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My Conference (Volunteers) 

TAKING ACTION TOGETHER

The League of American Orchestras Conference at NPAC

Check this page regularly for updates to the day-to-day Conference schedule.  All contents subject to change.

Items with an asterisk (*) indicate advance registration and/or additional fee required.

Visit the calendar for a quick view of events.

Wednesday, June 11 

The Exhibits at ArtsTown by Ovation TV at the Colorado Convention Center is open from 9:00am to 5:30pm. 

Location TBA

Volunteerism – Empowerment for Taking Action
8:00am – 9:00am

WELCOME AND ORIENTATION    

STAFF/VOLUNTEER RELATIONS
Keynote Speaker: Doug Adams, Executive Director, Colorado Symphony Orchestra

Hear about relations between staff and volunteer organizations and how to achieve a successful dialogue.

9:00am – 10:00am
STRATEGIC PLANNING SESSION & WORKSHOP

10:00am – 11:00am
FACILITATING CHANGE SESSION & WORKSHOP


11:00am – 12:30pm
Location TBA

TAKING ACTION TOGETHER ORIENTATION & LUNCHEON

TAT Teams will be organized and given an overview of the AmericaSpeaks Caucus Meetings.  Teams will discuss how to participate in the caucus meetings to plan for the arts and their own organizations.

2:00pm – 3:30pm
OPENING SESSION:  THE POWER OF COMMUNITY BUILDING

Wells Fargo Theater, Colorado Convention Center

Celebrate the performing community and share exciting visions of what the future of the performing arts could be! With Mitch Landrieu, lieutenant governor of Louisiana; Bill Rauch, artistic director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival; Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper; Erin Trapp, director, Denver Department of Cultural Affairs, and Dana Gioia, chairman, National Endowment for the Arts.

This session lays the foundation for ideas that will be discussed and challenged throughout the Convention. Click here for more program details.

4:00pm – 5:30pm
AMERICASPEAKS CAUCUSES
Location TBA

In preparation for Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting™ three caucus sessions will be held, one each day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The caucuses are designed to cull ideas and create action agenda for consideration at Saturday’s Town Hall Meeting™—and all are aimed at ensuring a strong future for the performing arts in the years to come.

The National Performing Arts Convention has engaged AmericaSpeaks to lead this process of caucuses and town meeting, using the latest methods and technologies.  You’ll find a level playing field where every voice is equal, where all ideas are written down and considered.  Join the discussions—let your ideas, opinions, and hopes help shape the ideas, opinions, and hopes of others.

5:30 – 7:00pm
Opening Party
Sponsored by Target
Galleria of the Denver Performing Arts Complex

Expand your personal network as you mingle with many new faces from all over the performing arts universe, as well as orchestra colleagues, presenters, and business partners at the opening reception. Refreshments and cash bar available. Open to all.  Advance registration

With additional and deeply appreciated support from Center Plate (click here for more details)

7:30pm
Colorado Symphony Orchestra

Boettcher Concert Hall

Jeffrey Kahane, music director
Duain Wolfe, conductor and chorus director
Natasha Paremski, piano
Basil Vendryes, viola
Colorado Symphony Orchestra Chorus

Bernstein, Candide Overture
Bernstein, Chichester Psalms*
John Corigliano, Piano Concerto
Giya Kancheli, Styx

*CSO premiere
Conducted by Maestro Wolfe.  Balance of program to be conducted by Maestro Kahane.

Helen M. Thompson and Gold Baton Awards will be presented during the concert.

Following the performance
Hyatt Regency Denver

Tune-Up Party

Open to all League delegates and League Business Partners. Mingle with colleagues and friends and drink a toast to Henry Fogel at the Tune-Up Party back at the Hyatt Regency Denver following the performance. Your badge serves as your admission.

Hosted by the Colorado Symphony Orchestra

Thursday, June 12

Exhibit Hall in the Colorado Convention Center is open from 9:00am to 6:45pm.

