advantages, she has successfully launched digital solutions, built revenue channels and operationalized programs at scale in the United States, Latin America, Europe and Asia markets focused on mobile internet, SaaS applications and machine learning technology. Laurie’s corporate experience includes Nokia, Epsilon, Loyalty-One, and Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters recognized her leadership in two consecutive DCEO’s Women Leading in Technology and Innovation issues (2022-2023). Laurie served on the Parish Episcopal School of Dallas’ Board of Trustee (2020-2023) and the Inclusion & Belonging Taskforce (2017-2019). She is an alumnus of UC Berkeley (BA Latin American Studies) and UCLA (MA Public Policy & MA Latin American Studies). She is married and has a son in college. She has lived and worked extensively throughout Latin America and Canada.
Carol West is a Certified Public Accountant with three decades of experience in Corporate Audit and Public Accounting. Her corporate experience includes Touche Ross Public Accounting Firm, Vice President of Internal Audit & Control and Vice President of Financial Planning for Associates Corporation of North America/Citigroup. She also served as Vice President of Operations for Reach Media with a strong focus on the cruise industry, and as Comptroller with West & Associates. Carol served many years on the Visit Dallas Board of Directors and on its Leadership Council, is active with the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and a member and Treasurer of the Trinity Chapter of The Links, Inc.
Radhika Zaveri is a Professor of Practice at Southern Methodist University specializing in consumer strategy, innovation and human centered design thinking for graduate programs at the Cox Business School and in Executive Education; and is the podcast host for PODWalk. She designed PODWalk to encourage students to get off screens, go for a walk and listen to industry experts as a part of their curriculum. She has spent three decades in the consumer packaged goods industry driving growth & innovation for Fortune 500 companies to entrepreneurial startups. During her career, she has worked at Nestle® USA managing billion-dollar brands like Stouffer’s and Lean Cuisine; Rubbermaid® and continues to consult for various corporations. With her corporate branding experience & passion for social enterprise, she founded a company to serve women artisans to gain financial independence & is on advisory boards for several start-ups. Radhika is one of the founding members of The Orchid Giving Circle®, a fund at the Texas Women’s Foundation and has served 6 terms at The Family Place.
They began their three-year tenure this month. The Board of Directors of the AT&T Performing Arts Center comprises volunteer leaders from Dallas’ business, civic and cultural communities. It is one of the most diverse boards among the city’s major arts institutions. The Board of Directors provides mission-based leadership and strategic governance to the Center.