ROBERT W. CROSS
Director
Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival
A native of Virginia Beach, Virginia, Robert W. Cross has enjoyed a
distinguished career as a performer and arts administrator. Cross joined
the percussion section of the Virginia Symphony in 1981 and from 1990-1995
served as the orchestra's General Manager. Under his management, the
Virginia Symphony presented internationally acclaimed artists including
the Bolshoi Ballet, Kirov Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Kathleen Battle and
Itzak Perlman. Always looking to reach new audiences, Cross and the
Symphony presented popular artists such as Emmy Lou Harris, Tony Bennett,
Ray Charles and Bruce Hornsby, and booked silent films like "The Hunchback
of Notre Dame" and "Phantom of the Opera," with the Symphony performing
the original scores. In partnership with composer/arranger Brent Havens
and Cellar Door president Bill Reid, Cross produced the "Led Zeppelin
project." Performing to sold-out crowds in southeastern Virginia, it also
traveled to Georgia at the invitation of the Atlanta Symphony and played
there to a crowd of 4,000. The project will tour the United States in
1997.
A graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music, where
he studied percussion with Vic Firth, tympanist of the Boston Symphony,
Cross has worked with such prestigious conductors as Klaus Tennstedt,
Colin Davis, Leonard Bernstein, Joseph Silverstein, and Lucas Foss. As a
student at Tanglewood, he performed with the Boston Symphony, under the
direction of Seiji Ozawa. He has performed at the Leonard Bernstein
Festival of American Music, the Skaneateles Festival, Brevard and the
Eastern Music Festival. In
the pit of some of the world's most famous ballet companies, Cross has
accompanied the Bolshoi Ballet, Kirov Ballet, New York City Ballet, the
Boston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet and the Martha Graham Dance Company. Cross
has performed with the American Repert ory Theater, and in recital with
Bob Becker, Richard Stoltzman and Andre-Michel Schub. Cross has recorded
for Northeastern Records and New Albion.
As director of the first
Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival, Cross will draw upon his
varied experience as an artist and manager. "It's an honor to have the
opportunity to bring world renowned artists to our region and to showcase
Virginia's premier performing arts organizations and museums under the
auspices of the Virginia Waterfront International Arts Festival. I am also
thrilled by the level of cooperation and the strong show of support we've
received from the region's arts groups, the corporate community, and
local volunteers. The arts can be a unifying force for our region and I am
proud to have been chosen to lead this regional initiative for our
area."
Cross and his wife, Debra, principal flutist of the
Virginia Symphony, make their home in Norfolk along with their black Lab,
Sam.