Leader of Nonprofit Theater in New York Steps Down

The Public Theater’s executive director, Mara Manus, will step down at the end of her contract in August, reports The New York Times.

Ms. Manus, who was hired in 2002, is credited with ushering the New York theater out of a deficit and into secure financial growth, the paper reports. A former program officer for economic development at the Ford Foundation, Ms. Manus has no immediate plans to move on to another job.

Under her direction, the Public’s annual budget, donations, corporate support, and subscriber revenue all rose sharply. Ms. Manus hired a new artistic director and new board chairman and started a major renovation project, the Times reports.

“She oversaw a complete financial turnaround at the Public Theater,” Kenneth B. Lerer, the chairman emeritus of the board who hired Ms. Manus, tells the Times. “There was a time when I had to loan the theater money to do the payroll.”

The theater expects to begin a search for a new director in the coming weeks.

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