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The Top 50
Thursday, June 01, 2000
Here are cultural power brokers two through 25:
2. Christina Aguilera
Superstar
AGE: 19
CLAIM TO FAME: She may be barely out of high school, but Aguilera has already done enough to be considered the most successful pop performer ever out of Pittsburgh -- or in her case, Wexford. Consider the stats: Her debut album, a self-titled effort, topped the U.S. charts its first week out and after 40 weeks remains at No. 28, pushing sales of 7 million in the States (10 million worldwide). "Genie in a Bottle," the smoldering hit that practically defined last summer, finished No. 7 on the year-end Hot 100 Singles Chart in Billboard, after logging five consecutive weeks at the top of the charts. Her second single, "What a Girl Wants," also topped the charts for two weeks. Her current hit, the album cut "I Turn to You," is No. 17 with a bullet. A long-form Aguilera video, "Genie Gets Her Wish," has been certified platinum. She won the Best New Artist Grammy, leading Rolling Stone to use her "Ohmigod, you guys!" acceptance speech as the headline for its Grammy cover age. She's graced the cover of countless magazines, has her own calendar, and her poster is hanging on thousands of bedroom walls. A former Mouseketeer, her TV credits range from "SNL" to a half-time performance at the Super Bowl. But where's her staying power? That's what people asked about Sinatra in the '40s. What we do know now is this: An RCA executive was quoted in Time as saying, "She's our Streisand." With a cuter nose, of course.
LAST YEAR: Still in a bottle
3. The Many Faces of Money
Philanthropists
CLAIM TO FAME: There are all kinds of money, and many ways of measuring its impact on the arts. In the past, we've focused on some specific faces, but this year we're broadening the category to reflect the diversity of generosity in the region. Personal giving still leads the list, of course, and Henry and Elsie Hillman still give the most. On the corporate side, PNC and Mellon maintain the highest profiles under the leadership of Jim Rohr and Marty McGuinn, respectively. Bayer, under Helge Wehmeier, is fast emerging as another prime donor, and corporations such as Heinz, Highmark, National City, Giant Eagle, Duquesne Light, US Airways, Bell Atlantic and Dick Corp. also are major underwriters. Much of the local arts scene is supported by grants from foundations, with the Pittsburgh Foundation and Heinz Endowment leading the pack that includes the McCune, Benedum, Richard King Mellon, Allegheny, Alcoa and other foundations. Funding a pet arts venue or project is another important form of giving best exemplified by Richard Rauh, who has donated performing spaces at the O'Reilly Theater, Carnegie Mellon's new Purnell Center and the Pittsburgh Playhouse. Helping to generate new sources of money is of vital importance, with the efforts of Freemarkets' Glenn Meakam to mobilize the high-tech community a prime example. Finally, there are many members of the Anonymous family, but they couldn't be reached for comment.
LAST YEAR: Dominated the Top 10
4. Mariss Jansons
Music director, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
AGE: 57
CLAIM TO FAME: Last year, Jansons took the orchestra on a highly successful tour of Europe that boosted its reputation overseas -- an effort he just duplicated. He also came in third when the prestigious Berlin Philharmonic voted for its new music director -- a showing that further heightened the PSO's standing. Back home, Jansons' passion for music has energized audiences at Heinz Hall, and his ideas for improving attendance continue to flow.
LAST YEAR: No. 5
5. Madeleine Grynsztejn
Curator of Contemporary Art, Carnegie Museum of Art, and curator of the 1999 Carnegie International
AGE: 38
CLAIM TO FAME: Grynsztejn made her mark on the museum world -- and pulled Pittsburgh along with her -- by putting together an International that looked forward to the new century and attracted a curious and interested 160,000 visitors. While on her whirlwind global search, she also purchased artworks for the permanent collection. During that time, she spoke nationally and internationally on the status of contemporary art. Firsts for her International were an important academic symposium and the publication of an Artists' Reader, reflecting the expanding intellectual direction that contemporary art has taken.
