Fall Conference 2021

In-person attendees: Come get your badge and join us for coffee and reunions with old friends — and meet new ones! Reminder: Proof of COVID-19 vaccination is required for entry. All attendees must be fully vaccinated. We will check CDC vaccination cards or digital passes and IDs at the door, so don’t forget those and allow a little more time than our usual check-in process.

Online attendees: The virtual space will be open, too! Start chatting and posting, join a video room, and get set up for the day.

Everyone: Make sure you have the Socio app on your phone so you can make connections with your fellow attendees (wherever they are) and get important Conference and Festival info all week.

Coffee today is sponsored by Starhawk Productions and Theatrical Rights Worldwide

Three generations of musical theatre writers — who have mentored or been mentored by each other and collaborated in the past — will discuss teaching, learning and how to share this art form we all love, as well their hopes for the future of the field.

In-person attendees, check the Socio app for restaurant recommendations! (This link will start working the week before the conference after your Socio registration has been activated.)

The last year and a half has been a time not only of struggle and soul-searching but also of innovation and reinvention. As we begin to rebuild and reopen, what do we want “the new normal” to look like? What don’t we want it to look like? Let’s take some time to remember why we got into theatre in the first place and imagine the industry, art form, audiences and community we want to see going forward.

Moderated by Betsy King Militello (NAMT), with Thembi Duncan (Shea’s Performing Arts Center), Susanna Gellert (Weston Playhouse), Melissa Livingston (Lake Dillon Theatre Company) and Natasha Sinha (Playwrights Horizons)

An interactive, 90-minute workshop to help participants deepen their analysis, develop further understanding and grow in learning around issues of racism, bias, and injustice while remaining energized in the midst of the internal and collective work. We will create a brave environment that allows participants to feel safe to share and engage, both in-person and online, and ensure that space is made for participants to share their unfiltered experiences and concerns.

Please note that proof of COVID-19 vaccination is required to enter restaurants in NYC, so even though we will have checked your status in the morning, Glass House will need to check it again. Be sure to have your vax card or equivalent pass and ID on you.

In-person attendees: Don’t forget your badge and join us for coffee and reunions with old friends — and meet new ones! Reminder: Proof of COVID-19 vaccination is required for entry. All attendees must be fully vaccinated. We will check CDC vaccination cards or digital passes and IDs at the door, so don’t forget those and allow a little more time than our usual check-in process.

Online attendees: The virtual space will be open, too! Start chatting and posting, join a video room, and get set up for the day.

Everyone: Make sure you have the Socio app on your phone so you can make connections with your fellow attendees (wherever they are) and get important Conference and Festival info all week.

Coffee today is sponsored by ArtLab and The 5th Avenue Theatre.

We’ve learned many things over the last year, especially the importance of relationships and keeping connections with patrons active. As Theatres reopen doors and return to performances with live audiences, it is time to act on what we’ve learned. Join TRG Arts for a hands-on workshop to explore how to best reactivate and retain audiences during this important 2021-22 season. The session will feature data insights, case studies, and activities to help ensure this season isn’t just about reopening, but is your relationship renaissance.

If you could snap your fingers and change the way that new musicals are developed, how would you change things?

A panel discussion about creating equitable, brave spaces for new musical development. The specific focus of this session has been determined by the panelists without a brief from the NAMT staff or planning committee, creating a unique opportunity to hear a group of Global Majority leaders in our industry exploring a subject on their own terms. All are welcome!

Moderated by Orlando Morales (The 5th Avenue Theatre), with Ray Hogg (The Musical Theatre Company), Keena Redding (Horizon Theatre Company) and Blair Russell (Show Shepherd)

In-person attendees, check the Socio app for restaurant recommendations! (This link will start working the week before the conference after your Socio registration has been activated.)

How do we welcome artists, staff and audiences back into our theatres after a period that has been traumatic for many? What are we doing differently, and how are we communicating those changes? How are we listening?

Moderated by Paige Price (Philadelphia Theatre Company), with Jesse Cameron Alick (The Vineyard Theatre and The Sundance Institute), Bill Berry (The 5th Avenue Theatre), and Chanel Bragg (Arizona Theatre Company)

How can we use stories to effect change? In this moment of “returning to normal,” is it better to give audiences what they know and are familiar with or use this as our chance to challenge them with new content and form? What are the dangers of catering to subscribers and donors? What are the benefits of questioning their — and our! — assumptions? How do we engage existing audiences in new programming while making the space and building the bridges to new audiences and artists? What sort of communities do we want our theatres to be and how can new musicals play a role?

Moderated by Anika Chapin (Goodspeed Musicals), with Dennis Corsi (Live & In Color), John Dias (Two River Theatre), Kate Galvin (Cardinal Stage) and Eric Keen-Louie (La Jolla Playhouse).

What will musical theatre look like in one year? Two? Ten? What innovations and tools from the time when our doors were closed do we want to keep as we move forward? How can we use technology to provide greater access to audiences and artists alike?

Moderated by Sharon Fallon (Sharon Fallon Productions, Inc.), with Kwofe Coleman (The Muny), Tralen Doler (Broadway Licensing/Broadway On Demand) and Mei Ann Teo (Oregon Shakespeare Festival)

Featuring Fall Conference keynote panelist Emily Gardner Xu Hall, this new work sampling will provide the perfect segue from the end of the conference to the beginning of the Festival. (Available to Fall Conference attendees in-person or online and Festival VIPs and Premiere/Select Pass holders online.)

Wine & Cheese sponsored by Music Theatre International and Ogunquit Playhouse.

(NAMT Members Only)

Come for important updates on the state of NAMT and vote on the new slate of Board members and other important business.