8:00am – 9:30am
Constituent Block 1

Location TBA

COMMUNICATION STYLES & GENERATION DIFFERENCES
Speaker:  Vicki Clark, Senior Governance Consultant, BoardSource

Learn how to communicate with different generations in order to enlist them in your volunteer organization

10:00am – 11:30am
Locations TBA

AMERICASPEAKS CAUCUSES
Location TBA

In preparation for Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting three caucus sessions will be held, one each day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The caucuses are designed to cull ideas and create an action agenda for consideration on Saturday, one aimed at ensuring a strong future for the performing arts in the years to come.  Click here for more details.

Noon – 1:00pm
GENERAL SESSION: FROM GOOD TO GREAT AND THE SOCIAL SECTORS 

Best-selling author Jim Collins discusses his groundbreaking theory on what makes the difference between a "good" organization and a "great" one, and how to achieve superior performance in the social sector.

Click here to read selections from Jim Collins’s monograph From Good to Great and the Social Sectors. 

1:15pm – 2:30pm
Grab some lunch in the Exhibits in ArtsTown and explore all the amenities within.

SmART Bar Consultations

New Works Sampler and Lunch
Ellie Caulkins Opera House

Opera Colorado and Central City Studio artists will perform excerpts from recent premieres that have received funding through OPERA America's Opera Fund. This is your opportunity to hear some of the latest opera and music-theater works from North American composers and librettists! This exciting performance will include excerpts from Elmer Gantry by Robert Aldridge and Hershel Garfein, A Flowering Tree by John Adams and Peter Sellars, Frau Margot by Thomas Pasatieri and Frank Corsaro, Hannaraptor by Allan Gilliland and Val Brandt, and Kirke Mechem's John Brown.

New Works Sampler admission is FREE for all National Performing Arts Convention attendees. For your convenience, you can pre-order lunch for an additional cost when registering. If you have already registered but would like to add a lunch order, please contact Paul Gosselin at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

2:45pm – 5:45pm

In-Depth Workshops, Sponsored Sessions, Breakout Sessions, and Art-Making Workshops 

Locations TBA

For this three-hour period you will have your choice of session(s) to attend.  In-Depth Workshops and Art-Making Workshops each last for 3 hours.  Breakouts are each 75 minutes. 

Below is the list of sessions by category.  Click on the category links below for complete details of each session. 

IN-DEPTH WORKSHOPS (3 hours)

Ten 3-hour comprehensive sessions on a range of topics are yours for the choosing. Hear thoughtful presentations from experts on big issues, engage in active problem solving and exploration in small groups, and, in many cases, create take-away plans and ideas to inform your work back home. 

  • BEYOND AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT: INNOVATIVE STRATEGIES FOR PERFORMING ARTS SUSTAINABILITY
    Speaker:
    Heather Peeler, senior consultant, Community Wealth Ventures; Diane Peacock, managing director, Community Wealth Ventures 

  • THE NOT-SO DISTANT HORIZON: THE NEAR FUTURE AND THE PERFORMING ARTS
    Moderator:
    Doug McLennan, ArtsJournal Speaker: David McIntosh, futurist

  • INDISPENSABLE: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE CIVICALLY ENGAGED?
    Speakers TBA
  • NURTURING TEACHING ARTISTS
    Moderator: Eric Booth
    Speakers: David O'Fallon, president, MacPhaill Center for Music; Daniel Renner, director of education, Denver Theater Center; Barbara Shepard, director of national partnerships, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
  • ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION IN ARTS EDUCATION
    Speakers:
    Lynn Waldorf, principal evaluator, McREL; Robert Southworth, founder and director, The SchoolWorks Lab, Inc.  
  • NEW FRILLS OR DEEP CHANGE? INNOVATION AND THE PERFORMING ARTS ORGANIZATION
    Moderators:
    Melissa Dibble, general manager and director of client partnerships, EmcArts; Richard Evans, president, EmcArts; John Shibley, director of organizational learning, EmcArts 

ART-MAKING WORKSHOPS (3 hours)

Locations TBA

Take a master class with an artist from your own discipline or another. Workshops are open to anyone at the Convention, whether novice or expert. Take home something you create yourself! 

