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New executive director of the Shaw Center for the Arts

David Briggs left his post at North Carolina’s thriving Broyhill Civic Center to fill the long-vacant spot as executive director of the Shaw Center for the Arts.

Briggs will manage a building whose tenants range from the LSU Art Museum and School of Art Gallery, to Tsunami and the Manship Theatre.

What was your first impression of Baton Rouge?

It was phenomenal. We actually came the night of the Hilton grand opening. The big skylights were out, folks were wandering around in tuxedos, and my wife says, ‘I think we’re home.’

How did you find out about the job?

It was listed on a couple of national search engines, and I figured I’d find out what they were actually looking for. I was getting ready to type a letter to the headhunter for the position, and the phone rang. It was the headhunter for the position. So I said, ‘Well, that might be a pretty good fit.’

How will you resolve conflicts?

I’m a one-on-one kind of person. You don’t deal with problems with an entire group. You get the people together who have issues and discuss what those issues are. You find out if there’s something that can be mutually resolved or if something more drastic has to take place.

You share a name with Neil Young’s producer, have you ever crossed paths?

I did swap mail with Neil Young’s producer once. It was this outrageous check, and I thought, ‘I don’t remember doing this job.’ They had put the wrong ZIP code on it. I got it back to him, but I think I should’ve gotten a cut—for giving it back.

Cajun food or sushi?

Oh, Cajun food.