Benny Sato Ambush came to Venice Theatre as interim artistic director in 2021 amid the COVID pandemic. His plan to stay for a year grew to four, but now he expects to leave in June and return to his Boston-area home to resume other artistic endeavors he had put on hold.
Ambush, 74, was hired in March 2021 to succeed Allan Kollar, who died suddenly the previous August at the age of 56. Ambush said he was asked to oversee the 2021-22 performance season, produce the international WorldFest that the company hosts every other year with the American Association of Community Theaters and help upgrade the quality of acting at the theater to match the “level of consistent excellence that we had achieved in production values. I think we did all those things.”
He had extended his first year by a few months when Hurricane Ian struck in September 2022, destroying the company’s mainstage Jervey Theatre. Construction crews are currently working on rebuilding the space as performances continue in a newly created temporary venue, the Raymond Center.
“We were producing shows 50 days after Hurricane Ian and we haven’t stopped, and we’ve been doing full seasons in our two spaces,” he said.
The theater is now trying to raise another $5 million for its Fill the Theater campaign to complete work on the interior of the space once construction is completed.
Ambush, who came to Venice after years working in professional and academic theater positions, said he enjoyed the job more than he thought he might and he wanted to stick around to help the theater get back on track after the pandemic and hurricane.
“I realize that in many ways these last four years have been the most creative in my career because I’ve been able to use my complete skill set here,” Ambush said. “I wear many hats. I’m a not-for-profit arts institution leader, a producer, a director, a teacher, a mentor, a visionary looking at the future of the theater, and a cheerleader. I’ve been able to do all of that but I’ve also kept my professional directing career going.”
During his tenure, he worked closely with longtime staff member Kristofer Geddie, who was named executive director in 2023, making Venice Theatre a rare performing arts organization in the region with two leaders of color.
Geddie, who called Ambush’s departure “bittersweet,” said it “is not lost on me how important it was to me to have Benny here, to have another man of color in artistic leadership in Sarasota.” He said seeing “someone who looks like me when I walk into a room re-energizes me every day.”
Venice Theatre is said to be the second-largest community theater in the country and operates with an annual budget of about $4 million.
Murray Chase, who has been with Venice Theatre since 1995, including many years as artistic and executive director, will step back into the role of interim artistic director while continuing to oversee the restoration of the Jervey Theatre. Chase has said he plans to retire once the renovation work is completed.
“Murray knows how the job works,” Geddie said, and that will allow the theater to take its time searching for a new artistic director. He said the theater had not decided yet how to proceed with its search.
Geddie described Ambush as “a brother and a mentor to me. Much of my grad school work, whenever I had questions he was always there to answer.” They first met when Ambush came to Venice Theatre as an adjudicator for the 2014 WorldFest, which features mostly amateur theater troupes from around the world. He returned in 2018.
In a note to students, patrons and volunteers, Ambush wrote, “Part of me wishes to stay forever. I made many great memories here and I will miss the legions of friends, colleagues, artists, students, co-workers, donors, patrons and board trustees I was privileged to work with and know. At the end of this 75th season, I know that Venice Theatre will forge ahead for another 75 years with new wind in its sails.”
Ambush was a veteran director and educator in professional and college theater before he joined Venice Theatre – his role as artistic director was his eighth arts leadership position.
He previously worked on productions at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, South Coast Rep in Costa Mesa, California and the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, among others.
Ambush also spent time as a senior distinguished producing director-in-residence at Emerson Stage at Emerson College in Boston, was producing artistic director at Oakland Ensemble Theatre and associate artistic director at American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco.
In addition to unveiling a new season schedule last month, Ambush has been actively involved in the theater’s educational programs.
“He helped with curriculum development and added a layer of support that benefitted both students and the education department staff,” said Sandy Davisson, director of education and community engagement, in a statement.
Ambush said he wanted to make sure that no one thought there was any controversy behind his departure. If he waited until the Jervey was completed and then the process of turning the Raymond Center back into the educational facility it was intended to be, it could be five to seven years.
“I wanted to do this in a way that was helpful to the theater and wouldn’t erroneously signal to people, ‘uh, oh! Trouble.’ I’ve loved it here.”
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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Venice Theatre artistic director departing after four years
Reporting by Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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