LAST YEAR: One to watch
6. Rich Engler
Concert and festival promoter
AGE: 53
CLAIM TO FAME: DiCesare-Engler Productions, now under the wing of the world's largest concert promoter, SFX Entertainment, remains the most powerful force on the local concert scene. Engler oversees the I.C. Light Amphitheatre and coordinates the bookings at the Post-Gazette Pavilion with a national representative of SFX. DiCesare-Engler is having a huge year within the city itself -- with two summer concerts at Three Rivers Stadium ('N Sync and Dave Matthews Band) and dates at the Mellon Arena with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Bruce Springsteen and Diana Ross and the Supremes, and Ricky Martin coming this month.
LAST YEAR: No. 7
7. Thomas Sokolowski
Director, The Andy Warhol Museum
AGE: 50
LAST YEAR: No. 10
8: Bill Strickland
Founder and executive director, Manchester Craftsmen's Guild; president/CEO, Bidwell Training Center
AGE: 52
CLAIM TO FAME: One of Pittsburgh's most effective arts ambassadors, Strickland in the past year has worked to replicate the success of the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild by helping San Francisco begin a similar institution. Now talks are under way in St. Louis and Chicago. The guild, founded by Strickland in 1966 to advance the academic and personal achievement of inner-city youth through hands-on art experiences, also furthered its national reach by managing the Denali Initiative -- a new program that teaches entrepreneurial skills to leaders of nonprofit organizations nationwide.
LAST YEAR: No. 11
9. Fred Rogers
Cultural icon
AGE: 72
CLAIM TO FAME: Although a disgruntled few questioned his selection for commencement speaker at Old Dominion University, he received applause, cheers, two standing ovations and an honorary doctorate. Requests for graduation 2001 already are arriving. In recent months, he's been interviewed by NBC's Katie Couric and Regis and Kathie Lee, parodied in prime time, profiled in Christianity Today and Parade and honored by the Salvation Army. A pair of traveling "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" exhibits just arrived in Chicago and Minneapolis. The Pittsburgh-based show has figured into questions on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," and a "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" sky show will be coming to a planetarium near you soon.
LAST YEAR: Same
10. Eddie Gilbert
Artistic director, Pittsburgh Public Theater
AGE: 62
CLAIM TO FAME: A key part of Gilbert's charge when he arrived in 1993 was to help design the new theater to be built Downtown by the Cultural Trust. Presto: This year he oversaw (with the considerable help of managing director Stephen Klein) the strenuous move into the O'Reilly Theater. The Public also achieved a new level of national recognition with its world premiere of August Wilson's "King Hedley II" and fresh-from-New York productions of plays by hot authors Conor McPherson and Christopher Durang. A good leader also prepares for the future: Having announced his departure as of August, Gilbert contributed materially to the choice of his successor, Ted Pappas. Just opened is Gilbert's swan song, "The Cherry Orchard," which is itself about the end of an era. It's a classy exit.
LAST YEAR: No. 14
11. Janet Sarbaugh
Program director for arts and culture, Heinz Endowments
AGE: 48
CLAIM TO FAME: This year saw the implementation of the "Arts Bring Life to Life" ad campaign, an initiative based on a Heinz Endowments study -- overseen by Sarbaugh -- that gauged people's feelings about the arts. The study is beginning to grab the attention of arts groups and foundations nationwide. Sarbaugh continues to allocate significant grants to local arts groups while putting potential grantees at ease with her down-to-earth personality.
LAST YEAR: No. 8
12. Charlie Humphrey
Executive director, Pittsburgh Filmmakers
AGE: 41
CLAIM TO FAME: Filmmakers is about to embark on a projected $2 million expansion of its headquarters on Melwood Avenue in Oakland, with plans to add a second screening room, a small sound st age, more classrooms, editing rooms, office and library space. It is already one of the nation's largest media arts centers and, in addition to its educational endeavors, programs three movie theaters dedicated to foreign and independent film. Humphrey is a member of the Fifth and Forbes coordinating committee and is co-chairman of the Pittsburgh Arts Alliance. He also sits on the boards of The Andy Warhol Museum, Artists and Cities and Quantum Theater, among others.
