Theater Alliance Chief of Staff Washington, DC · Part time Company website

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Mission: Theater Alliance creates bold, socially conscious work that is rooted in justice, powered by local artists, and built to ensure our community is central to everything we do. Vision: Theater Alliance serves our community through innovative, diverse work – live performance, civic engagement, and creative expression. We make theater that inspires action, brings people together, and empowers humanity. We make thought-provoking theater that leaves you with more questions than you came with. An alliance by design, we anchor a multidisciplinary space and a new model for the arts: creating infrastructure, sharing resources, and growing a thriving ecosystem. With justice at the core of our operations, we amplify underrepresented voices, welcome all, and invest in the people who make the work possible. We believe the arts are a central tenet of a flourishing society. Values: Solidarity, Excellence, Justice, Authenticity.

Position Summary

The Chief of Staff is the Executive Artistic Director's organizational right hand — responsible for the internal coordination, communication, and administrative infrastructure that keeps Theater Alliance running smoothly and on schedule. This role exists to protect the EAD's time and focus, ensuring that nothing important falls through the cracks and that leadership can operate with clarity and momentum.

This is a role for someone who is organized, proactive, discreet, and energized by the behind-the-scenes work of keeping a complex organization aligned. The Chief of Staff is a trusted partner to the EAD, a reliable resource for the full staff team, and a calm, steady presence in a fast-moving organization.

Theater Alliance is at an inflection point — opening a permanent home, growing a team, and building systems for scale. The Chief of Staff joins at exactly the right moment to help shape how this organization operates as it grows.

Theater Alliance is a service organization. The Chief of Staff understands that every meeting prepped, every system maintained, every communication coordinated exists to support artists and serve community — and brings that ethic to their work.

Responsibilities: 

EAD Support & Executive Coordination

• Manage the EAD's organizational priorities: track action items, follow-up, and cross-team deadlines 
• Proactively identify and resolve anything that is blocking staff from doing their work - if the EAD is the bottleneck, surface it and solve it before it becomes a problem.
• Prepare the EAD for meetings, events, and external engagements: materials, talking points, and logistics
• Manage the EAD's calendar in coordination with organizational and production schedules
• Handle EAD correspondence and communications as directed - strong writing, proofreading, and command of Theater Alliance's voice are essential; AI tools may support but never replace judgment, humanity, and authentic voice
• Support special projects and organizational initiatives as assigned by the EAD - both for Theater Alliance and as our role as the leader of the Arts Center
• Serve as a trusted organizational confidant - positive, calm, discreet, and reliable

Internal Communications & Organizational Systems

• Manage internal organizational communications: staff meeting agendas, all-hands updates, and cross-departmental coordination
• Manage Google Drive organization: keep files current, consistently named, archived, and structured so anyone can find what they need without asking
• Take and distribute notes at all staff meetings
• Manage Monday.com as the organizational project management platform: maintain workflows, onboard staff, and ensure the system is being used consistently
• Coordinate organizational calendar in collaboration with the team
• Support the development and maintenance of organizational policies, procedures, and the employee handbook

Board & Development Support

• Support all-hands organizational events, opening nights, and company gatherings
• Coordinate logistics for staff retreats, board retreats, and organizational convenings
• Provide production support and PA assistance for all development events
• Support the mechanics of all board and committee meetings: scheduling, prepare agendas, logistics, minutes, and follow-up
• Maintain board records, contact information, and governance documentation
• Track development and board action items and follow-up on behalf of the EAD

Cross-Functional & Organizational Responsibilities

• Function as a collaborative, solutions-oriented partner across all departments
• Show up as a welcoming and professional presence for everyone who interacts with Theater Alliance; theater is a service industry and every member of the team is a representative of the organization
• Participate actively in staff meetings, organizational planning, company events, opening nights, and all-hands gatherings
• Contribute to organizational culture, process improvement, and institutional knowledge-building
• Perform other duties as assigned

Qualifications 

We value demonstrated ability and relevant experience over credentials.

• Strong organizational and project management skills: ability to track multiple priorities, manage deadlines, and follow through without heavy direction
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Discretion, sound judgment, and the ability to handle sensitive organizational information with care
• Experience supporting senior leadership in an organizational or administrative capacity
• Proficiency with project management and communication tools - Monday.com, Google Workspace, or comparable
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-moving, collaborative environment
• Commitment to Theater Alliance's justice-driven, community-rooted mission and values
• A genuine team orientation and spirit of partnership with internal colleagues and external stakeholders alike
• Commitment to the idea that theater is a service industry, and that the work we do exists to serve our community, our artists, and the world around us
• Experience with nonprofit organizational management
• Familiarity with the performing arts, social justice, or nonprofit sector
• Interest in organizational leadership and executive and/or arts administration

What Success Looks Like

• Internal communications are clear, timely, and well-organized — staff know what's happening and when
• Staff feel supported, seen, and unblocked - the Chief of Staff handles what would otherwise pull the EAD away or stall the team, making leadership more present and the whole team better served
• The EAD is never caught off guard - the Chief of Staff anticipates, prepares, and communicates so that leadership is always ready for what's coming
• Organizational deadlines are tracked, followed up on, and met — the Chief of Staff is comfortable being the person who reminds people and holds the line
• Monday.com is being used consistently across the team and is a reliable organizational resource
• The Chief of Staff is a trusted, steady presence and someone the EAD and the full team can rely on to hold things together with calm, flexibility, and positivity.

Classification: We consider this role to be 50% time, noting that the position will fluctuate between periods of intense in-person participation and periods of largely remote engagement, flowing with the cadence of a producing arts organization.

Hours: 20 hrs per week

Compensation: $23-$25/hour

Compensation framework and philosophy available to all applicants including our transparency policies, our  2:1 pay ratio cap, our living wage goal commitment, and our holistic compensation  package.

Location:  Washington, DC — hybrid role, with in-person, on-site requirements

Unlimited PTO: Theater Alliance offers unlimited paid time off, available from the first day of employment, subject to approval and in coordination with organizational needs and production schedules.

Theater Alliance is an equal opportunity employer. In accordance with anti-discrimination law, this policy is intended to effectuate these principles and mandates. Theater Alliance prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type and affords equal employment opportunities to employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Theater Alliance conforms to the spirit as well as to the letter of all applicable laws and regulations.