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In the Greenroomtheatre buzzNew Leaders Conference Starts Conversation on SolutionsBy Clayton LordOn Oct. 5 and 6 in the San Francisco Bay Area, more than100 of the brightest up-and-coming minds in the performingarts gathered for the New Leaders for a New Centuryconference, presented by Theatre Bay Area in conjunctionwith Theatre Communications Group and BerkeleyRepertory Theatre.The brainchild of Theatre Bay Area Development DirectorRebecca Novick and Berkeley Rep Associate General ManagerRachel Fink, the New Leaders conference convened to addressthe oft-mentioned “leadership crisis” in the arts.Following an opening day of discussion, facilitated by DanielAlexander Jones and Ashley Boyd, among the diverse group ofattendees — participants came from all over, including the BayArea, Chicago, Las Vegas, the East Coast, Los Angeles and othertheatre communities nationwide, spanning all disciplines —many common struggles emerged, including perceptions ofgenerational differences, worries about the difficulties in work/family balance, narrow artistic missions, racial homogeneityand others.Day two of the New Leaders Conference was incorporated in theTheatre Bay Area’s Annual Conference, the largest regional theatreconference in the country. Sessions on the second day centered onhelping the attendees affect the change they sought in the largertheatrical community. In the morning, the New Leaders took partin a session with top arts headhunters including representativesfrom Arts Consulting Group, AlbertHall Associates and others. Thiswas followed in the afternoon by a session on leadership modelsin other fields with representatives from Walt Disney Studios, SonyEntertainment and UC Hastings College of the Law.Interspersed, participants heard keynotes from LynneLancaster on intergenerational relations and from researcherAlan Brown on his research trying to pinpoint and measure theintrinsic value of the arts. Attendees made plans to maintainconnections forged during the conference and are also planningto reconvene at some point in the next two years to judgeprogress. That’s exactly what co-organizer Fink had in mind.“This was the beginning of an ongoing conversation,” Finksaid. “One we’ll keep having until we reach our goals.”BY CLAYTON LORDClayton LordGroups at the first day of the New Leaders for a New Century conferenceAmericans for the Arts Merges withBusiness Committee for the ArtsThe Business Committee for the Arts (BCA) has announced thatit will merge operations with Americans for the Arts, creating thelargest advocacy group for the arts in the private sector. The partnershipwill further enable the organization to generate increasedprivate-sector support for the arts and arts education by engagingand educating business leaders nationwide on the economicimpact and value of the arts in business and community settings.“The vision of Business Committee for the Arts naturallyaligns with the long-term goals of Americans for the Arts,” statedRobert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts.“The private sector’s relationship with the arts has shifted dramaticallyin recent years. Despite recent modest gains in overallgiving, the market-share of private funding for the arts is nearlyone-third less than it was in the early 1990s. By combining ourinterests and strengths, we will be able to effectively address thechallenges ahead.”With the approval of each organization’s board, Americansfor the Arts and BCA have entered into a merger agreement,as the transaction requires approval of the New York AttorneyGeneral and the New York Supreme Court. Both groups areworking with the state authorities and expect the transaction toclose in the next six to nine months.Mellon Foundation Awards MoreThan $2.5 Million to New Works LabThe Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded over $2.5million in grants to four play development organizations as ameans to support the creation and production of new workover the next three to five years. The recipients, receivinggrants range from $500,000 to $1,000,000, are the Lark PlayDevelopment Center, New Dramatists, Playwrights’ Centerin Minneapolis and Sundance Institute Theatre Program inBeverly Hills, Calif.While these grants support activities ranging from creatingmovie-like trailers for new plays to establishing consortia thatbring plays to multiple productions, the overarching focus isdeeper support for individual playwrights and innovative strategiesto launch vital new plays to production.The Lark Play Development Center’s grant of $500,000over five years will support its Launching Plays Into TheRepertoire Initiative, which will create a movement aroundvital new plays. Lark will form a consortia of theatre organizationsthat will result in at least 12 productions of three newplays in the U.S. and internationally. Partner organizationswill participate in the full production arc of the play includingtraveling to see each production and engaging in conversationsand community engagement activities.10 December 2008 • www.stage-directions.com