Michael Blachly retires from 15 Years at University of Florida Performing Arts

From The Gainesville Sun/Gainesville.com

If one were to accurately paint the portrait of retiring University of Florida Performing Arts Director Michael Blachly, the painting would resemble the Hindu god Shiva.

Like Shiva with his numerous arms, Blachly served in countless capacities at UFPA over the last 15 years. Under his caring touch, the program flourished from one facility to four performance spaces, and Gainesville grew into a cultural destination.

The University of Florida Performing Arts will host an open house honoring Blachly’s retirement at the Phillips Center Monday at 4 p.m.

As director of the program, he built relationships characterized by trust with audiences and artists, encouraging both to take risks and venture into new worlds.

“Audience members have said, ‘I have no idea what I’m going to see but I’m here because you brought it.’ People have trust in the aesthetic of the program and they were willing to ride with us into new and different places,” Blachly says.

By hosting touring artists and production companies at his home with his wife Judy, even for Thanksgiving dinners, he convinced artists they had a home in Gainesville. Artists like Yo-Yo Ma, Twyla Tharp, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson have taken breaks from grueling touring schedules and countless hotel stays to enjoy the Blachlys’ hospitality.

Elizabeth Auer, acting director for UFPA, says by giving acts like the Soweto Gospel Choir their first United States performance, Blachly nurtured artists and showed he believed in them.

“He will be remembered for his passion and belief in the arts – both what they stand for and the people behind them. He brought new projects to Gainesville that otherwise wouldn’t have been here. He’s willing to take a chance on projects, and these artists come to see Gainesville as their North American home,” she says.

Auer says she learned from Blachly the importance of being gracious and present.

“In a lot of venues, the director is removed,” she says. “Michael is present to the artist and audience. He’s standing in the lobby before and after performances. He’s listening to the feedback, both good and bad.”

Blachly says he measures his success by the satisfaction of the audience and artist.

“If both can leave the hall saying, ‘That was great. I want to come back,’ then I’ve done my job. I wanted it to be a place not only of comfort but a place to grow,” he says.

By assembling artists and designers of various arenas, he created companies and productions that went on to tour nationally. Last year, “Basetrack,” a multi-disciplinary documentary theater piece created under Blachly’s eye, was named one of 2014’s top ten performances by The New York Times. He likens the process to assembling a rich, cultural puzzle.

He made a mission of creating a diverse and affordable arts program for Gainesville’s community. By working with the UF Student Senate to create reduced student tickets, he brought young ears to The Phillips Center for the price of a movie ticket. By emphasizing diversity onstage, he created a program where the performances reflect the membership of the local community.

Blachly’s retirement comes after nearly 50 years of work and study in the performing arts field. Back in Denver in the mid- to late-1960’s, Blachly managed rock bands. When he was an undergraduate at The University of Northern Colorado, he would present bands at on-campus venues. In addition to earning a master’s degree and a PhD, he held arts program director positions at universities in Tennessee, Hawaii and Colorado.

He was the vice-president and west coast director of sales for Columbia Artists Management. He produced an entertainment festival for the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville that ran for 184 consecutive days, with more than 30 events each day. He served for 14 years directing the performing arts program for UCLA, working with an annual operating budget in excess of $8 million.

When Blachly’s oldest son was in middle school, he asked his dad, ‘Why do you work so hard and not make much money?’ He told his son there were three ways we as a generation pass down our wisdom, culture and identity: religion, the military, and the arts. He only had eyes for the latter.

“With the arts, you learn colors, sounds, movements, exchanges, how people communicate cross-culturally,” he says. “I’d like to make a difference in people’s lives, contribute to my community and give more than I’m taking.”

Now he holds the vice-president position for Arts Consulting Group Inc., a management and consulting service for the arts and culture industry. He leads the Facilities and Program Planning practice and performs searches for executives in the field.

During his time at UFPA, he pulled 75-hour work weeks, working nights and weekends more often than not.

“I took it seriously enough but not so seriously that it hurt,” he says. “I could’ve done it to the point where I died backstage. I’d rather go when people are wondering why I’m going instead of wondering why I won’t go,” he says. “The program is in a good place. Now is the time to hand it over to somebody new.”

Blachly says the ephemeral nature of live performance brought him great joy over his last 15 years at UFPA. He engaged in an exchange of commodities beyond money and time – he was part of a feedback loop of artists and audiences who exchanged energy, knowledge and emotion to create something brand new each time the curtain rose.

“I’m a firm believer in that with the performing arts, we can bring the world together,” he says. “These things only happen once. It’s live. These are moments where life happens.”