At its 66th annual conference in New York this January, the International Society of Performing Arts presented its International Citation of Merit to Ann Summers Dossena, of the Toronto-based artist management firm Ann Summers International. Summers Dossena is also founder of Toronto’s International Resource Centre for Performing Arts, a nonprofit established in 1983 to assist classical artists in their careers; alumni of IRCPA include sopranos Adrianne Pieczonka and Isabel Bayrakdarian and tenor Colin Ainsworth. Summers Dossena is the first Canadian to receive the honor, given for “unique lifetime achievement that has enriched the international performing arts through distinguished service within the profession.” Previous honorees of the annual ISPA citation of merit include José Antonio Abreu, founder of Venezuela’s El Sistema; Clive Gillinson, executive and artistic director of Carnegie Hall; and the late Lotfi Mansouri, former director of the Canadian Opera Company.
Posted February 6, 2014