  • INSTANT OPERA WITH GOURMET RESULTS
    Artists:
    Roger Ames, composer and arts educator  
  • HIP HOP: THE BASICS
    Artist:
    Will Power, playwright and spoken word artist  
  • PLAYWRITING (MINI) BOOT CAMP
    Artist:
    Paula Vogel, playwright  
  • A PILOBOLUS FIELD GUIDE: THE NATURAL HISTORY OF COLLABORATIVE DANCE-MAKING
    Artists:
    Adam Battelstein and Matt Kent, co-creative directors, Pilobolus  
  • WE ARE ALL COMPOSERS
    Artist:
    Jon Deak, double-bassist and composer  
  • AFRICAN RHYTHMS AND RITUALS WITH BABA CHUCK DAVIS
    Artist:
    Dr. Charles "Chuck" Davis, founder and artistic director, African American Dance Ensemble and DanceAfrica   
  • RE-IMAGINING CREATIVITY AND COLLABORATION
    Artists:
    Paul Dresher, composer, Paul Dresher Ensemble; Rinde Eckert , playwright, performer, director 

2:45pm – 4:00pm and 4:30pm – 5:45pm

sponsor sessions

A number of our sponsors will be providing useful and informative sessions on a number of topics and that are open to all. Click here for a full description of these sessions.

BREAKOUT SESSIONS (75 minutes)

Locations TBA

Looking for a practical approach to a specific problem? Then these rounds of shorter, topic-specific breakout sessions will appeal to you. Because these breakout sessions will be multi-disciplinary, participants will be able to learn from experts and from one another in ways that are not available at regular annual conferences.  Note:  Some breakouts will be held twice, some only once, so please choose carefully. 

  • THE CHANGING VOLUNTEER ENVIRONMENT
    2 Sessions:  2:45pm – 4:00pm; 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speaker: Vicki Clark, consultant, Building the Capacity of Organizations, senior governance consultant and trainer, BoardSource
  • THE ART OF LIVING OR LIVING FOR ART: A SURVIVAL GUIDE FOR ARTISTS
    2 Sessions:  2:45pm – 4:00pm; 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator: Nicole Garneau, assistant director, community partnerships, Columbia Collect Center for Community Arts Partnerships
    Speakers: Jim Brown, The Actors Fund; Jordan Hirsch, Sweet Home New Orleans; Adam J. Natale, director of member services, Fractured Atlas; Wendy Oxenhorn, executive director, Jazz Foundation of America 

