Michelle Isabelle-Stark
Director, Arlington Cultural Affairs
Leading the Division since 2014, Ms. Isabelle-Stark brings more than two decades of experience in strategic planning, marketing and program management for arts, visual media and technology organizations. Most recently the Director of The Office of Film & Cultural Affairs for Suffolk County, NY, her accomplishments there included an estimated $500 million in economic impact from film production, the $14 million Artspace Patchogue affordable artist housing project, the national award-winning Live on the Vine cultural tourism project, and New York State grants to support the Long Island Path Through History and STEaM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) Center initiative. Known for her entrepreneurial skills, she is responsible for promoting and growing the cultural sector of the Arlington County economy. She develops and oversees the work of a staff of 16 in Public Art, Cultural Development, Arts Enterprise, and Facilities and Technical Services, providing artistic excellence in curated programs and exhibitions, and services to artists and arts organizations. She holds a B.S. degree in Mathematics from SUNY Stony Brook and a M.B.A. from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and is an active member of Grantmakers in the Arts, Americans for the Arts, and the National Alliance for Media Arts & Culture. Email
Angela Adams
Director, Arlington Public Art
Angela Anderson Adams has worked as a curator and arts administrator for over 30 years, 20 of those years directing Arlington Public Art. Under her leadership Arlington Public Art has grown from being one of the first developer-sponsored programs in the country to an internationally renowned, award-winning public and privately funded program. The program contributes art and design enhancements to most major civic projects undertaken in the County. Prior to working for Arlington County, Adams served as adjunct curator at the National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC, and exhibitions director/curator for the Arlington Arts Center. She holds a B.A. in Art History from the College of Wooster, Ohio, and a M.A. in the History of Art from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Email
Jennifer Biehl
Arlington CostumeLab Manager
A resource which has benefitted Arlington’s grant-supported arts groups for over 40 years, this impressive costume collection has been under Biehl’s stewardship since 2014. In addition to the well-outfitted workshop, Biehl manages a collection of more than 20,000 costumes and articles of vintage clothing dating back to the 19th Century, most of which are also available for rent to professional theatre companies and film crews. Biehl joined the County in 2014, having worked in costume shops around the country, including the Utah Shakespeare Festival, Hartford Stage Company, an Orlando Shakespeare Theater. Jennifer has spent the last four years in the DC area working for the Shakespeare Theatre Company as well as Arena Stage and Ford’s Theater. A master of tailoring, Biehl also is skilled at painting, dying, and leatherwork, as well as teaching. Email
Jim Byers
Marketing Director
Byers has served as Arlington Arts’ Marketing Director since 1996. He has been integral to presentations ranging from concerts by Melba Moore, Ray Barretto and Lila Downs, to the large-scale Planet Arlington World Music Festival and Rosslyn Jazz Festival, garnering regional, national and international coverage for County events, installations and exhibits. Previously, Byers was Marketing Director for DC’s Dance Place, a national hub for modern dance and performance art. Jim is now in his 21st year as producer/host of WPFW 89.3 FM’s Latin Flavor Classic Edition, an archival Latin-jazz radio show, and frequently lectures on the genre for Smithsonian Institution, Library of Congress and numerous area universities. Since 2004, the McLean, Va-raised DC-resident has led the annual WalkingTown DC tour of Hillcrest, Southeast, his neighborhood of 21 years. Jim also authored the community’s chapter in the 2nd edition of Washington At Home: An Illustrated History of Neighborhoods in the Nation’s Capital (Katherine S. Smith, editor.) John’s Hopkins University Press, 2010. Email
Elizabeth Carriger
Public Art Project Manager
Joining Arlington Public Art in 2015, Elizabeth Carriger is responsible for structuring and leading the implementation of public art and design enhancements as a component of County and other capital and infrastructure projects by providing project management, leadership, expertise and general guidance to the County and other agencies in support of the goals of the County’s Public Art Master Plan and Public Art Policy. Possessed of more than a decade of arts management experience, Carriger most recently served as Public Art Coordinator for the DC Commission for the Arts and Humanities, where notable projects include a wayfinding project for the burgeoning St. Elizabeth’s East Campus in Congress Heights; light art projects designed to activate two National Parks on ‘America’s Main Street,’ Pennsylvania Avenue; and a highly-lauded program called “Designed to Recycle,” which wrapped city recycling trucks in work designed by local artists. Email
Luis Chavesta
Sound and Engineer Manager
