Social Scene: Cultural Breakfast Speakers Reunite at the Kreeger
By • September 18, 2025 One Comment 743
Schmoozing among the Monets to the sounds of a trio provided by DC Jazz Fest Executive Director Sunny Sumter, the assembled cultural leaders were “an incredible group to bring together last night,” wrote Katey Boerner, CEO of Glen Echo Park, who added: “the conversations were really interesting and I think some collaborations may come out of it.”
Roughly a third of the 67 featured speakers from The Georgetowner’s Cultural Leadership Breakfast Series, launched in January of 2014, turned out on Sept. 16, a drizzly Thursday, for the series’ 11th anniversary cocktail party, hosted by the Kreeger Museum. Given the timeframe, some had moved on, though others — such as Boerner, Sumter, Theatre Washington’s Amy Austin, the Cathedral Choral Society’s Steven Fox and Strathmore’s Monica Jeffries Hazangeles — still occupied their former roles.
Series organizer Richard Selden shared “a few nuggets and shavings in chronological order” from event write-ups by the late Gary Tischler and himself. A favorite from 2016, by Washington Ballet Artistic Director Septime Webre, who had just announced his departure: “I’m really, really proud of what we’ve done here in this city, which, when I got here, didn’t have what you could call a diverse arts community. The city was still a little quiet then, and truth to tell, the food wasn’t much either.”
Photos below by Greg “Fritz” Blakey.
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- Cathedral Choral Society Executive Director Emma Moores, Rebecca Read Medrano, co-founder and executive director of GALA Theatre, and Anna Harvey, CEO of Dupont Underground.
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- Board Chair Iesha Holy and board member Melanie Hayes of Georgetown Main Street flank Gail Daubert, president of the Friends of Rose Park.
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- Real estate broker Donna Evers with Robert Devaney and Allyson Burkhardt of The Georgetowner.
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- Webmaster Troy Riemer and Katie McKenney, designers for The Georgetowner.
This article beautifully captures the vibrant legacy of the Cultural Leadership Breakfast series. It’s inspiring to see these influential figures reunite and the potential collaborations that arise from such meaningful gatherings. A great reminder of the city’s rich cultural tapestry.