U.S. Bank Empowers Community Through the Arts

When Tara Netherton moved to Orange County from New York, her personal to-do list included one item that she couldn’t wait to check off. Get involved in the community.

Tara is a senior vice president in Commercial Banking at U.S. Bank, a company that strives to make community possible.

Oh, and if theatre was in the picture, so much the better. After all, when Netherton wasn’t traveling, she was attending Broadway productions. Her family had a background in theatre, dating to her great-grandfather making prop horses for the original production of Carousel.

Netherton discovered to her delight that U.S. Bank has had a long relationship with SCR. Its executives were steady and loyal constants on the theatre’s Board of Trustees, including fellow theatre lover Bruce Wagner, a director in the Credit Department, who came over when U.S. Bank purchased Union Bank.

“One of the first things I wanted to do in my new job was to get involved in the community, because that’s where my connections are in Orange County,” she said. “… There had been other board members from U.S. Bank prior to me, but theatre was always an interest of mine. That was an interest I could carry with me from New York, but one that allowed me to get involved in the local community.”

Five years later, Netherton is the chair of the Audience Development Committee, sharing her appreciation for SCR’s productions throughout the community, and the latest U.S. Bank delegate volunteering her time to the theatre. In addition to U.S. Bank boasting a long and productive presence on the theatre’s Board of Trustees, they’ve also served as Corporate Honorary Producer for 17 productions.

That includes Quixote Nuevo by Octavio Solis, which opened SCR’s 60^th season. Netherton joined California Community Affairs Manager Rockette Ewell and Orange County Community Affairs Manager Wendy Chau at the play’s First Night Oct. 6.

“It was so different from anything else I had seen at SCR,” Netherton said. “That’s what I like about SCR, the theatre continues to surprise us with different types of productions.”

Chau joined U.S. Bank 15 years ago. She just joined the Corporate Social Responsibility Team four weeks ago, so this was her first foray into SCR’s community-based programming. What she saw amazed her.

“It was incredibly powerful to see it on stage and learn the story through that performance,” she said. “Seeing those modern touches bringing it to life, that was very relatable and I think it was very important to bring it to the forefront of folks who aren’t aware of it. It’s just a great spin on what was there before.”

That Quixote Nuevo accomplished all that while reaching out to a diverse audience fits the goals of U.S. Bank. Chau said the bank recognizes the importance of art and theatre to the community and views it as a two-pronged vital investment: satisfying community purpose and economic purpose.

“Our funding often supports programming that connects young people from underserved school districts or schools that don’t have arts education or programming. We want to connect them with access to the theatre,” Chau said. “We will support programming that takes the theatre out in the community and neighborhoods and constituencies you may not typically see in SCR’s traditional audiences.

“We understand the economic importance of the arts and theatre and we understand cultural significance and how it’s an important part of making a community like Orange County such a rich place to live.”

And that, naturally, involves involvement from the bank’s employees.

“Empowering our team members to help power human potential in the community is an important part of our work at U.S. Bank,” said Ann Penn, California communications manager for U.S. Bank.

This is what inspires longtime board member Wagner, who grew up in Orange County with a love of theatre nurtured at Bolsa Grande High in Garden Grove. In 1987, Wagner saw Romeo and Juliet at SCR and loved it so much, he bought a subscription. He’s been a subscriber ever since.

“I’ve made five or six trips to see shows on Broadway and while I love doing that, I’m very passionate about SCR,” he said. “When I see a show on Broadway and I see a show at South Coast Repertory, with the exception of the fact there are rarely big-time names at SCR, there’s no discernable difference between the quality. It’s as professional as it gets here.”

Like Netherton, Wagner found his way to the SCR Board through his employer. In his case, however, Wagner isn’t in a client-facing role. He works with agriculture and wineries, all of which are located in the Central Valley and Northern California. But it’s a testament to his devotion to the arts that Wagner views his position on the board as a public and community trust, and well-aligned with the purpose-driven ethos of U.S. Bank.

“I think it’s very important and I’m very appreciative of that,” Wagner said. “As leaders in the community, which commercial bankers typically are, they need to be involved in these type of activities. We need to be able to provide funding for the great creative minds that we’re blessed to have in our community. It’s an awesome opportunity and I’m very thankful that the bank I work for is heavily involved in the arts community, supporting the arts—not just for art’s sake. There’s teaching elements, learning opportunities for all of us. Good art does that and South Coast Repertory does a fabulous job providing entertaining and enlightened entertainment.”