Hailing from Peru, after relocating to the DC area in 2005, Luis began his career in audio at a historical venue in the City of Falls Church. There, he was able to build a substantial foundation to launch a career in live music working with various types of artists and musical genres. Luis then began to pursue a career in theatrical arts. After five years of touring the globe with an Israeli based musical and theatrical act, he was able to transition into a touring engineer position with notable artists such as Steel Pulse, Lila Downs and Peru’s own, Eva Ayllon. After completing multiple worldwide tours with these artists, Luis began delving into post production work and building a home recording studio which led him to Arlington County, where is he able to apply his many talents and skills to support the vibrant Arlington Arts programs. He has a Protools from Berkeley school of music, and is pursuing Bachelor in Music Production and Arts Management. Email
Cynthia Connolly
Special Projects Curator
Cynthia Connolly joined the Division in 2003 as Curator for the County-run Ellipse Arts Center Gallery in Ballston. In 2010, Connolly became Visual Arts Curator of Artisphere where she curated over 14 exhibits a year to national and international acclaim. Ongoing projects from this period include Art on the ART Bus, an Arlington Transit bus containing rotating exhibits of original work by regional artists. She is a photographer, letterpress printer, curator and artist whose work is shown internationally. She exhibited in Beautiful Losers establishing herself as a pioneer in DIY culture and was reviewed extensively, including Art in America. Her photography is in many private collections as well as the J. Paul Getty Museum, Smithsonian Museum of American History, National Museum of Women in the Arts and the Corcoran Gallery of Art from which she holds a degree. Email
Hal Crawford
Director of Facilities and Technical Services
An Arlington native, Hal has served his community and the arts in this position for over twenty years. His professional experience in theatre as a college professor, Helen Hayes nominated set and lighting designer, and now county staff member is invaluable as he works to coordinate performance venues and show dates for the local theater groups supported by Arlington Arts grantees. Indeed, it was two summers as a volunteer technician at Lubber Run Amphitheater that led him to change his major from engineering to technical design in the drama department at the University of Virginia, and then a graduate degree from the University of Georgia. Hal has taught at SUNY Old Westbury, Kearney State College in Nebraska, and Catholic University in Washington, DC. Among his many responsibilities, Mr. Crawford schedules all of the productions for Gunston Theaters 1 and 2, the Thomas Jefferson Theater and Theater on the Run.
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Jared Davis
Arlington Scene Shop Manager
Since 2000, Jared has managed the County-run Scene Shop, overseeing the construction and painting of scenery by Arlington-based groups that perform in county-run venues, one of the critical and unique ways by which Arlington supports the arts. He also designs and paints scenery for Arlington Arts grantees. He specializes in backdrop painting and takes every opportunity to pass on the craft at the scenery studio. Jared’s skills have earned him 14 WATCH award nominations for supported groups and has won outstanding set design in a musical in 2013, for Dominion Stage’s Avenue Q and again in 2016, for The Arlington Players’ Man of La Mancha. A noted regional artist and event producer, Jared produces the popular Elvis’ Birthday Fight Club, Yuri’s Night and America the Game Show. Originally from Detroit, MI he moved to DC, in 1999, where he lives with his wife, son and Boston terrier. Email
Antoinette Essex
[forthcoming] Email
Andres Luque
Facilities Manager
Andres comes from the local DC theater community, beginning his career in the area 15 years ago with Signature Theater. He has a AA in Fine Arts with a specialization in Technical Theater from NVCC. He’s originally from Bogota, Colombia, but grew up in Arlington, VA and was a graduate of Yorktown High School. Aside from his seven year tenure with Signature, Andres has worked as the Technical Director of GALA Hispanic Theater for 5 years and has had the pleasure of working with various other theaters in the DMV during his career. He now serves as Assistant to the Director of Technical Services for Arlington County and helps maintain the multiple theater facilities used by the County. Email
Joan M. Lynch
Director, Arts Enterprise
Joan M. Lynch
has serves as Director of Arts Enterprise for Arlington Cultural Affairs since 2015. From 2008 to 2017 Joan served as the Manager of Grants and Artists Services (and now supervises the management of the grant program), working with Arlington County’s multi-disciplinary arts community. Joan has collaborated on several successful NEA Grants for the Division, including: the Bolivian Festival, and the Mongolian Festival and gallery exhibit sponsored by Arlington cultural Affairs. Her work is further informed by her decades of continuing work in costume design and wardrobe supervision (having initially joined Arlington County’s Costume Shop staff in 2009). Continuing to work for such organizations as the Washington Ballet, Joan’s artistry also has been utilized by Washington Opera, Wolftrap, Dance Theater of Harlem, Kennedy Center, Debbie Allen School of Dance. She also was Costume Supervisor for the Wolf Trap Opera from 1986 to 1992. A member of both IATSE Local 772 (stage), and IATES Local 487 DC/Baltimore (Film/TV), her film credits include The West Wing, The Wire, The District and the film ‘Forrest Gump.’ Joan holds a BFA of Fabric Design & Crafts from Virginia Commonwealth University, and also is a graduate of New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology summer program. Email
