TPAC Gala, the signature fundraiser for the Tennessee Performing Arts Center, is making its stylish return on Saturday, April 1, in a new location: the brand-new Four Seasons Hotel in downtown Nashville.
The black-tie gala promises to be an evening of sophisticated elegance and artistic surprises to benefit the organization’s nationally recognized educational, cultural, and community engagement initiatives. The evening includes a sunset cocktail hour, a fabulous multi-course dinner, and a true performing arts experience. We sat down with this year’s Gala co-chairs, Tiffany Degrafinreid and Allison Lechleiter to learn more about them and how they got involved.
Nashville Lifestyles: What made you want to chair the TPAC Gala?
Tiffany Degrafinreid: Honestly, I was equally honored and nervous about this opportunity. I consider myself a “workhorse” who creates magic behind the scenes rather than a “showhorse” who has the need to be out front all the time. I am excited to work in this capacity because of TPAC’s mission and for the great work that has been done to improve the access and exposure to the arts in the city, region, and the state.
Allison Lechleiter: My husband Dan and I are both passionate about our community and have always enjoyed and supported the performing arts together. When we made the decision to move our family from Indianapolis to Nashville in early 2021, we became season ticket holders at TPAC before we were even Tennessee residents. From our first performance, Dan and I have loved everything that TPAC has to offer. I was thrilled to be able to take on a leading role in supporting its future.
NL: How are the funds raised from the event utilized?
TD: This fundraising event supports educational programs that inspire imagination in the leaders of tomorrow, diverse art forms in dance, theater, and family programming, and an inclusive space where all people can see themselves represented on and off our stages.
AL: The TPAC Gala has made a monumental impact on the performing arts in Nashville for years through the generous support of our community. In the last six years, the Gala has raised nearly $2 million to support TPAC’s mission of providing meaningful and relevant performing arts experiences that enrich lives and promote economic vitality in Tennessee.
NL: Whys is supporting TPAC important and why do you think it is vital to our community?
TD: Supporting TPAC is important because the arts allow people to witness and express their creativity. That creativity, of course, impacts all age ranges and benefits all. TPAC creates a space for fellowship, exposure, and much-needed dialogue.
AL: The Nashville community is truly blessed to have TPAC, Nashville’s very own world-class home for the performing arts. Its performances rival any you could find in New York, London, or elsewhere. So many of TPAC’s performances open the minds and hearts of the audience in new ways, and those performances bring together diverse audiences from across the Nashville area. I believe TPAC is so vital to the community, and supporting it is so important, because it is one of those rare and unique places where the very fabric of the community is not simply revitalized but woven.
NL: What inspires you to use your time, talents, and treasure as a volunteer?
TD: My mother is my greatest inspiration. Although she is no longer physically here with me, what she instilled in me continues to guide me today. Being a wife, a mother, a friend, neighbor, etc., takes a lot of time and energy. However, I am committed to volunteering through board service and community engagement. I am inspired by other leaders who seemingly balance volunteerism with family life.
AL: I know this sounds a little cliché, but it is my children who probably most inspire me to volunteer and support TPAC. I want the next generation of Nashvillians to experience TPAC and the exhilaration, the moving emotions, the excitement, and the wonderful entertainment that its performances have brought to them and to each of us.