Dallas Children’s Theater (DCT) kicks off 2022 with the installation of a new president…James (Jim) Markus, Partner at Haynes Boone, LLP, a top tier law firm headquartered in Dallas. The Board of Trustees unanimously welcomed Markus, along with a number of new trustees, this month.
Markus has been involved with DCT for more than 25 years. He has served the nonprofit organization in numerous capacities including acting as its outside counsel, chairing the development committee and advising on legal and financial aspects of the acquisition and construction of DCT’s current facility, which was purchased in 2002. Over the years, Markus has contributed hundreds of hours of pro bono services to the theater.
Markus and his wife, Ellen, have been ticketholders and donors of DCT for decades, and they consider DCT to be the best in the country when it comes to family entertainment. Additionally, Markus is proud of the longstanding reputation of DCT’s Academy school, which serves children ages 3.5 to 18, and DCT’s many programs that have provided children and families with an entry point to the arts in North Texas and beyond. DCT has touched over five million people in its 37-year history.
In law practice for more than 40 years, Markus represents financial institutions, corporations, private equity firms and alternative lenders on a range of corporate finance and restructuring transactions. He is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and is a member of a number of industry organizations, including the Turnaround Management Association, the Dallas Bar Association, the Secured Finance Network, and the Texas Association of Bank Counsel. Markus recently served as a board member and officer of KidLinks, a local nonprofit organization providing music therapy and therapeutic music entertainment to children in need.
“I am honored and excited to serve as DCT’s next president,” Markus said. “After nearly two years of drastically curtailed operations in response to the pandemic, DCT is now poised to continue offering an unmatched season of Broadway-like performances as well as expanding its instructional programs.” Markus added, “DCT is a unique and beloved North Texas treasure, and this was demonstrated by the amazing levels of support we received from staff, donors and the community at large during the pandemic.”
Markus will focus on building upon the DCT successes achieved in the virtual space during the pandemic as well as ramping up for a full return to the organization’s unique brand of live, family-friendly entertainment in the 2022-2023 season. Markus shared, “I am particularly looking forward to DCT’s presentation of 10 SECONDS, a part of DCT’s Social Justice Initiative, coming up in May.
About Dallas Children’s Theater
Dallas Children’s Theater features professional actors performing for an annual audience of 250,000 young people and their families through mainstage productions, a national touring company, and an arts-in-education program. As the only major organization in Dallas focusing solely on youth and family theater, DCT builds bridges of understanding between generations and cultures, instilling an early appreciation of literature, art and the performing arts in tomorrow’s artists and patrons.
Read the full DCT press release here.
