Diane Llewelyn-Jones is a Canadian arts executive and board leader whose career has unfolded across mainstage productions, living-history museums, community organizations, and symphony halls. Her story is defined by a constant throughline: she elevates people and places through creative vision matched with disciplined management. With more than three decades at the intersection of culture and community, she has built programs, stewarded heritage assets, strengthened governance, and grown audiences—always with an eye to sustainable impact and the human experience at the center.
Her earliest professional chapters were onstage and behind the scenes, where she established herself as an actor, director, choreographer, writer, vocalist, teacher, adjudicator, and mentor across professional, semi-professional, and community theatre. Roles in classics and contemporary works honed her interpretive rigor; directing and choreography sharpened her capacity to motivate teams toward shared standards of excellence; and original writing cultivated a producer’s mindset—assembling resources, shaping narratives, and delivering on time and on budget. Those years were not only about craft; they were an apprenticeship in leadership, where rehearsal rooms became laboratories for consensus-building, coaching, and performance under pressure.
That creative foundation proved instrumental as Diane’s responsibilities expanded from the wings to the executive suite. At Historic O’Keefe Ranch in Vernon, British Columbia, she served from 2021 to 2024 as Guest Experience Coordinator, architecting an environment where history came alive through role play, devised theatre, and curated “historic happenings.” Under her direction, annual events scaled from a handful to more than fifty, staff grew fourfold, and the volunteer corps expanded to more than two hundred. She fostered partnerships with local historians and community stakeholders while maintaining operational discipline across admissions, guest services, retail, and safety. The result was a dynamic living museum that balanced educational integrity with welcoming hospitality.
In 2024, Diane was recruited as General Manager of the Mackie Lake House Foundation, a role that crystallized her strengths in heritage stewardship and organizational transformation. She oversaw the operations, maintenance, and security of historic buildings, grounds, and collections; repurposed long-dormant spaces into active program venues; and implemented museum-grade standards in collaboration with the BC Heritage Branch, the Heritage Society of BC, and Heritage Canada. She doubled staff and grew the volunteer roster with intentional recruitment, training, and recognition practices. She took full accountability for budgeting, payroll, and accounts payable, and she diversified revenue through grant writing and targeted fundraising initiatives. Her leadership sharpened the organization’s purpose, refreshed programming, and elevated its profile through a monthly newsletter, social media cadence, and a clearly articulated calendar of events.
Long before those executive roles, Diane founded and led the Waterton Teenie Weenie Theatre Company, producing summer repertory seasons that became a beloved destination experience in a national park. She combined artistic curation with capital improvement—designing and renovating an aging community hall to meet civic standards—and managed housing, marketing, payroll, and grants. The company’s repertoire, from Broadway musicals to original melodramas and theatre for young audiences, showcased Diane’s belief that access to high-quality arts experiences can galvanize both residents and visitors. Year-over-year audience growth validated that philosophy and revealed a leader attuned to place-making and community identity.
Her impact extends into symphonic music and youth development. As Executive Vice President of the Lethbridge Symphony, she helped shepherd a donor-focused turnaround, strengthening community perception and elevating the organization’s standing through strategic marketing and relationship stewardship. In the social impact sphere, Diane piloted a federally funded Youth Employment Program, serving young adults facing barriers to work and education. She created curriculum aligned to Canada’s employability skills, coordinated multi-stakeholder partnerships, and delivered outcomes that exceeded government projections. These experiences gave her a rare vantage point: she navigates seamlessly between boardroom strategy and front-line program delivery, aligning mission, metrics, and momentum.
Board governance is a defining pillar of Diane’s professional identity. She has served as President of the Board of Directors for both Powerhouse Theatre in Vernon and the Arts Council of Taber, stewarding policy, bylaws, and risk management while nurturing organizational culture. Her leadership included site stewardship, safety compliance, member communications, conflict mediation, and the launch of a mixed-media newsletter to strengthen engagement. She has also held board and advisory roles with the Lethbridge Symphony and a range of arts organizations across Canada and the western United States, participating in regional networks and provincial associations that amplify the cultural sector’s voice.
Diane’s academic grounding includes a Master’s degree in Theatre and Performance Studies from York University and a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Arts from Brigham Young University, complemented by continuing education across decolonization studies, Indigenous foundational learning, and contemporary Shakespeare practices. This formal study has never been merely credentialing; it has been a continuous process of inquiry into how stories shape communities, how institutions evolve, and how leaders can steward change responsibly. Her courses on cultural safety and social movements enrich her approach to governance and programming, ensuring that inclusion and historical context inform decision-making.
The through-line in Diane’s career is disciplined growth—of organizations, of people, and of possibility. She scales programs without sacrificing quality, grows volunteer ecosystems with care, and converts mission into operational plans that stand up to budgetary and regulatory scrutiny. She is equally comfortable managing complex calendars and cost centres as she is mentoring a young artist or facilitating a workshop on team dynamics. Partners praise her for her diplomatic communication style, her steadiness in the face of ambiguity, and her ability to convert stakeholder input into shared priorities and clear roadmaps.
Today, Diane brings this integrated portfolio—creative vision, operational rigor, and boardroom fluency—to organizations seeking seasoned governance and strategic momentum. She is especially drawn to boards at the intersection of arts, culture, heritage, and community development, where her experience in audience growth, placemaking, and program design can inform long-range strategy. She understands fiduciary duty, oversight, and the unique tempo of nonprofit finance, and she pairs that understanding with pragmatic empathy for the teams charged with execution. Her leadership philosophy is simple and compelling: align purpose and people, then build the systems that allow both to flourish.
Beyond titles and timelines, Diane is defined by a deep respect for craft and community. She hikes, sings, and sews, finding in each a meditation on attention to detail and the satisfaction of making something that lasts. She believes that well-governed, artistically ambitious organizations are engines of civic pride and social cohesion. Whether she is designing a season, auditing a budget, or moderating a boardroom discussion, her presence signals integrity, curiosity, and momentum.
Character:
Diane leads with steadiness, humility, and resolve, modeling the trust-building behaviors that enable candid conversation and decisive action. She centers service, honoring the missions of the organizations she stewards and the communities they exist to serve. She demonstrates courage in transition moments, holding teams accountable while creating the psychological safety required for honest feedback and growth.
Knowledge:
She blends domain expertise in theatre, heritage stewardship, and nonprofit finance with contemporary practices in inclusion, decolonization studies, and organizational change. Her academic training deepens her analytical lens, while decades of hands-on program delivery ensure her insights are grounded and actionable. She learns continuously, converting research and stakeholder input into pragmatic strategies that teams can implement.
Strategic:
Diane translates mission into a roadmap, aligning governance, budget, and operations to produce measurable outcomes. She anticipates risk and builds systems that turn variability into managed processes, guiding organizations through growth without losing their soul. She sees around corners, sequencing initiatives to deliver quick wins while laying foundations for durable capacity.
Communication:
She is a clear, diplomatic communicator who brings diverse stakeholders into alignment without diluting ambition. She writes with precision, speaks with warmth, and facilitates meetings that end with clarity on decisions and next steps. She listens first, synthesizes perspectives, and then articulates a course of action that people can trust and follow.
