ANNUAL CONFERENCE ARCHIVE

WAA 2023

SEPTEMBER 5 - 8, 2023 | SEATTLE, WA

WAA 2023 was about reestablishing relationships and responding to the changes in our field.

Over 600 performing arts professionals joined us in Seattle to focus on getting back-to-business with an eye toward the future. Programming centered on rebuilding our audiences and fostering new ones that better reflect the communities we serve.

Our 2023 Pre-Conference Symposium theme was Advancing Asian American, Pacific Islander and Native Hawaiian Voices in the Performing Arts, with programming developed in collaboration with our Hyphen+Asian Committee.

*Registration is open! Malaveli & Lucy,WAA 2023; image credit: WAA staff*

*Hyphen+Asian Pre-Conference Symposium, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

*James Miles’s keynote, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

WORKSHOPS & PANELS

APAP Arts Compensation Project Info Session
Expanding Your Audience: Advocating for Disability Inclusion and Access
NEA Grant Workshop
The Community Exists: Successful Partnerships & Lessons Learned From the AAPINH Community
Making Artistic Cents: Collaborative Deal Making
Our Words Are Seeds: A Unique Approach to Developing New Work with Indigenous Communities for Young Audiences
Same ‘Hood / New Audiences: A Conversation With Three Venues
Hyphen+Asian Pre-Conference Symposium: Advancing Asian American, Pacific Islander and Native Hawaiian Voices in the Performing Arts

*Enjoying the Juried Showcase, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

*New Colleague Orientation, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

*Say cheese! Annual Membership Meeting, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

COFFEE TALKS

Arts & Activism
Succession Planning Issues in the Arts
Youth & Family Programming

AFFINITY SESSIONS/EVENTS

Conexiones: Latine Arts @ WAA: Coffee Talk
QWAA (Queer WAA) Meetup
Hyphen+Asian Showcase
Women of Color in the Arts: Coffee Talk

*Pre-showcase hospitality, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

*Opening Plenary, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

*The Commons, WAA 2023; image credit: Jo Cosme*

FIELD TRIPS

Each year, our Host Commmittee curates a selection of pre-conference Field Trips, giving attendees the opportunity to explore the conference city’s unique art and culture scene. 2023 Field Trips included tours of:

Olympic Sculpture Park
Historic Paramount Theatre
Seattle Opera Center
The Space Needle & Seattle Center

KEYNOTE

A Fresh Perspective by James Miles (aka the Fresh Professor) — Assistant Professor at Seattle University, and Executive Director of Third Stone (Bumbershoot Arts and Music Festival.)

James’s keynote focused on using the arts as a vehicle to help us navigate an ever changing and uncertain future, using examples from history, and the role we, as arts professionals, can play to support our communities.

SHOWCASES

Showcases at WAA provide attendees the opportunity to see exceptional talent, and artists the chance to present their work directly to programmers. From our Juried (aka ‘Official’) Showcase to independently produced showcases, each year you can expect something for every aesthetic, interest, and budget. The 2023 showcase was held at Seattle’s Broadway Performance Hall.

2023 JURIED SHOWCASE ARTISTS

**123 Andrés**

Family & young; music | D.C. Metro

**Anthony Aiu**

Multidisciplinary | New York

**Ballet Kelowna**

Dance | British Columbia

**Javier Stell-Frésquez & Weaving Spirits**

Multidisciplinary | California

2023 Juried Showcase image credits: Jo Cosme

PITCH SESSIONS

WAA 2023 featured three different pitch sessions. Join our mailing list to learn about future pitch opportunities.

AMPLIFIED

Pitches from artists/agents/managers sharing their tour-ready work.

Cathy Pruzan Artist Representative / ODC Dance | May’s Letters
Cusson Management Inc. | Margie Gillis Dance Foundation: Literature of the Body
FLi Artists - Sona Jobarteh: Education on African Culture & Music
Holden & Arts Associates | Honolulu Theatre for Youth - The Pa’akai We Bring
Home Team Mgmt / The Kurland Agency | American Patchwork Quartet
Joe Kye | Joe Kye & the Givers
Julia Keefe | Indigenous Big Band
Riot Artists | The Manganiyar Seduction
Tau Dance Theater | INDIGENUITY

PRESENTER PITCHES

Presenters outlined their season, a new project or initiative, or their programming interests for upcoming seasons. We heard from:

Abigail Buell | San Diego Theatres
Ataahua Papa | Auckland Arts Festival
Bonnie Schock | Fox Tucson Theatre
Hazel Delos Santos | Kodiak Arts Council
Joel Aalberts | Lensic Performing Arts Center
Miranda King | Patricia Reser Center for the Performing Arts
Rafael Gonzalez | Grand Performances
Stephen Cummins | Myrtle Woldson Performing Arts Center at Gonzaga University

*Joe Kye’s Amplified pitch; image credit: Jo Cosme*

PITCH NOW: NEW & OUTSIDE-THE-BOX WORKS

Matching artists & producers with partners & collaborators: a forum for bold artistic ideas

Dancing Through Prison Walls | Undanced Dances Through Prison Walls During a Pandemic
Dan Froot & Company | Arms Around America
Elsie Management | Craig Walsh’s Monuments
Madeline Sayet | Untitled New Madeline Sayet Storytelling Project
Mixed eMotion Theatrix | The Shadow
Urban Bush Women | Haint Blu

ANNUAL LUNCHEON & WAA AWARDS

We celebrated the amazing 2023 WAA Awardees at our first Annual Luncheon since 2019! Attendees also enjoyed a special sponsored performance by Tien Hsieh, Concert Pianist.

*Annual Luncheon performance by Tien Hsieh, Concert Pianist;* *image credit: Jo Cosme*

*WAA Board President, Antonio Gómez, 2023 Annual Luncheon; image credit: Jo Cosme*

*2023 WAA Awardees: Beth Macmillan — Artown; Don Roth; Eleanor Oldham; Walter Jaffe & Paul King; Rika Iino. Image credit: Jo Cosme*

THANK YOU TO OUR 2023 SPONSORS & FUNDERS

We are so grateful to our generous sponsors and funders who make the conference possible and support the ecology of the performing arts field.

Interested in supporting WAA through future sponsorship opportunities? Let’s talk!

WAA 2022

AUGUST 29 - SEPTEMBER 1, 2022 | CALGARY, AB

Our first fully in-person conference since the pandemic, WAA 2022 focused on Getting Back to Business.

Over 500 colleagues from the U.S., Canada, and further afield joined us in Calgary, Alberta for four days of networking, learning, connection, and discovery.

Attendees also had access to extended professional development programming online, pre- and post-Calgary.

Our 2022 Pre-Conference Symposium theme was Truth, Reconciliation, and a Path to Change, discussing the impact of colonization on Indigenous peoples, and actions allies can take to help heal traumas, right wrongs, and strenghten community.

*Conference Manager Jennifier Stewart arrives in Calgary, WAA 2022*

*Chisa Yamaguchi presents at the Amplified pitch session, WAA 2022; image credit: Julie Vincent Photograpy*

The Commons (Exhibit Hall), WAA 2022; image credit: Julie Vincent Photograpy