Speaking with Sharon Maier-Kennelly

Under the direction of Sharon Maier-Kennelly, Port Washington’s Landmark on Main Street has drawn increasing star power, from Roseanne Cash to Nick Lowe to repeat attraction Darlene Love to Dar Williams and beyond.

But now Maier-Kennelly’s tenure at Landmark has come to a close, as she begins a new role in the arts world as general manager and director of programming initiatives at nearby Tilles Center in Brookville.

For Landmark fans, the moment is bittersweet, as they bid farewell to the the woman who always made them feel so welcome, whether from the stage or the lobby of the Jeanne Rimsky Theater at the Landmark as she introduced talented artist after another over the course of a decade.

Maier-Kennelly, a Port Washington resident, took a moment to share her thoughts with Patch about the arts, the Landmark, Tilles and of course, community.

Patch: As the executive director of Landmark, you’ve been such a part of what makes Port Washington thive – how does it feel to let that go?

Sharon Maier-Kennelly: It has been an incredible honor and privilege to have the opportunity to serve in this role for over a decade and be part of the community in such a unique way. I feel so lucky because my home is in Port Washington and I’m raising my family here (I currently have two children at Weber Middle School and one at Schreiber high school). I’m so grateful for the relationships and friendships I’ve made over so many years – especially with the staff that truly became my “second family.” Thanks to these ties and friendships, I will continue to be connected.

Patch: Landmark’s become not only integral to the community, but also important to artists, whether they use it for open rehearsals to film – has that surprised you?

Sharon Maier-Kennelly: Very early in my career at Landmark I learned a valuable lesson from Janis Ian. She shared that she had been looking forward to playing Landmark because she had heard what a great place it was from her friend Richie Havens.That statement spoke to how important it is to be welcoming and respectful to everyone who crosses through our doors and we’ve worked so hard to do that. We had the extraordinary opportunity to have two artists-in-residencies during my tenure – with Jon Batiste and Stay Human and more recently with Cameron Carpenter. We thought in both cases the best gift we could give our community were the opportunities for open rehearsals so that’s what we requested in our negotiations for the use of our space. Our technical director, Sean Perry, worked beautifully with the artists’ tech staff as they rehearsed their upcoming shows and the experiences were enriching for all involved! We also loved having the movie “The English Teacher” filmed at Landmark, which was really our first on-site experience with the film industry. Since then we’ve also had some commercials filmed on-site for Canon and Geico. In fact, I think after all these years of meeting and welcoming Grammy winners, Tony winners, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees, best-selling authors etc, to our stage, the Geico Pig may be the most universally recognized “star” I’ve met!

Patch: What’s been the best part of seeing Landmark programming grow?

Sharon Maier-Kennelly: It’s been thrilling watching Landmark and Port Washington become a true tourist destination. My favorite example is when we presented The Blue Oyster Cult October 2012. Our show was their first ever “Unplugged” evening and the next night was meant to be a big blowout rock and roll show in NYC (unfortunately, the second show was canceled last minute because of NYC Hurricane Sandy preparations). But, because of the back-to-back plans to see BOC, fans came from about eleven different states and five or six different countries (which included three continents). Nearly every big show Landmark presents has audience members who have traveled across a bridge or two to be able to attend. It’s been wonderful to see the community around us get involved - Finn MacCool’s has a theater menu to make sure they get concertgoers to the show on time!

Patch: Are there performances that stand out in your mind?

Sharon Maier-Kennelly: There are so many magic moments! One of my favorites was early in my tenure when we first presented Brian Stokes Mitchell who was one of the biggest headlining artists we had presented up to that point. When he sang the final note from “Impossible Dream” and I stood in the back of the theater with Phyllis Joseph and watched 425 people leap to their feet in unison to give him the a standing ovation he so deserved, I was so moved and proud. I think so many of my favorite moments were watching the artists and audiences interact…like when Susan Werner invited Drew Kane and Shari Thompson from Yoga Life to the stage to do some stretching and headstands; audiences up dancing and smiling to shows like Los Lobos, Raul Malo, Darlene Love and Southside Johnny; bringing Jon Batiste and Terrance Simien into the schools thanks to support from the Port Washington Education Foundation and watching students love the show; watching Kelli O’Hara perform the first time at Landmark and personalize her show singing “Happy Birthday to Eduardo” to Ed Slade; John Platt dancing across the stage with Jonatha Brooke; hosting Susan Isaacs’ book release party and watching the on-stage banter she shared with Nelson DeMille; watching an audience filled with fathers and sons enjoy seeing Dan Paisner interview Ron Darling; Paula Poundstone’s interaction with one of Long Island’s treasures – Marian Conway – that had the audience in stitches; working hand-in-hand with Usdan to present Jimmy Webb and Jane Monheit who created the show just for Landmark. And, of course, hearing artists like Rosanne Cash and Josh Ritter tell the audiences they had heard Landmark was a great place to play and they were glad to be here.

Patch: What kind of programming can we look forward to at Tilles?

Sharon Maier-Kennelly: It’s an exciting time at Tilles Center and LIU…the university is so committed to excellence and community engagement. It’s such a thrilling time to join the team and help expand the programming and audiences.

Patch: Will you return to Landmark for performances?

Sharon Maier-Kennelly: Of course!

Photos:

• Sharon Maier-Kennelly with WFUV’s John Platt at the Dar Williams concert in January 2014 recognizing Maier-Kennelly’s 10th anniversary at Landmark . Credit: Steven Sandick.
• Staff photo at the Darlene Love concert. Shown here are Beth Eule, Margaret DeSiervo, Sean Perry, Ellen Brown, Sharon Maier-Kennelly, Michelle Shain, Ilene Silberstein, Allison Rudman and Eileen Kelsh-Ambach. Credit: Steven Silberstein

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