Sasha Anawalt, director
Sasha Anawalt is director of USC Annenberg Arts Journalism Programs. A faculty member of USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, she founded the Masters degree program in Specialized Journalism (The Arts) in 2008 and directs the USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Program, as well as the NEA Arts Journalism Institute in Theater and Musical Theater. In October 2009, she directed and produced with Douglas McLennan the first-ever virtual National Summit on Arts Journalism, streamed live from USC Annenberg. She wrote the best-selling cultural biography, “The Joffrey Ballet: Robert Joffrey and the Making of an American Dance Company” (Scribner, 1996). Anawalt was dance critic for the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, LA Weekly and for nearly a decade contributed "Dance Notes" to KCRW, National Public Radio in Santa Monica. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The New York Times Magazine, Los Angeles Times, SoHo Weekly News, Montreal Gazette, Dance Magazine, TV Guide, Wall Street Journal (WSJ.com), KUSC and MSNBC-online sites. Anawalt served on the 2006 and 2007 Pulitzer Prize Committee juries for criticism. A native of New York City and a graduate of Barnard College, Anawalt serves on the board of the Los Angeles Stage Alliance and lives in asadena with her husband; they have three children.
Jeff Weinstein, deputy director
Jeff Weinstein has been a columnist, critic, and senior editor at the Village Voice; a managing editor of Artforum magazine; fine arts editor and popular culture columnist at the Philadelphia Inquirer, and most recently arts and culture editor at Bloomberg News, New York. Author of “Life in San Diego” and “Learning To Eat,” he has written about the arts, gay issues, food and style for the New Yorker, Art in America, Los Angeles magazine and many other publications. His short story “A Jean-Marie Cookbook” was awarded a Pushcart Prize in 1982. Jeff is a founder of the National Writers Union and originated the idea of domestic partnership benefits, first won by the Village Voice union at the bargaining table in 1982. He began a series of online essays about culture and pleasure called “Out There” on artsjournal.com in 2007, and was recently adjunct professor of arts journalism at the Newhouse School of Journalism, Syracuse University. He is delighted to have been USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Senior Fellow in 2006 and 2008, and faculty at the NEA Arts Journalism Institute in Theater and Musical Theater in 2009. Jeff lives in New York City with his spouse, artist and critic John Perreault.
Arianna Sikorski, program coordinator
Arianna Sikorski is program coordinator for the Arts Journalism Programs at USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, which includes the USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Program, the NEA Arts Journalism Institute in Theater and Musical Theater and the Master’s Program in Specialized Journalism (The Arts). In October 2009, she was an associate producer and the stage manager for A National Summit on Arts Journalism. She previously worked for Sutton, Barth and Vennari Talent Agency as voice over scheduler, responsible for over 200 clients and held the position of production coordinator for the USC Thornton School of Music for four years working on over 500 concerts annually with guest artists such as Randy Newman, Bobby McFerrin and Yo-Yo Ma. Arianna is a graduate of the University of Southern California and Idyllwild Arts Academy as well as a citizen diplomat for the International Visitors Council of Los Angeles.
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