Dance troupe loses local arts funding

Amid a year of turmoil, the Columbus Dance Theatre will enter its 2019-20 season without support from the Greater Columbus Arts Council.

On Monday, the arts council announced the awarding of $3.5 million in operatingsupport grants to 25 arts organizations. The money is generated by a hotel-motel bed tax.

Arts council spokeswoman Jami Goldstein said of Columbus Dance Theatre that “the concerns included missed deadlines, a balance of payroll taxes owed dating back to 2012, increased debt, negative net assets, leadership misconduct and lack of board recruitment and oversight.”

The leadership misconduct refers to company founder and former Artistic Director Tim Veach, who resigned in October after allegations of misconduct with two dance students. In March, Veach was found guilty of providing alcohol to a minor.

Deneese Steele Owen, president of the Columbus Dance Theatre’s board, said in a statement that the organization learned last week of the arts council’s decision.

“We cannot help but feel disappointed by their decision to so drastically eliminate all funding at a time of transition and rebuilding when we most need community support,” Owen said.

In 2017-18 — the last year for which the dance company disclosed its total budget to The Dispatch — the company operated on a budget of $620,000, of which $75,815, or 12.2 percent of the troupe’s funding, came from an arts council grant.

The dance company is the only arts group that received money in 2018 that was deemed ineligible to receive an operating-support grant this year, Goldstein said. Two groups that received operating support in 2018 — Friends of Early Music and the Ohio Art League — failed to meet budgetary requirements for an operating-support grant.

Goldstein said the arts council had been working with current troupe leaders, including Artistic Director Seth Wilson and Executive Director Jaime Kotrba, about remedying several concerns but felt that sufficient progress had not been made.

“This was a very difficult decision for our board,” Goldstein said. “We appreciate the efforts that the current leadership has been making.”

Many of the issues predate spouses Wilson and Kotrba, who were appointed in October after Veach left, but the council was not aware of the problems until last fall, Goldstein said.

Despite the elimination of the arts council’s support, Owen said the company has seen increases in ticket sales, donations and student enrollment.

“Our plans for our future remain unchanged,” Owen said.

Wilson and Kotrba did not return calls seeking comment.