[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 98 (Tuesday, June 11, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E607]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





 HONORING JOHN FISHER FOR HIS INVALUABLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE COMMUNITY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ROSA L. DeLAURO

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 11, 2024

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, it is with my heartfelt congratulations and 
gratitude that I rise today to extend my thanks and best wishes to John 
Fisher, the former Executive Director of New Haven's Shubert Theater. 
For more than two decades, John led this theatrical landmark with a 
unique dedication and commitment. Tonight, friends, colleagues and 
community leaders have gathered to thank him for that leadership and 
celebrate his contributions to the New Haven arts community.
  John's professional career has been dedicated to the arts. Prior to 
coming to New Haven, he spent six years as the general manager of the 
Big Apple Circus before spending two years in Atlanta as Director of 
Satellite Olympic Villages for the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games. He 
arrived in New Haven in 1997 where he began his career with the Shubert 
as its general manager. When the Shubert's ownership was transferred 
from the City of New Haven to the Connecticut Association for the 
Performing Arts (CAPA), a decade-long process through which John guided 
and nurtured the historic theater, he became the Executive Director. He 
would hold this position until his retirement at the end of 2020.
  Prior to John's arrival, New Haven's Shubert Theater had been 
experiencing extreme financial pressures and was in need of serious 
capital improvements. While it was beloved by the community, the City, 
which owned it at the time, was not in the position to support the kind 
of financial investment that was needed. It was John who saw the 
benefits of transitioning ownership to CAPA and it was his leadership 
that saw it through.
  Over the course of his twenty-four years with the Shubert, John built 
a strong foundation for the theater, not only by bringing season after 
season of engaging and exciting performances, but also by building 
strong partnerships that not only strengthened the Shubert but New 
Haven's vibrant arts community as a whole. He expanded the theater's 
community footprint through collaborations with the Board of Education, 
Cooperative Arts & Humanities High School, the New Haven Free Public 
Library, as well as arts institutions like the International Festival 
of Arts & Ideas, the New Haven Ballet, the New Haven Symphony 
Orchestra, and Yale Opera.
  John's contributions to New Haven's arts community extend far beyond 
his professional career at the Shubert. He is a former commissioner and 
Chairman of the Coliseum Authority for New Haven and has been a board 
member of the New Haven Ballet, the Workforce Alliance, the Connecticut 
Arts Alliance, and the Arts Council of New Haven. Through all of these 
efforts, his good work has gone a long way in broadening community 
access to the arts, ensuring that its magic, artistry, and creativity 
is shared with new generations.
  For his innumerable and invaluable contributions, I am proud to stand 
today and extend my deepest thanks and sincere appreciation to John 
Fisher. I wish John and his wife, Liz, as well as their family all the 
best as they enjoy their retirement.

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