Alicia B. Adams served for more than thirty years as Vice President of International Programming and Dance at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Joining the Kennedy Center in 1992, she began her tenure as Special Assistant to Chairman James Wolfensohn, collaborating closely to expand, refine, and implement the Center’s diverse programs and policies. Throughout her career, Adams curated major international festivals, as well as prominent exhibitions and programs in contemporary theater and dance. Her leadership in arts management extended beyond Washington, D.C., including significant roles in New York City at renowned institutions such as Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Belafonte Enterprises, Inc., City Center Theater, Harlem School of the Arts, and International Production Associates.
For three decades at the Kennedy Center, Alicia B. Adams produced and presented work from both national and international stages. In recent years, she launched innovative festivals such as EARTH to SPACE: Arts Breaking the Sky (2025), REACH TO FOREST (2024), and RIVERRUN (2023). Her curatorial expertise is evident in landmark events like ARTES DE CUBA: From the Island to the World (2018), which featured 400 Cuban and Cuban American artists; Ireland 100 (2016), celebrating the Centennial of the Easter Rising; IBERIAN SUITE: global arts remix (2015); and WORLD STAGES: International Theater Festival (2014).
Adams further distinguished herself with the creation of Nordic Cool 2013, maximumINDIA(2011), and ARABESQUE: Arts of the Arab World (2009), celebrating the arts and cultures of the Nordic region, India, and the Arab world respectively. She additionally planned and programmed China: The Art of a Nation (2011), ON THE FRINGE: Eye on Edinburgh (2010), JAPAN! culture + hyperculture (2008), and the month-long Festival of China (2005), the largest celebration of Chinese arts and culture in American history. Her vision led to the Kennedy Center’s four-year initiative on Africa, African Odyssey (1997-2000), and the Latin American festival AmericArtes (2001-2004).
Beyond major international festivals, Adams curated the Center’s Contemporary Dance program presenting major dance companies and artists, both national and international.
Throughout her distinguished career, Adams has held significant leadership roles and contributed her expertise to numerous esteemed organizations in the performing arts field. She previously served as Chair of the Board of Trustees for the International Society of the Performing Arts (ISPA) and continues her commitment to the industry as Co-Vice President of the Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP). Adams is a Trustee emeritus of the Williamstown Theater Festival in Massachusetts. She is a member of the Founding Council of the Caine Prize for African Writing (UK) and served as a Trustee for Africa 95 (UK) as well as the US China Cultural Institute. Her dedication to supporting diverse artistic and cultural endeavors is further reflected in her advisory roles, including her position as a former Advisory Board member for the All Roads Project of National Geographic.
Adams contributed six years of service on the National Dance Panel of the New England Foundation on the Arts and has also served as a panelist for The Pew Charitable Foundation. She continues to engage with the academic and artistic community as a member of the Advisory Council for Georgetown University’s Laboratory for Global Performance and Circle World Arts. Her professional affiliations include being an elected member of the Cosmos Club and the Council on Foreign Relations, further underscoring her influence and commitment to the arts and global cultural exchange.
Adams’s exceptional service to the performing arts has been widely recognized by her peers and international institutions. In 2011, she was honored with the APAP Fan Taylor Distinguished Service Award, which acknowledges exemplary dedication and impact within the field of performing arts presenting. Her contributions have also earned international distinction: in 2013, Adams was awarded the Insignia of Member First Class of the Royal Order of the Polar Star by the Swedish government. The following year, she received the Insignia of Knight, First Class, of the Order of the Lion of Finland, bestowed by the Finnish government.
Adams’s academic credentials reflect her deep commitment to excellence and leadership in the arts. She holds a Master of Arts degree from Columbia University and a Bachelor of Science degree from New York University. Further strengthening her foundation in arts leadership, she earned a certificate in arts administration from Harvard University’s School of Business Administration.
