Palladium CEO reflects on her first two years

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Tania Castroverde Moskalenko, president and chief executive officer for The Center for the Performing Arts. (File photo)
Tania Castroverde Moskalenko, president and chief executive officer for The Center for the Performing Arts. (File photo)

By Mark Ambrogi

Tania Castroverde Moskalenko, president and chief executive officer for The Center for the Performing Arts in Carmel, admitted she has a wish list.

“I absolutely love Leonard Cohen and I would love to present Leonard Cohen,” she said. “I’d love to present Santana and Dolly Parton. There are many reasons why that may or may not happen.”

Moskalenko said those would be three artists she would love to present that she hasn’t had the opportunity to do so yet.

Moskalenko, who started her job in August 2012, shared with Current some thoughts on what she has observed during her first tenure.

What performers have resonated most with the Paladium audiences?

“As a non-profit, mission-driven organization our goal is to provide a variety of offerings to the community. Now the most popular, and we measure that of course by ticket sales and attendance, is the country series and the songbook series. Those are the strongest genres so to speak. However, we have different performers that do quite well. So when we have ‘80s rock or early ’90s rock artists they sell quite well.”

Are most of those country and songbook performances sold out?

“We do live in a culture that is very celebrity-driven. The sellouts are always going to be the artists who have very high visibility. For example, Tony Bennett was a sellout. Willie Nelson was a sellout. The artists who have attainted celebrity status sell out. Even in the classical music genre, where we present someone like Yoyo Ma. He’s a cellist who has achieved celebrity status worldwide. When we present Yoyo Ma, we know we’re going to sell out the hall. In the spring (April 26) we are presenting Itzhak Perlman, who has also reached celebrity status and we’ll sell out the hall. Then you present a performer who may not have that visibility in any genre whether it’s country, classical or jazz, and it’s more of a challenge to sell out the hall. As a mission-driven organization, we believe that strengthening our programing is not just presenting high-visibility or celebrity-status artists but it’s also to push the envelope in introducing new artists and introducing artists we know will not sell out the hall. But we also know it will introduce our community to new music or art forms. It’s very important we remain innovative in that way and we give artists the opportunity to present their work to Central Indiana. While the finances are very important, it’s not the only scorecard to measure success.”

Is there any genre that doesn’t connect with the Center’s audiences?

“Contemporary dance is not something that the masses are attracted to. It’s important to present movement but it’s also a challenge. For me, it’s one of the exciting things to present.”

Is there a timetable for announcement of the 2015-16 lineup and will it be a similar mix?

“We expect to make our lineup announcement in late spring. We’ll present some big names and at the same time we’ll present new artists. At the same time, we’ll present artists that appeal to a younger generation. I think the mix will be the same. We hope to have increased performances, especially since it’s our fifth anniversary (the Paladium opened in January 2011). We’ve moved our annual fundraising gala and Great American Songbook Hall of Fame to October. The past few years it’s (the gala) been in June. We moved it to October so we can kick off our fifth anniversary in a big way.”

Do you have personal favorite?

“I have lots of favorites. I love attending classical music at the Paladium. The acrostics are perfect for classical musical. It’s a wonderful experience to sit in the Paladium and listen to an orchestra play music. It’s really unequalled.”

What’s the best part of your job?

“When the performances are going on, the best part of my job is to look at the faces of our patrons because the experience of enjoying music is everything from ecstatic to joy to happiness. Sometimes it’s a transformational experience and you see it depending on the type of music. Unless I’m out of town, I’m at the Paladium for every show. I see people’s faces and the experiences they have with family and friends. At the end of the day, that is why I do what I do is to be able to provide those moments of inspiration and transformation to our community and the people that come to the concert.”


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