Sarah Williams

Consultant

Sarah Williams is a nonprofit cultural leader with over 15 years of experience working in nonprofit arts organizations. She is currently the Arts Program Officer for the Kenneth Rainin Foundation, where she is passionate about ensuring the Bay Area remains a place where artists can live, work, and thrive. In her role, she supports program delivery, grantmaking strategy, and evaluation for the Arts Program.

From 2019-2022 Sarah served as the Managing Director for California Shakespeare Theater (Cal Shakes), where she oversaw the administration and operations of the organization, including guiding it through the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to Cal Shakes, Sarah was the Associate Managing Director at Berkeley Repertory Theater (Berkeley Rep) where she produced special events and initiatives and managed the operations for The Ground Floor, Berkeley Rep’s Center for the Creation and Development of New Work. Sarah has also worked with TOC Arts Partners, Yale Repertory Theater, Huntington Theater Company and Boston Symphony Orchestra. 

Sarah serves as a member of the board of Crowded Fire Theater in San Francisco and the Editorial Board of the Yale Theatre Management Knowledge Base. She holds an MFA from David Geffen School of Drama at Yale, where she was the recipient of the Morris J. Kaplan prize for recognition in theater management. She earned a BA from Boston College. A Kansas City native, Sarah now lives in Oakland, California, where she cherishes year-round access to farmers' markets.