LAST YEAR: No. 13
13. Gideon Toeplitz
Executive vice president and managing director, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
AGE: 55
CLAIM TO FAME: It's rare when top man agement gives up any measure of control for the good of the company. Toeplitz did just that when he recommended that the PSO adopt a Japanese man agement technique called Hoshin, which puts man agement, board members, volunteers and musicians at the table for decision-making. Three years into the program, the results are impressive: Employee-man agement relations are excellent, and morale is high. If employee contentment, fiscal strength and sound strategic vision are crucial criteria for judging a man ager, Toeplitz gets high marks.
LAST YEAR: No. 14
14. Squonk
Performance artists
CLAIM TO FAME: Whether it was guts or naivete that led the Pittsburgh performance artists to take their insurgent show to New York's Helen Hayes Theatre, the short run attracted the attention of the entertainment industry and gave hope to other nontraditional artists. Although Squonk's "bigsmorgasbordwunderwerks" closed on Broadway in a matter of weeks, the group's ingenuity and dogged work ethic made their mark. A new kind of musical theater is gaining popularity off-Broadway, and Squonk may have been another casualty in the revolution that is bringing new form to The Great White Way. Partly in response to their being overlooked this year, the Tony Awards have added an awards category next year called "best entertainment." Squonk has signed with Angel Records, which will remaster and rerelease its CD. And PBS plans a documentary on "bigsmorgasbordwunderwerks."
LAST YEAR: Newcomer
15. Marc Masterson
Producing director, City Theatre
AGE: 44
CLAIM TO FAME: The longest-lasting artistic chief of an upper- echelon arts group in town, Masterson has kept City on a steady course toward greater visibility, increased skill and more diverse programming. Last year, it again expanded its South Side physical plant and increased its outreach and artistic partnering. This year, hits like "Master Class" increased the audience, and the New Works on St age project, in which City will commission 15 new plays over five years, had an immediate payoff in an American Theatre Critics Association new play award to Jeffrey Hatcher's "Compleat Female St age Beauty." Masterson is also a much-liked behind-the-scenes leader in the ever-more-proactive Pittsburgh arts community.
LAST YEAR: No. 16
16. Mark Weinstein
General director, Pittsburgh Opera
AGE: 44
CLAIM TO FAME: With his company at the crossroads, its longtime leader Tito Capobianco retiring, Weinstein was faced with one of the biggest challenges of his tenure. He responded with a coup, bringing not one but two nationally known figures into the fold. Christopher Hahn, serving as artistic director, and John Mauceri, as music director, will head the Opera together. They pledge to push the company in new and exciting directions, and will help Weinstein put his own stamp on it, post-Tito.
LAST YEAR: No. 18
17. Ellsworth H. Brown
President, Carnegie Institute and Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
AGE: 57
CLAIM TO FAME: During the past year, Brown oversaw the development of architectural master plans, now nearing completion, for each of the institutions under the Carnegie umbrella. The Oakland facility became more user-friendly when guards were replaced with knowledgeable guides. The year also brought the resignation of Museum of Natural History director Jay Apt, whose almost three-year tenure was marked by both a shift to high-tech interactive displays and low morale among staffers. Outside the museum, Brown, a member of the Pittsburgh Riverlife Task Force, maintained high visibility on groups and committees devoted to making Pittsburgh a more livable city.
LAST YEAR: Same
18. Barbara Luderowski
Founder-director, Mattress Factory
AGE: 69
CLAIM TO FAME: In October, the museum opened its most ambitious exhibition to date, "Installations by Asian Artists in Residence," the result of extensive travels to home studios in five countries by Luderowski and curator Michael Olijnyk. A permanent education department and a business membership program were established, staff numbers almost doubled, and membership increased 327 percent from 1998. An installation by artist Yayoi Kusama traveled to Serpentine Gallery, London, and the museum was among influential Artforum International magazine's best of the '90s selections. It's one of four Pittsburgh arts organizations chosen to mentor for the National Arts Marketing Project. Luderowski is a member of Jim Roddey's Idea Factory. The museum has begun a $2 million renovation project, and two properties were acquired to house staff offices in order to expand public space in the main building. In December, the Heinz Endowment awarded the museum a $1 million challenge grant.
