COO Jeffries Leaving RBTL
By: Ali Touhey
Updated: January 11, 2013
The staff of the Rochester Broadway Theatre League will host a good-bye party on Thursday for their departing President and Chief Operating Officer, Don Jeffries.
According to Rochester Broadway Theatre League Board Chairman Arnie Rothschild, plans to open a theatre at the former Medley Centre Mall in the Town of Irondequoit are in high gear despite the organization's vacancy.
"Actually it's advantageous," Rothschild explained about losing Jeffries. "In Don's new role, as President of Visit Rochester, he has a sense of how many hotel rooms, etc, we drive."
Rothschild says that type of information will be key as R.B.T.L. transitions into a regional operation. They soon hope to have a presence in two locations: the Auditorium Theatre in downtown Rochester and the Medley Centre. Rothschild says an expanded community presence will play a substantial role for whoever takes Don Jeffries' place.
"We're in heavy growth mode so it's going to have to be somebody who can deal with the challenges of growth," he said.
Rothschild will be meeting with the board next week to discuss a replacement. He says it's likely they begin looking locally before expanding the search to outside the greater Rochester area.
