Jason Jon Anderson

Eau Claire’s new performing arts center will have a familiar face at its helm. Jason Jon Anderson, who has served as acting executive director of the Pablo Center at the Confluence since October, can now drop the word “acting” from his title. The center’s board of directors announced Friday that Anderson has been hired as executive director.

A Chippewa Falls native, Anderson has worked as an event services coordinator for several years, both at UW-Eau Claire and for off-campus venues. He also organized conferences, camps, special events, and festivals throughout the Chippewa Valley. With a background in lighting design, Anderson was extensively involved in the Phoenix Park Bridge lighting project, and has worked with Bon Iver as production manager. He also is production director for the Eaux Claires Music & Arts Festival.

“Having actively been a part of our creative economy on a local, national, and international scale for the last several years I am excited to help ensure the continued renaissance of our region,” Anderson said in a news release.

Anderson was hired as acting executive director in October after the man originally hired for the job, Kevin Miller, resigned.

“We are thrilled to welcome Jason Jon Anderson as the new executive director,” board chairwoman Vicki Hoehn said. “We look forward to his leadership as the organization grows as well as the energy, passion, and dedication he brings to the Pablo Center at the Confluence.”

The performing arts center – which was officially dubbed the Pablo Center at the Confluence in February – will be shared by UW-Eau Claire and community groups. Slated to open in September, it is being built at the confluence of the Eau Claire and Chippewa rivers in downtown Eau Claire. The Pablo Center will include a 1,200-seat theater and a 400-seat theater, as well as “rehearsal, dance, and community rooms; visual arts studio and galleries; labs for sound and lighting, set and exhibit design, recording arts, multimedia production and costume design; a scene shop equipped to support the maker space and vocational training initiatives; and administrative offices for management, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire faculty and Visit Eau Claire staff.”

Also on Friday, the center announced that its inaugural season will include a solo show by the Tallest Man on Earth on Nov. 19. The Swedish indie rocker, whose real name is Kristian Matsson, performed at Eau Claire’s State Theatre in 2016 and at the inaugural Eaux Claires festival in 2015. Tickets for the show will go on sale at noon on Friday, March 16. They can be purchased on the arts center’s new website, PabloCenter.org, which will go live March 14.