"While we would candidly say that the video quality of these seminars from two decades ago is rather rudimentary, there is an undeniable value in allowing today's theatre scholars and fans the opportunity to see major artists at these moments in their careers," said Howard Sherman, executive director of the American Theatre Wing. "Theatre itself is fleeting, but the Wing captured these artists in their own words and its essential that we make this material accessible, so that it lives again."Now in their fourth decade, the American Theatre Wing's "Working in the Theatre" panels have brought together theatre's best-known performers, producers, playwrights, directors, choreographers, composers, agents and others for peer-to-peer, in-depth conversations about theatre. Begun simply as public forums, the seminars have been broadcast in New York City since 1979 on CUNY TV, the country's largest university-based television station, as well as on select cable systems around the country. Highlights from the seminars have been collected in the new book, "Acting: Working in the Theatre" (Continuum International Publishing Group/The K.S. Giniger Company Inc.; $14.95; paperback), the first in a series of four to be drawn from the insightful and entertaining discussions led by the American Theatre Wing. The American Theatre Wing seminars are made possible thanks to leadership support from The Annenberg Foundation and The Dorothy Strelsin Foundation.
The American Theatre Wing is a not-for-profit organization best known as the creator of the Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards®, which it presents annually with the League of American Theatres and Producers. The Wing's other activities, dedicated to recognizing excellence and supporting education in theatre, include "Downstage Center," a weekly theatrical interview program on XM Satellite Radio; "Guides to Careers in the Theatre," a video series developed for schools and libraries; a grants and scholarship program to New York City schools and not-for-profit theatre companies, which has awarded more than $2.5 million since its inception; the Theatre Intern Group, a career development program for young professionals; and SpringboardNYC, a two-week college-to-career boot camp for young performers moving to NYC. All of the educational and media work of the American Theatre Wing is available online, on demand, for free, online. Sondra Gilman is Chairman of the Board of the American Theatre Wing, Doug Leeds is Board President and Howard Sherman is Executive Director.
