TCG Presents the Return Of American Theatre Print Edition

Theatre Communications Group, the national service organization for theatre, is presenting the return of the American Theatre print edition. A launch event to celebrate the return to print as well as American Theatre's 40th anniversary was held on October 23 from 7-9pm ET at West Bank Café in New York City. In May of 2020, amid the devastating impact of COVID-19, TCG made the difficult decision to pause the print edition while continuing to publish daily articles online through AmericanTheatre.org. With the Fall 2023 Season preview issue, the print edition of American Theatre returns as a quarterly publication, with each issue to include a complete play script. The launch party included remarks from Ryan J. Haddad whose play, Dark Disabled Stories, is published in the October issue. 

“During the early years of the pandemic, AmericanTheatre.org was a beacon in dark times, bearing witness to the resilience and innovation of our theatre ecology,” said Teresa Eyring, executive director and CEO, TCG. “Yet we kept hearing about the critical importance of the magazine in print, how it has a way of cutting through the online deluge of information. Readers recalled the thrill of discovering American Theatre in their library or in the lobby of their local theatre, and of the pages introducing them to a whole world of theatre they might not have otherwise discovered. During the pandemic, there was a powerful call for the return of the magazine to print, and we are happy to oblige.”

“The return of the print magazine is a source of joy and pride for me and my hard-working staff, not only because it just feels good to be putting something tangible into the world, but also because we believe that making a print magazine is the best way to reflect and uplift the artistry and hard work of the theatremakers we're fortunate to cover,” said Rob Weinert-Kendt, editor-in-chief, American Theatre. “At a time of such great uncertainty as well as opportunity for change in the industry, there is no shortage of things to report on and share with the world. We feel privileged to be in an ideal position to do this service to the art form we love.”

“The TCG Conference in 2015 … was my entrance into the professional theatre,” Haddad told the gathered group of artists and administrators. “It happened to be in my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio and because of that conference, I was able to network, and meet the bosses at my first day job, which allowed me to move to New York. Everything goes back to those few days at PlayhouseSquare, in the same theaters where I grew up seeing plays and musicals as a child. It means so much to now be featured as an artist in this return-to-print issue.”

The Fall 2023 Issue includes the following feature articles:  

• “Qween Jean: Leading With Love in a Time of Awakening” by Rad Pereira. For this New York City-based costume designer and trans activist, artistry and protest are intertwined.

• “A Harlem Renaissance,” by Brittani Samuel. Theatres in the historic NYC neighborhood are revolutionizing their programming and updating spaces for artists and audiences.

• “Changes Come Fast, Change Comes Slow,” by Kelundra Smith. Some of the country's most prestigious theatres welcomed a cohort of artistic directors of color. How are those institutions and leaders navigating change?

Read the complete Fall 2023 Issue here. Not all articles in the Fall 2023 Issue are available yet online. 

American Theatre magazine is published daily online and quarterly in print by Theatre Communications Group. As the nation's essential magazine for professional not-for-profit theatre, American Theatre has been providing theatre professionals, students, advocates, and audiences a comprehensive journal for almost 40 years. Quarterly print editions are published every October, January, April, and July, and include play scripts as well as special issues like the Season Preview and Training edition. American Theatre is available online, at selected newsstands nationwide or through an Individual Membership in TCG by visiting https://www.americantheatre.org/join/ or contacting info@tcg.org. http://www.americantheatre.org.

Theatre Communications Group (TCG) leads for a just and thriving theatre field in the U.S. and globally. Since its founding in 1961, TCG's constituency has grown from a handful of groundbreaking theatres to over 700 Member Theatres and affiliate organizations and nearly 8,000 Individual Members. Through its Core Values of Activism, Artistry, Diversity, and Global Citizenship, TCG advances a better world for theatre and a better world because of theatre. TCG offers its members networking and knowledge-building opportunities through research, communications, and events, including the annual TCG National Conference, one of the largest nationwide gatherings of theatre people; awards grants and scholarships to theatre companies and individual artists; advocates on the federal level; and through the Global Theater Initiative, TCG's partnership with the Laboratory for Global Performance and Politics, serves as the U.S. Center of the International Theatre Institute. TCG is North America's largest independent trade publisher of dramatic literature, with 20 Pulitzer Prizes for Drama on the TCG booklist. It also publishes the award-winning American Theatre magazine and ARTSEARCH, the essential source for a career in the arts. In all of its endeavors, TCG seeks to increase the organizational efficiency of its Member Theatres, cultivate and celebrate the artistic talent and achievements of the field, and promote a larger public understanding of, and appreciation for, the theatre. TCG is led by Executive  Director/CEO Teresa Eyring.