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Thor Steingraber: President & CEO

Meet Thor Steingraber

President & CEO

The fifth leader in Vivo Performing Arts' 88-year history

thor steingraber, outdoor portrait

A note from thor

I last lived in Boston nearly 20 years ago, a time defined by the Great Recession. In 2008, I was the Kennedy School’s inaugural Arts and Culture Fellow. From that perch, I observed and assessed what felt like an existential crisis for my profession. That was not the first time being faced with a major crisis; in September 2001 I was days from making my debut at Lincoln Center in NYC when the Towers fell and theaters closed.

In both instances, I was keenly aware that performances were just one loss among many, just as they were again later, in 2020, at the onset of the pandemic.

As radically as the world has been changed by three “unprecedented” events in the short span of my professional life, the intangible connection between artist and audience has persevered, offering cohesion in a fragmented world.

More so, the esteemed 88-year history of Vivo Performing Arts stands as even greater evidence of the enduring power of music, dance, and storytelling. Leading this organization's next chapter will require looking backward and forward, respecting forebears while welcoming new generations, preserving traditions while making room for innovation.

Thank you for supporting this ongoing journey. Be assured—hands will clap, feet will stomp, and spirits will soar no matter what comes next.

Biography

Thor Steingraber joined Vivo Performing Arts on July 1, 2026, the fifth executive to lead Boston’s longstanding arts organization.

Steingraber’s career is defined by scaling artistic institutions and activating public spaces. As an arts executive, he is known for leading major venues, integrating digital content and services, expanding access, and strengthening civic identity through cultural experiences. As a producer and stage director, Steingraber is known for artistic excellence in bold large-scale multi-disciplinary programming.

As Vivo Performing Arts approaches its 10th decade, Steingraber is charged with introducing innovations to propel the organization into the future. Prior to joining Vivo Performing Arts, Steingraber held two leadership roles for institutions that redefined public performance in Los Angeles.  

Los Angeles Music Center

Serving as Vice President of the Los Angeles Music Center, Steingraber oversaw the 2012 opening of Grand Park,16 acres of reclaimed green space that transformed downtown L.A. into a year-round destination for arts programming and civic events.  

The Soraya, Los Angeles

In 2014, Steingraber was named Executive and Artistic Director of The Soraya, the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts at California State University, Northbridge. He established the new 1700-seat performance venue as a destination for orchestras, dance companies, and cultural artists from more than 40 nations, including extensive Spanish-language concerts and programs. 

During his 12-year tenure at The Soraya, he produced more than 120 premieres, commissions, and large-scale original productions, earning him recognition by Musical America as one of the Top 30 Professionals in the United States in 2023. For its jazz festival, The Soraya has twice been recognized by DownBeat Magazine as one of the “World’s Great Jazz Venues.”  

Opera director

Steingraber launched his career by directing operas in the United States, Europe, and Asia, including New York City Opera, San Francisco Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. His collaborators included world-renowned artists such as David Hockney, Maurice Sendak, Tony Kushner, George C. Wolfe, and Zubin Mehta among others. 

As a student, as an educator

A graduate of Indiana University, he received a Distinguished Alumni Award in 2010. Steingraber earned his Master's degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School, where he was its first Fellow for Arts and Culture at the Hauser Center for non-profit organizations.

He has written extensively about arts and culture for publications including The Boston Globe, Inside Arts, and various journals. He also taught in the opera programs at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, Yale School of Music, and the Curtis Institute of Music.

July 2026

Downbeat: The Soraya as a jazz destination (2024)
Variety: Randy Newman's 'Faust' (2024)
In the Boston Globe
Read the press release

“The reputation he built for The Soraya has foremost rested on its programs—their breadth, their excellence, and their ambition. Just as important has been The Soraya’s commitment to welcoming people of different backgrounds, traditions, and tastes into one shared space. The Soraya didn’t aspire to be safe or predictable, it aspired to be meaningful.”

Sharon Nazarian Daughter of Soraya Nazarian, The Soraya's namesake

Q&A

Learn about Thor's experience at The Soraya, his early career in opera, and what he loves outside of work hours

I started my musical life as a pianist, and in school I always sang in choir, all the way through college. Other than music, my artistic life was focused on theater. At Indiana University, I enrolled as a theater major with ambitions to direct, but I never let go of my musical background. Multidisciplinary degrees are common now, but in the '80s it was very difficult to cross programs. I was the guy who spent a lot of time in the music school even though I was a theater major.

So at the base of everything I am and everything I do, I have been trained and wired and conditioned to be a multidisciplinary practitioner. It's what drew me to opera directing specifically: it sits at the intersection of music, theater, visual spectacle, history, and culture. That combination was a perfect fit for me, which is why I started my opera directing career at a young age.

It begins with the audience. That might seem obvious, but it isn't an idea that is universally embraced. I once asked one of the country's most prominent programmers, at a major performing arts center, at what point she thinks about the audience. She said, "Never." Her view was that the process of curating artistic works must be pure. I respect that perspective, but it's not mine.

I start with the audience. Then I think about space. Every artist needs the right context for their work, and not everything is movable from one venue to another. And then I think about quality: whatever the art form, from a mariachi ensemble to a chamber concert, there must be a level of excellence that transcends the programming itself.

When you add those three things together, you'll notice that I haven't said a word yet about what is actually being performed. Sometimes I arrive at that question last, not first.

I'm saddened when audience members rush up the aisles before the concert is fully over—before the lights even come up—racing to the parking lot. I understand why. But something is lost there.

The future of the performing arts, I'm convinced, is about more than the performance itself. It's about creating space for people to experience each other. In a world where people get their groceries delivered and rarely encounter their neighbors, the concert hall is one of the few places left where you can share an armrest with a stranger, where no one wins and no one loses, and where the foremost thing happening is a room full of people being together in a shared experience. That's not a small thing. That's actually the thing.

I believe that how you bring ideas to a page is one of the most interesting intellectual and creative challenges there is. I write a lot and started at a young age, including my time as a student at Oxford and Harvard. When I'm not in a theater, I'm often found on a mountain (I completed an eight-day thru-hike in the Dolomites last year) or I'm writing. Those are the two things that fill my cup.

“As a former Bostonian, I’m especially excited for the community that will now benefit from Thor Steingraber’s leadership. Vivo has gained a leader who understands that great cultural institutions thrive when they both reflect their communities and unleash their imagination. Thor’s programming consistently balances accessibility and ambition.”

Christopher Koelsch President & CEO, LA Opera