League Of Professional Theatre Women Announces 2019-20 Season

The League of Professional Theatre Women (Shellen Lubin and Catherine Porter, Co-Presidents), an organization which has been championing women in the professional theatre for over three decades, announces their 37th season of programming, events, and advocacy initiatives dedicated to providing visibility and opportunities for women working in theatre.

The League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW) will officially launch their 2019-2020 season with a special event on Wednesday, September 25 at Theaterlab (357 West 36th Street, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10018) from 6:30pm-9pm. Current members and women interested in future membership are invited to attend and help continue the fight for gender parity in theatre as we head into 2020, a banner year celebrating the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage; learn about LPTW advocacy opportunities for the American theatre; and connect as a community to create a season of joyful engagement.

On November 14th, the League of Professional Theatre Women will present the first of three Oral History Projects, a partnership with the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center, which chronicles and documents the contributions of significant theatre women in all fields through a series of intimate interviews in front of a live audience at Lincoln Center. Legendary performer Angela Lansbury will be interviewed on November 14th. The League's priority booking period will be from September 30 to October 14, and RSVPs will open to the public on October 14th.

Later this season, LPTW will host their annual Theatre Women Awards, the only awards dedicated to promoting the visibility of the theatrical work of women artists and their contributions to the field, across all disciplines. For decades, LPTW has celebrated women who are consistently creating and working in every facet of the theatre industry. The diversity in disciplines of last year's awardees included choreographers, translators, casting directors, dramaturgs, educators, designers, playwrights, actors, and producers. Thereby exemplifying the vast talents theatre women contribute to the artform. Although some of these positions are not often recognized, they are critical to the success of the theatre industry, and LPTW is proud to recognize their vital work in our community.

The 2020 Gilder/Coigney International Theatre Award is currently reviewing nominations for this year's award. Established in 2011 and named after two legendary women in the theatre, Rosamond Gilder and Martha Coigney, who opened opportunities across borders. Presented every three years, the award acknowledges the exceptional work of women internationally with the goal of amplifying their voices across borders and across the globe, highlighting their work as cultural diplomats. Odile Gakire Katese (2011, Rwanda), Patricia Ariza (2014, Colombia), and Adelheid Roosen (2017 The Netherlands) were the first three winners. A week of award-related events will profile all nominees & highlight the work of Theatre Women around the world.

Additional programming will include Julia's Reading Room (a member project reading series), Theatre Connections (a networking opportunity which pairs connects LPTW members with notable New York theatres),The International Committee (a program which promotes opportunities for theatre exchange and collaboration between women working in the U.S. and abroad), On Her Shoulders (a reading series which promotes women writers neglected by the classic cannon), and Women in Theatre Online (a collaboration with HowlRound which covers the ways in which women enrich and think critically about theatre).

This season LPTW will also continue their ongoing social media campaign, #OneMoreConversation, an advocacy action towards gender parity which asks theatre decision makers (artistic directors, producers, directors, playwrights, literary directors, boards, general managers, designers, etc.) to have one more conversation with a female candidate before making a final hiring decision.

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