News for Exhibitors

Greetings from the Windy City !

You are invited to join us for The American Alliance for Theatre and Education's Annual Conference in Chicago, IL. The conference, entitled The Art of Theatre: Finding the Center/Exploring the Boundaries, will bring together over 400 theatre artists and educators from across the country. As an exhibitor, you will play an important role in this conference. The exhibits will be a main attraction on Friday, July 29 and Saturday, July 30, 2005. The exhibit hall is in a prime location at the hotel, next to the general session ballroom and just past the registration desk. We plan to serve the coffee in the exhibit hall to flood you with business first thing in the morning! We would like to have book/script signing times by some of your authors throughout the conference. With your help, our participants will leave the conference with some of the latest publications in the field of theatre and education for youth.

Some other conference highlights include:

• An Internship Fair - An open dialogue in which professional theatres seeking interns and individuals desiring internships



• Paid Workshops - These workshops are in-depth experiences with limited enrollment based led by master teacher and artist, Michael Rohd, Executive Director of Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Criss Henderson and nationally recognized artist/educators, Suzan Zeder and Jim Hancock.



• Second City Improvisation Workshops - Get a taste of Chicago by attending one of the improvisation workshops offered by Chicago's Second City!



• The Lion King - we have purchased 60 tickets to Disney's The Lion King for Friday night. The theatre is within walking distance of the conference hotel.



• The Awards Luncheon - Located in one of the most elegant rooms in the city of Chicago, the Empire Room, the awards luncheon will be hosted by Awards Chair Rachel Prouty and Campton Bell Award Winner, Dr. Donald Doyle. It will be a truly unforgettable afternoon.



• Late Night Playwriting Events - Wind down after a long day with the Playwright's Slam and the Publisher's Showcase!



• All Conference Keynote Performance - Join us Saturday night for a performance by The Albany Park Theatre Project. Albany Park Theater Project is a multiethnic ensemble of teenagers creating original theater out of the real-life stories of Chicago's immigrant, working-class Albany Park neighborhood. The company was recently awarded the Coming Up Taller Award by First Lady, Laura Bush.

As if the city of Chicago and the conference itself were not enough, we have chosen the historic Palmer House Hilton Hotel to be our home for this year's conference. Located in the heart of downtown Chicago, steps away from the Art Institute, Millennium Park and several of Chicago's finest theatres, the Palmer House will provide a magnificent backdrop for the unfolding drama of our conference.

Please visit the AATE website www.aate.com frequently during the months leading up to the conference for updates. We hope to meet you at that crossroads where artists and educators serving young people meet. May the strong Chicago winds carry this message to all who need to hear it, and may all who it hear recognize the opportunity that awaits them next summer - in Chicago!

Rives Collins and Betsy Quinn
AATE 2005 Conference Chairs