Deirdre Ehlen MacWilliams
Public Art Project Manager
As part of Arlington Public Art since 20__ Ms. Ehlen MacWilliams has developed and managed County-initiated projects and advised on various public art and design enhancement requests. Previously, Deirdre worked as the public art coordinator for the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and for Weitzman Studios in Brentwood, MD. Deirdre also works independently on creative projects and initiatives. In 2014, she was a project manager for Finding a Line, working with local artist and skateboarder Ben Ashworth and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the curator for Georgetown GLOW Winter public art exhibition, the curator for Hickok Cole’s Art Night and curator and project manager for four new sculptures by Foon Sham located within Golden Triangle. She also directs Mid City Artists, a group of professional artists who have come together for the purpose of promoting their art and the mid-city section of DC. Email
Steven A Muñoz
Director, Lee Arts Center
Serving as Director of the Division’s Lee Arts Center since 2009, Steven Munoz joined the organization two years before as Manager for the Arts Grant Program which supports Arlington-based arts organizations and individual artists. Possessed of a wealth of grants experience, Munoz spent six years as Grants Manger at the Meyer Foundation in Washington, DC. He sat on the national board of directors for the Grants Managers Network, serving as chair of the DC area chapter. Previous affiliations include the National Association of State Budget Officers & Federal Funds Information for States, the Phillips Collection, and Hillwood Museum and Gardens. The New Mexico native moved to the area to attend American University, receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in printmaking. A recipient of the Allen M. Carney Memorial Scholarship in Fine Arts, and the Elizabeth Van Swinderen Award, today his work is in the permanent collections of the Western Railroad and Mining Museum in Helper, Utah and Arlington County Government in Virginia. Email
Sharon Raphael
Arts Enterprise Project Manager, Grants Administrator
Sharon brings a diversified background in both the arts and events to Cultural Affairs. She has been with Arlington County since 2011 and currently serves as the Cultural Affairs Division Project Manager. Prior to her tenure, Sharon was an Account Executive at Hayes & Associates where she planned events and galas throughout Washington, DC including the White House, Pentagon, and the Capitol building. Her previous experience also includes being Director of Special Events and Catering at the City Tavern Club, Senior Catering Manager for Hilton Hotels, and Promotions Assistant for WASH-FM. Her background allows for a unique perspective on events in Washington, DC. Sharon discovered her love of events while earning her BA in Psychology at The American University here in Washington, DC. After graduation Sharon moved back to NYC and planned events for a year before returning to DC to earn a certificate in event management from the George Washington University. In her free time she volunteers for Alpha Epsilon Phi and was elected National Vice President in 2011. She has been re-elected for 3 two additional terms.
Zenia Simpson
Cultural Affairs Operations Coordinator
The newest addition to the Cultural Affairs team, Zenia Simpson brings her experience in nonprofit arts management to Arlington County to support the Cultural Affairs team in the delivery of events such as the Rosslyn Jazz Festival, contract administration, and various Operations initiatives. Prior to working for Arlington County, Zenia served as the Arts Projects Coordinator for the British Council, USA where she managed the Shakespeare Lives programming in the US which included partnering with The New York Public Library on an event series and creating original programming for the 2017 PEN America World Voices Festival. She previously was the William Randolph Hearst Fellow at The Aspen Institute’s Program on Social Innovation and Philanthropy and an intern at The Phillips Collection Center for the Study of Modern Art. Zenia holds a Bachelors in Journalism with honors from Howard University and is currently working on her Masters in Arts Management from American University. Email
Josh Stoltzfus
Director of Cultural Development
Primarily responsible for programming events presented by Arlington Arts, Stoltzfus brings over 15 years of experience in the arts working at such notable institutions as Wollf Trap, The Kennedy Center, Columbia Festival of the Arts, and Artisphere. He holds a Bachelor of Music from Berklee College of Music and an MA in Arts management from American University. Additionally he spent his early career working as an artist representative working with some of the leading names in American Roots and Wold Music. Before his career as arts administrator he was a working musician with numerous recording and performance credits having studied with such master blues guitarists such as Ronnie Earl and Wendell Holmes. Email