June 5-7, 2019
Called “the Magic City” after its population exploded in the 20th century, Miami’s true constant has always been change. From the 1960s to the 1990s, the city’s population grew from just 10% residents of color to 90%, and it remains the third largest immigration port city in the U.S. In 1977, it became the first major urban area in the country to pass legislation protecting LGBTQ+ community members, only to have the law subsequently repealed and those protections absent for the next 20 years. And in the early 21st century, developers eager to capitalize at the edges of the disappearing Everglades have made Miami-Dade county a symbol of luxury, and of displacement. For the uninitiated, the city’s pulpy, Miami Vice and Art Basel-influenced exterior belies its cultural complexity. Its relationship to both the state of Florida and the countless nations from which so many of its residents hail creates a unique socio-cultural dynamic, unlike anywhere else in the U.S. And the “Manhattan-ization” of its skyline distracts from the urgent need to address shrinking coastlines and increased threat from climate change. Miami’s literal and figurative waterline is always shifting, and its artists and storytellers are there to capture it all.
From June 5-7, 2019, TCG will convene nearly 1,000 theatre makers in Miami, each one looking to manage their relationship to ever-present change: in their art, their institutions, and their communities. What can our field, which has long prided itself on its adaptability, learn from a city like Miami, which reinvents itself with each passing decade, neighborhood, and hurricane season? At this year’s National Conference, against the backdrop of Miami’s plurality of global cultures and artistic disciplines, we will focus intently on three programmatic areas: Audience and Community Engagement as part of our continuing Audience (R)Evolution initiative; Well-being and Wellness; and Theatre Journalism. As part of and in parallel to these areas, we will also address our field’s most pressing issues, from the evolving landscape of fundraising, to organizational culture, to leadership development, all while nurturing our field’s growing commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion. Our Conference community will engage with thought leaders from within and beyond the arts to grapple with our own true constant: the challenge of adapting and sustaining our organizations and our work in times of great change.
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For fees and registration information, click here. To register, click here.
TCG is grateful to the following supporters of the 2019 National Conference.
If you are interested in joining TCG as a sponsor, please contact Kevin Bitterman, director of Institutional Advancement & Partnerships.