As the new executive director of the Goddard Center, Chris Greening is excited about the opportunity to expand the arts throughout the community.

Greening took over at the Goddard Center as the first of the year. His prior position was in Florida, serving as the Director of Visual and Performing Arts for Lake Highland Preparatory School.

Greening said he earned a Master’s degree in performing arts administration and knew his next step was to get out of education and move into the public sector. While Greening wanted to continue with what he was doing in the field of education, he also wanted to enrich a population instead of being limited to school age kids.

“This is a position I have been looking for, an executive director role whether it was with a symphony or performing arts center,” he said. “This position came open with the Goddard Center. I applied and fell in love with the area, the people. Most importantly, the prospects of what this center can do for Ardmore and how it is connecting the community with the arts and us being able to give great programming back. Whether is it on stage or art galleries or our classes.”

In his previous role at Lake Highland Preparatory School, Greening managed a 780-seat theater which had focused student-based performances. He oversaw 40 artistic programs and courses for the student body. Toward the end of his tenure, the community was more involved as the theater was rented it out to present opportunities for a wider patron base.

While the Goddard Center is smaller, Greening described it as an intimate theater with 300 seats that can connect with audiences.

“It is a space where you can come and you feel like you are engaged with what is happening on stage rather than being 40 rows back and having to watch it on a monitor,” he said.

Greening said the art galleries also provide a way to introduce people to the arts. When walking through the galleries for the first time, he said his jaw dropped to the floor.

“You wouldn’t expect that in a small town to have that kind of facility for the community,” Greening said. “I was just walking through there and my ears were spinning. It gives artists an opportunity to present their work, whether they are local to the area or even regional and national artists coming in.”

The center’s art school also holds great appeal for Greening, who said it is the heart of who he is as an educator. Greening said everyone should be able to experience the arts at any point in their life. Whether it be painting, ceramics or dance, Greening said the education aspect resonated with him.

“It is the total package,” he said. “We have got opportunities for anyone to come in and experience the art and that is what I am coming from, and I am really happy to continue doing that but on a different level to a broader population.”

Growing up in the arts

Greening said his passion came from his grandmother Viola. She gave a grand piano to his parents and said that he would learn to play piano for her.

“I was a musician from the get-go,” Greening said. “I went from playing piano to the tuba then trombone. I did my undergrad as a music education major. I played at Disney. It really starts with my grandmother and that first piano that she put in our house.

“Without it, I am not sure I would have ventured down that musical path.”

Greening grew up in Wisconsin and moved to Orlando, where he lived for 33 years. He started as a band director at a middle school, eventually moving to private schools where he served as a band director.

Greening said his passion broadened during his career in the arts, where he moved into an administrative role. His wife Pam is an art teacher. That combined with his previous role allowed him to fully embrace how much the art world has to offer. Greening said the key is willing to be able to create and he would go so far as to sit in on classes to broaden his experience.

“You just have to try it and a lot of artwork, no matter what, I will sit down at the piano and play and it is not meant for anyone else but me.

Greening said playing piano often helps him reduce stress and an outlet for creative freedom.

“For me, that art piece, the majority of time it is for the individual,” he said.

Future of the Goddard Center

Greening said he wants to create a space, whether it is on stage, in the studio or in classes, where everybody feels welcome. He is looking at different programming to draw in people and find nuggets that might not have been provided before.

“Maybe it is a bluegrass band, maybe it is Motown, maybe it is something off the beaten path they have not heard before,” Greening said. “I have got to create these opportunities.”

One idea is a street party to kick off the center’s season to bring families and the community together through the arts.

“Once you get away for our phones, TV’s and computers and connect back with people, this buzz starts happening,” Greening said. “The community begins to really develop.”

Greening has hit the ground running, interviewing for the position of trustee on the Ardmore Tourism Authority. He has also applied for a seat on the Ardmore Main Street Authority.

He said there are a lot of things he would like to see happen and would like to work on

“The most important part for me is to get you through the doors and experience the arts,” Greening said.