  • CRITICAL ISSUES FOR THE NON-PROFIT COMMUNITY
    2 Sessions:  2:45pm – 4:00pm; 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator: Adrian Ellis, founder/executive director, AEA Consulting/Jazz@Lincoln Center
    Speakers: Bobbie Lippman, senior officer, Culture and director, Cultural Data Project, The Pew Charitable Trust; Bill Wright, director of communications and marketing, Independent Sector  
  • NEGOTIATING BETWEEN INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speaker: Ann Daly, consultant, Ann Daly Consulting    
  • NEW TECHNOLOGIES/NEW OPPORTUNITIES
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator: Alex Shapiro, composer
    Speakers: Joe Kluger and Hollis Headrick, consultants  
  • BRINGING YOUNGER AUDIENCES TO THE TABLE: RECIPES FOR SUCCESS
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers TBA
  • BEST PRACTICES IN DEVELOPING A DIVERSE AND COMMITTED AUDIENCE
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator: Donna Walker-Kuhne, president, Walker International Communications Group
    Speakers: Joan Desens, director of institutional advancement, Glimmerglass Opera and former general manager, Opera Omaha; Aaron Dworkin, founder/president , Sphinx Organization; Sharon Luckman, executive director, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
  • STOP TAKING ATTENDANCE AND START MEASURING THE INTRINSIC IMPACT OF YOUR PROGRAMS
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Moderator: Jerry Yoshitomi, Meaning Matters
    Speaker: Alan Brown, principal, WolfBrown  
  • INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL DIPLOMACY: ENGAGING COMMUNITIES ABROAD
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers: Colombia Barosse, cultural programs division chief, Office of Citizen Exchanges, Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs, State Department; Carolinda Dickey, Performing Arts Strategies; Roberta Levitow, co-founder, Theatre Without Borders; Pennie Ojeda, director, international activities, National Endowment for the Arts
  • THE ONLINE SALON MOVEMENT
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator: Monica Reinagel, artist and blogger-in-chief, Nutritiondata.com and nutrition guru, Epicurious.com
    Speakers: Lindsay Dreyer, dancer, blogger, DancerUniverse.com; Joshua Kosman, classical music critic, San Francisco Chronicle and blogger, pacificaisle.blogspot.com; Drew McManus, arts consultant, Adaptistration.com; Dave Urlakis, digital assets director, Steppenwolf Theatre Company Drew McManus; Monica Reinagel
  • THE FUTURE OF PRIVATE GIVING TO THE ARTS
    2 Sessions:  2:45pm – 4:00pm; 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speakers TBA  
  • ABSOLUTELY ACCESSIBLE ARTS- EMBRACING DIVERSE AUDIENCES AND ARTISTS
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers TBA  
  • PERSPECTIVES ON LEADERSHIP TRAINING
    2 Sessions:  2:45pm – 4:00pm; 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator: John McCann, director, Institute for Cultural Policy and Practice
    Speakers: MiJin Hong, senior program specialist, The Getty Leadership Institute; Polly Kahn, vice president for learning and leadership development, League of American Orchestras; Dallas Shelby, director communications, National Arts Strategies  
  • ARTS BOARDS: INNOVATING FOR THE FUTURE
    Speakers:
    Mary Ann de Barbieri, principal, de Barbieri and Associates; Jaan Whitehead, theatre trustee, co-editor, "The Art of Governance"   
  • ART AND ACTIVISM: MAKING ART, MAKING A DIFFERENCE
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speakers TBA   
  • IT’S NOT EASY BEIN’ GREEN!
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers:  Patrick Dooley, artistic director, Shotgun Players; Terrence D. Jones, president and CEO, Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts; Susie Medak, managing director, Berkeley Repertory Theatre; Michelle Weingarden, director, Greenprint Denver  
  • FROM BIG PICTURE TO BACK YARD: IMPROVING SUPPORT FOR ARTS EDUCATION
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers: Sarah Cunningham, director, arts education, National Endowment for the Arts; Richard Deasy, director, Arts Education Partnership; Sandra Ruppert, senior associate for research and policy, Arts Education Partnership   
  • PARENTS AS LEARNERS, ADVOCATES AND AUDIENCE MEMBERS
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers: Gigi Antoni, executive director, Big Thought; Richard Kessler, executive director, The Center for Arts Education 
  • EFFECTIVE PARTNERSHIP AND COLLABORATION WITHIN ARTS EDUCATION ECOSYSTEMS
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speaker: Gigi Antoni, executive director, Big Thought  
  • CREATIVE AGING/LIFE-LONG LEARNING IN THE ARTS
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speakers: Kenneth T. Cole, associate director, National Guild of Community Schools of the Arts; Susan Perlstein, director of training, National Center for Creative Aging  
  • THE DENVER MODEL: BUILDING LOCAL SUPPORT FOR THE ARTS
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers: Jim Copenhaver, senior partner, JC Enterprises; Jane Hansberry, former district administrator, Scientific and Cultural Facilities District; Peg Long, district administrator, Scientific and Cultural Facilities District; Stephen W. Seifert, executive director, Newman Center for the Performing Arts - University of Denver  
  • BUILDING ARTS PARTICIPATION IN RURAL AMERICA
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speakers: Jim Copenhaver, senior partner, JC Enterprises; Arlynn Fishbaugh, executive director, Montana Arts Council; Cinda Holt, building arts participation director, Montana Arts Council; Patrick Overton, director, Front Porch Institute  
  • ADVENTUROUS PROGRAMMING: MAKING NEW MUSIC THE MAIN COURSE
    1 Session: 2:45 – 4:00pm
    Speaker: Jeffrey Kahane, music director, Colorado Symphony Orchestra 

5:45pm – 6:45pm
All Delegate and Exhibitor party

The Exhibits at ArtsTown by Ovation TV
Start your evening by joining colleagues, presenters, and business partners at this reception in the Exhibits at ArtsTown at the Colorado Convention Center. Refreshments, hors d’oeuvres and cash bar available. Open to all.

