Numa Saisselin took over as president of the Florida Theatre Center for the Performing Arts Inc. on Sept. 10. Since then, he has decorated his office in the Florida Theatre Building with memorabilia from his career in arts management.
He also has learned something about his new home after moving his family to Jacksonville from New Jersey.
“Everybody in this town seems to instinctively know that it’s everybody’s job to make new people feel welcome. A lot of people reached out to welcome us or to drop off a bottle of wine or ask us to dinner. We’ve had the opportunity to do that for other newcomers as well. It’s a passing it along thing,” he said.
Summer traditionally is a slow time for live touring entertainment in the South because of the hot weather. Acts prefer to tour states in the North until winter, when Southern venues are the choice.
That has given Saisselin and his staff time to schedule future concert dates in the historic Florida Theatre.
“We’ve got Cedric the Entertainer coming in July. Aug. 16, we’ll have the Elvis Anniversary Bash to celebrate the actual anniversary date of Elvis being here (in 1956),” he said.
Other acts on the calendar include Bonnie Raitt, Kenny Loggins, Paula Poundstone, Natalie Merchant, The Irish Tenors, a Cirque de Soleil show before Thanksgiving and William Shatner in “Shatner’s World.”
“We typically have 50 shows in a 12-month cycle and we’ve already got 42 confirmed for October through April. It’s going to be a terrific fall, winter and spring and next year is going to be gangbusters,” Saisselin said
He also has had one non-work-related experience that made him feel even more a part of the community.
“I already had the opportunity to serve on jury duty. I got the notice and I thought ‘that was quick.’ I didn’t get picked for a case, but I was there for a day,” he said.
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