Michael Orlove

Michael Orlove is Director of Presenting & Multidisciplinary Works, Artist Communities and International Activities for the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington D.C. He has a BA in history from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MA in performing arts management from Columbia College, Chicago. A native of Chicago, he spent 19 years as Senior Program Director for the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs. He helped transform the Chicago Cultural Center into a prime downtown performing arts venue and launched a number of festivals including SummerDance and the World Music Festival, now staples of Chicago’s summer festival season. Since the Millenium Park opened in 2004, he has served as its Director of Music Programming and has helped establish many of the venue’s programme series. He has received a number of honours: Chicago Tribune’s ‘Chicagoans of the Year’ in 1999 and 2009; Chicago Public Radio WBEZ’s ‘Global Visionaries’ and the Chicago Matters ‘Beyond Burnham’ series.