LAST YEAR: No. 21
19. Terrence Orr
Artistic director, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
AGE: 57
CLAIM TO FAME: Orr is indicating that he has come to Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre to be a major player. In his three years here, short by artistic standards, he has instilled new blood and a burgeoning confidence in the PBT. That was all on display in the jazz-inspired "Indigo in Motion," PBT's dynamic world premiere that set a new local and national standard for interdisciplinary works.
LAST YEAR: No. 23
20. Robin Fernandez
President, Sportsrock Entertainment
AGE: 44
CLAIM TO FAME: The owner of the pioneering Rosebud/Metropol complex is more than holding his own in a Strip District brimming with franchise clubs. In fact, he's taking the offensive, with two new nightclubs in the works. One is a Latin tapas bar in the Cultural District; the other is a Heaven-type dance club in the Strip. Also under the Sportsrock banner is the Fox Chapel Yacht Club and Next Big Thing Productions, the in-house concert promotion company at Rosebud/Metropol. On a smaller scale, Fernandez has opened two Rosebud Delis Downtown. A third is coming, and it will be run by clients of the Bethlehem Haven shelter for women as an effort to help resocialize them into the working world.
LAST YEAR: No. 19
21. Rick Sebak
WQED producer, writer, narrator
AGE: 46
CLAIM TO FAME: Sebak consistently turns out well-reviewed and (more important) well-liked scrapbook documentaries that have his distinctive voice, warmth and style. He brings the same enthusiasm to doughnuts as to dinosaur bones and, as we learned in "Things That Are Still Here," actually understands what the Orange Belt is. This summer he will shoot "A Flea Market Documentary" for PBS. It will be the first of four national projects. On the local front, he will produce "Something About Oakland" for WQED for December.
LAST YEAR: No. 28
22. Van Kaplan
Executive producer and general man ager, Pittsburgh CLO
AGE: 43
CLAIM TO FAME: With an annual budget of more than $6 million, the CLO is the biggest theater in town. But on arrival in 1998, Kaplan's charge included making "Pittsburgh CLO" a brand name that could travel. One result is "Barry Manilow's "Copacabana," co-produced by the CLO and Dallas Summer Musicals, that this month makes its American debut to lead off the CLO season and then sets out on a national tour -- travel indeed. Kaplan also just took office as president of the National Alliance of Musical Theater Producers and will be host for the next board meeting here.
LAST YEAR: Same
23. Richard Armstrong
Director, Carnegie Museum of Art
AGE: 51
CLAIM TO FAME: With his hosting and fund-raising duties for the 1999 Carnegie International behind him, Armstrong is concentrating on two major exhibitions, "Aluminum by Design," opening this fall, and one on light in the spring. He continues to acquire works of art that correct period gaps in the collection and raise its overall quality. Armstrong sees the strong cooperative relationship between staff and board as instrumental to a long-range goal to be the "crossroads for visual literacy in the region."
LAST YEAR: No. 24
24. Linda Wambaugh
Co-chair, Save Pittsburgh Public Television
AGE: 46
CLAIM TO FAME: Just as David knocked down Goliath, the Save Pittsburgh Public Television campaign created enough of a ruckus to help derail WQED Pittsburgh's attempts to sell WQEX. Wambaugh and Jerry Starr (now in Washington, D.C., after forming Citizens for Independent Public Broadcasting) kept WQED's feet to the fire, filing appeal after appeal with the Federal Communications Commission objecting to a Christian station (Cornerstone TeleVisions's WPCB) obtaining WQEX's noncommercial/educational license.
LAST YEAR: Newcomer
25. George Miles
President, WQED Pittsburgh
AGE: 58
CLAIM TO FAME: So close and yet so far. Miles succeeded in getting the FCC to sign off on the sale of WQEX, only to have the deal collapse. Now the same lineup continues to be broadcast on WQED and WQEX, which doesn't do viewers any good whether they wanted the old WQEX back or the upstart Pax network added to the market. Miles must come up with a viable Plan C before his goals for WQED can be fully realized. Even without that much-needed influx of cash, Miles deserves credit for getting "On Q" launched. The show's quality varies, but it provides newsmagazine-style stories on the arts, religion, culture, etc., that can't be found on local commercial stations.
LAST YEAR: No. 20
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