Jeff vom Saal plans to step down as executive director of the Fox Theater and Spokane Symphony on Aug. 31.

Vom Saal, who led the theater and symphony for nine years, will become the chief operating officer of the Nashville (Tennessee) Symphony. 

The symphony's board of directors has named Russ Lee as its interim executive director. Lee served as the symphony's board chairman from 2018 to 2020 and has been active with the board for eight years. He previously worked as a banking executive and was the CEO of Inland Northwest Bank when it was acquired by First Interstate Bancsystem Inc. in 2018. 

A search for vom Saal's permanent replacement is expected to start later this year.

In a press release, the symphony board credited vom Saal, a past Journal of Business Rising Star, with being the catalyst for an expansion of programming, activities, and community outreach. The historic Fox Theater, located at 1001 W. Sprague, in downtown Spokane, currently hosts 200 activities that attract about 85,000 people annually.