DETROIT — The board and trustees of Detroit Opera announced that Patty Isacson Sabee will be the organization’s next president and CEO.
When she begins her new position on Jan. 2, Isacson Sabee will be only the third person to lead Detroit Opera since its founding (as Michigan Opera Theatre) in 1971 by the late David DiChiera. Earlier this year, Wayne S. Brown, who has led the company since 2014, announced his intention to retire by the end of the 2023–24 season.
“Patty Isacson Sabee is a transformative, collaborative leader with more than 35 years of experience driving excellence at U.S. arts institutions,” said Board Chairman Ethan Davidson. “With proven leadership and entrepreneurial skills, and knowledge and experience in all aspects of arts management, she is the right match for the Detroit Opera, which has become the destination for progressive opera in the United States.
“We are impressed by her innovative, forward-thinking approach to the arts, which includes leading a pop-culture museum in Seattle and an immersive language museum in Washington, D.C.,” Davidson added. “She has the people skills necessary for successful and collaborative partnership development, individual performance management, and board, staff, musician, volunteer, and community relations. We are excited to have Patty lead Detroit Opera and confident that she will build on our success as a leading producer of opera in America and a premier theater in Detroit.”
Isacson Sabee called Detroit Opera “one of America’s great cultural treasures.”
“David DiChiera and Wayne Brown have been inspirational leaders in stewarding this company, and I look forward to preserving their important partnerships while building new connections that will advance Detroit Opera’s mission and deepen its impact,” Isacson Sabee said. “I also look forward to collaborating with Yuval Sharon, Christine Goerke, Roberto Kalb, and Detroit Opera’s Board, musicians, production and administrative staff in defining an innovative vision for opera and dance for the future. But most important, I look forward to engaging with the city of Detroit and the people who call it home. This city’s history and creative energy inspires and informs my path, and I am honored to lead the company at this exciting time.”
“I couldn’t be happier that the board has chosen Patty as Detroit Opera’s new president and CEO,” says Yuval Sharon. “Beyond her proven managerial expertise and her demonstrated love of opera, Patty has a clear-eyed vision for sustainability and community engagement, and she knows how to support artists in their pursuits of extraordinary work. She is the perfect person to take on the mantle from David DiChiera and Wayne Brown — both of whom have shown a tireless commitment to cultivating opera throughout the region. Detroit Opera is in good hands!”
Brown said he was “thrilled to welcome Patty Isacson Sabee” as his successor.
“She is a highly respected leader with a remarkable track record, and I cannot imagine a better outcome of the search process for our organization and community,” Brown said. “Having followed our founder, David DiChiera, as President and CEO for nearly ten years, I will pivot from my role in the coming months. It is affirming for me to know that the reins will pass to Patty as the next President and CEO.”
Isacson Sabee is currently Executive Director of Planet Word, an immersive language experience in Washington, D.C. that opened in October 2020 and celebrates the fun, beauty, and power of words, language, and reading.
At Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture (MoPOP), founded in 2000 as the Experience Music Project, she served as Director of External Relations and Development before being named CEO and Director. She oversaw MoPOP’s national programming and $213 million in assets and was responsible for bringing in more than 600,000 annual visitors.
She began her career in arts administration at the Seattle Symphony, where over the course of two decades she held positions in operations, artistic administration, and development before serving as Interim Executive Director. Her accomplishments at Seattle Symphony include directing the start-up operations of Benaroya Hall, a $118 million dedicated symphonic concert hall that opened in September 1998.