7:00pm-10:00pm
Offsite
National Friends of the League Dinner (by invitation only)
For Donors of $600 or more to the League's Annual Fund.

Evening
Performances and Other Activities

Friday, June 13

8:00am – 9:30am
Constituency Block 2

Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

VOLUNTEERISM BIG DIVIDENDS – EASY PROJECTS
Gold Book Online Awards of Excellence: Part I – Panel Presentations

A panel of four Volunteer Council Award Winners will discuss their projects which reaped big dividends and were easy to execute.

9:30am – 4:00pm
Exhibit Hall in the Colorado Convention Center is open from 9:00am to 4:00pm.

10:00am – 11:30am
AMERICASPEAKS CAUCUSES
Locations TBA

In preparation for Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting three caucus sessions will be held, one each day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The caucuses are designed to cull ideas and create an action agenda for consideration on Saturday, one aimed at ensuring a strong future for the performing arts in the years to come.  Click here for more details.

11:45am – 1:15pm
League Annual Luncheon and Annual Meeting

Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

For those in the know, the Luncheon is one of the “places you need to be” during Conference.  It’s where you’ll find out what’s happening at the League and, more importantly, what the League is doing for the field.

It’s not just lunch.  Aside from being a chance to sit down with colleagues in a convivial atmosphere—the event also comprises the League’s Annual Meeting, where you’ll be able to put our work in a greater context.

3:15pm – 6:00pm
Location TBA

THE CHANGING FACE OF FUNDRAISING
Speaker:  Janet Davis, Senior Consultant, Dini Partners

FUNDRAISING PHENOMENON   
Gold Book Online Awards of Excellence: Part II – Individual Presentations

6:00pm – 7:00pm
Location TBA

VOLUNTEER NETWORKING COCKTAIL PARTY
Open to all delegates wishing to mingle and network with volunteers.  Tickets are required for entry.

7:30pm
OperaColorado

Nixon in China
Ellie Caulkins Opera House

John Adams, Nixon in China
James Robinson, director
Marin Alsop, conductor

Maria Kanyova, Pat Nixon
Robert Orth, Richard Nixon
Marc Heller, Mao Tse-Tung
Tracy Dahl, Madame Mao
Thomas Hammons, Henry Kissinger
Chenye Yuan, Chou Enlai
Melissa Malde, Nancy T'ang
Julie Simson, Second Secretary
Jennifer Dedominici, Third Secretary

10:00pm – 1:00am

ALTITUDE ADJUSTMENT (DELEGATES 35 & UNDER)

ORANGE CAT STUDIO at 2625 Larimer St. in Denver's River North Arts District  

What happens when the next generation of performing arts professionals get together after hours?  Are you looking to shake things up and network with your open-minded peers?  Come hang out, listen to fresh live music at a trendy venue with a backyard garden, and talk informally about our ever-changing field at this laid back, late night session.  No ties, no paper, no laptops allowed…

Saturday, June 14

8:00am – 9:30am
Constituency Block 5

FOCUS GROUPS: HOW & WHEN TO USE THEM
Speaker:  TBA
Hear about facilitation models and learn how to use Focus Groups to evaluate situations and determine solutions

10:00am – 12:30pm
A 21ST CENTURY TOWN MEETING WITH AMERICASPEAKS CONCLUSIONS AND CONCLUDING SESSION

Location TBA

The ideas that surface at the caucuses the previous three days will be addressed at Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting. Using the latest technologies, topics will be consolidated, discussed and voted upon by thousands of your peers, each with an individual touch pad.  Results will be projected on large video screens in order to identify and hone an agenda to be ratified by this newly unified performing arts community. 

At this concluding session, you will help set the agenda for how the arts will be perceived now and in the coming years: by our communities; by national, state, and local governments; by our supporters; and by our audiences.  Let your voice be heard, and your vote count, so that we will speak with one voice and together ensure a vital future for the performing arts.