Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Dallas Symphony Association Announce New Board Chair Roger C. Gault and Nine New Board Members

Gault Succeeds Cece Smith in Role of Chair of the DSA Board of Governors

DALLAS (October 29, 2024) – The Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) and Dallas Symphony Association (DSA) announce the election of the next Chair of the DSA Board of Governors, Roger C. Gault. Additionally, the DSA elected nine new members to its Board of Governors. Jim Baldwin, Dr. Linda Burk, Kevin Bryant, Susan Geyer, Marsha Halloran, Dan Hoverman, Steve Penrose, Michael Rosenthal and Crayton Webb will begin their three-year terms immediately. The leadership of the DSA is essential in guiding the DSO’s mission of artistic excellence and community engagement and furthering the organization’s impact in Dallas and beyond.

“We have a wonderful new group of leaders joining the board, and we are thrilled to have Roger Gault as our Board Chair for the next three seasons,” said Michelle Miller Burns, Ross Perot President & CEO of the DSO. “Roger and his wife Marena are strong, dynamic leaders in the community, and they have been integral to the success of the Dallas Symphony for years.”

“I am honored to take on the role of Chair of the DSA Board of Governors,” said Gault. “I look forward to working with our dedicated team to support the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s mission of enriching our community through inspiring music, transformative education and meaningful outreach. The DSO is the cultural cornerstone of North Texas, and I am proud to be a part of their continued success and expanding impact.”

Gault succeeds Cece Smith as Chair of the DSA Board of Governors. Smith has held the position since the 2021-22 concert season.

“It has been very meaningful to me to serve as Chair. Artistically and institutionally, the DSO has invested in bold ideas and initiatives over the past few seasons,” said Smith. “It has been my privilege to help make those ideas a reality, and I look forward to seeing how we continue to evolve the organization to meet the moment in the years ahead.”

Roger C. Gault, AIA is a licensed real estate broker and a licensed architect. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects and a past member of the AIA Ethics Committee. He is a graduate of Leadership Dallas and the FBI Citizens Academy and maintains membership in the FBI Citizens Academy Alumni Association. He is also a member of The Real Estate Council, and a former member of The Real Estate Council Board of Directors. Roger is a member and former President of the Dallas Assembly. He is the former Chair of the Advisory Board of the Center for BrainHealth and Brain Performance Institute, on the Advisory Board of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, and formerly on the Advisory Board of the University of Texas at Dallas. He is a member of the Austin College Global Outreach Advisory Council. Gault also serves on the board of the National Committee for the Performing Arts, a Kennedy Center Board in Washington, DC. Roger is former Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Dallas Arboretum, and former President of the Board of Directors of the Lee Park and Arlington Hall Conservancy. He is also a former board member of both Preservation Dallas and the Dallas Center for Architecture. Gault served as a Mayoral appointee on the City of Dallas Board of Adjustment. He and his wife, Marena, were Chairs of the 2016 Dallas Symphony Gala and the 2022 Zoo To Do Gala.

Headshots of Roger Gault and Cece Smith can be found here and used with credit to the DSO. Interviews available upon request.

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ABOUT THE DALLAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
The Dallas Symphony Orchestra, under the leadership of Music Director Fabio Luisi, presents more than 150 orchestra concerts each year at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, one of the world’s top-rated concert halls. As the largest performing arts organization in the Southwest, the DSO is committed to inspiring the broadest possible audience with distinctive classical programs, inventive pops concerts and innovative multi-media presentations. As part of its commitment to the community, the orchestra reaches more than 243,000 adults and children annually through performances, educational programs and community outreach initiatives. The orchestra offers more than 200 chamber concerts in neighborhoods throughout Dallas each year, as well as music lessons to more than 1500 students as part of its Young Strings and Young Musicians programs.The DSO has a tradition dating back to 1900 and is a cornerstone of the unique, 118-acre Arts District in Downtown Dallas that is home to multiple performing arts venues, museums and parks – the largest district of its kind in the nation. The DSO is supported, in part, by funds from the Office of Arts & Culture, City of Dallas. For more information, visit dallassymphony.org.

MEDIA CONTACT
Chelsey Norris, Director of Communications | Dallas Symphony Orchestra
c.norris@dalsym.com | 214.871.4063