Consistently praised for his many ventures in the operatic field, Eric Dillner is a dynamic force in operatic productions across the globe. A performer, university teacher, private voice instructor, and recording artist, Dillner is also an ingenious creative administrator who has successfully filled a variety of artistic directorial positions in many popular theatre venues. In 2001, former Florida State University Opera Fellow Dillner accepted the position of General and Artistic Director of Shreveport Opera in Shreveport, Louisiana. While with this venue, he held a broad array of responsibilities that ranged from creative decision making to marketing and budgeting. He intelligently managed the annual budget of $980,000 and consistently garnered considerable profit.

As Artistic Director, Dillner frequently sought and produced new material; under his direction, the Shreveport Opera hosted the world premieres of several educational children’s operas, among them Why Dinosaurs Don’t Smoke and What is Freedom, both by celebrated playwright Susan Yankee. Additionally, Dillner garnered a number of grants for the Shreveport Opera, including two prestigious Annenberg Grants and a $50,000 grant from the Louisiana State Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism; the latter went towards a lauded production of the classic opera La Bohème. He remained General and Artistic Director of Shreveport Opera for seven years.

Thanks to his ingenious marketing strategies, the theatre’s annual budget doubled and the subscription sales rose almost 10 percent. In 2008, Eric Dillner left Shreveport Opera to pursue other ventures, and his talents found a home at Skylight Opera Theatre in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As Managing Director of Skylight Opera Theatre, Dillner oversaw nearly every operation of the highly successful venue, which offers live audiences more than 100 performances annually.

Eric Dillner restructured the theatre’s marketing department and made very positive and necessary changes in a number of other areas that saved the company $100,000 in only a year. A man of many capabilities in both creative and financial respects, he founded his own enterprise in 2009.

Currently, he serves as CEO of Strategic Nonprofit Analysis and Planning (SNAAP). This firm consults with non-profit CEOs and management teams and assists artistic ventures with budgeting and strategic planning.

 

 

 

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