The city sounds familiar but the accent isn’t what you expect.
When the Straz’s new senior director of guest services mentions he’s from Boston, you expect the steamrolled vowels endemic to the U.S. city’s natives.
Anthony Winter-Brown’s accent is decidedly English, though. He’s from the other Boston, the original, actually, In Lincolnshire. In the U.S., of course, Boston means Bahstahn and said sometimes even a British passport won’t settle the issue.
“When they see Boston, they say, ‘Oh, you’re from here.’ ‘No, it’s a British passport,’” Anthony said with a laugh.
Anthony comes to the Straz from St. Petersburg’s American Stage where he was managing director. Prior to American Stage, he was director of visitor experience for London’s Royal Albert Hall. He came to the Royal Albert Hall from British grocery chain Waitrose. He changed continents and careers before getting to Tampa.
Anthony took a year off from Waitrose to travel and consider his next career move. A visit to Key West proved momentous when he met his now-husband, Alton, there.
Back at Waitrose, he took on an intriguing assignment. London’s venerable concert venue, the Royal Albert Hall wanted to improve its customer service. A hall rep contacted Waitrose, known for its excellent service, and the consulting task fell to Anthony. This led to Anthony being hired as the hall’s director of visitor experience, a position he held for six years.
“The one through line in my career, the passion and motivation I have, centers around exciting customers – delivering exceptional customer service whatever the industry,” Anthony said.
While he’s worked in a number of industries, Anthony believes he has found his niche in the arts. He traces that interest back to his days at an all-boys school.
“At my school, you had to be either really good at sports or academics. I was neither,” Anthony said. “I couldn’t find my group of people.”
That changed when he discovered a local theater group that had a program for teens.
“I joined and I loved it,” Anthony said. “I did some plays, very badly. I was a very bad actor.
“I didn’t get the bug to perform, but I had found like-minded people who I felt some connection or similarity with,” Anthony said. “I got some confidence from that. I got lifelong friends from that.
He believes that experience led to him finding his way back into the performing arts. “Working in it now, it’s highly rewarding,” he said.
Like the Royal Albert Hall, the Straz is focused on “giving audiences unforgettable experiences.”
“We have a really good foundation here,” Anthony said. “Our volunteers are phenomenal. The fact that they give their time for free and deliver exceptional customer service at the same time just blows my mind, and I’m very, very appreciative of it.”
Anthony wants to “make sure the standards are actually set in place so everybody delivers great customer service. And then how do we build and keep on improving on it?
“I want to set some clear standards, some clear expectations, clear roles and responsibilities, setting some good foundations,” Anthony said.
Anthony also is focused on “strategic objectives around accessibility. We have a great foundation for accessibility here but there’s more to do. I’m really excited to help the Straz make all performances inclusive and accessible to all.”
