WAA offers exceptional opportunities for learning and discovery and we’re looking for professional development ideas that deliver high impact and appeal to our members. Beginning with the Annual Conference in San Diego, California (August 26-28, 2024), WAA will provide a variety of in-person and online sessions throughout the year.

Submit your idea by March 4th for priority consideration. Your idea will be reviewed by the Professional Development Committee and selected based on our guidelines, values fit, and alignment to current themes and initiatives. If you have any questions, please contact Joshua Heim.

Formats

Common formats include keynote speakers, panel discussions, presentations, roundtables, webinars, workshops, written papers, or other multimedia formats. There are limited opportunities for in-person sessions at our conference, and WAA will prioritize proposals that take advantage of being face-to-face. We want to center connection through high levels of interaction including play and/or more tangible takeaways physical or otherwise. For example, open dialogue with specialists instead of keynote presentations, hands-on workshops as opposed to PowerPoint deck info dumps, forums to find or implement solutions to our collective and actionable problems over insular brainstorming sessions.

Themes & Topics

Conexiones sin fronteras, Connections without borders
Latinidad reflects the beautiful and complex constellation of culture and ethnicity that binds U.S. Latinos and Latin Americans. With heritage that weaves together Indigenous, European, African, but also Asian and Middle Eastern legacies, it reflects strands of both commonality and difference, and transcends the borders that have been imposed upon it. How can we better connect with U.S. Latine communities and artists, while also addressing the transnational potential for cross-border collaboration and business?
Presenting 101
The performing arts presenting have endured major changes since the fundamentals were established in the 1990s with the rapid expansion of performing arts centers, and many of these changes have accelerated as the result of the pandemic including aging audiences, demographic shifts, subscriptions, and calls to respond to social movements. A new paradigm of presenting is emerging, so what are the new fundamentals to succeed in today’s rapidly changing marketplace for live events? What’s the right balance between mission-driven programs and commercial acts? How do you finance tours that accommodate fair wages and inflation? Are presenters in the business of serving audiences or building communities? And who’s responsible for bringing an audience – the presenter or the artist?
Be Well
The pandemic has redefined the American workplace including the performing arts. Touring life has always been tough, and many artists are choosing to explore new avenues for their work whether that’s opting out entirely or pushing to change the current structure and expectations of our touring culture. Other performing arts professionals have different expectations for work-life balance as they try to keep their wheels spinning without burning them out. As society at large sees the arts as a vehicle to heal from the pandemic, what does that mean within our own organizations and greenrooms? How do we strike a new work-life balance and maintain a healthy sense of well-being?
Succession
It’s more than a compelling TV Show! There’s a profound shift happening in the performing arts now with five generations all working together. New colleagues are emerging on all sides of the performing arts equation with new leaders taking the reins and delegating to a wider swath of experiences and expertise than ever before. Whether it’s on-boarding new blood or preparing for longstanding leaders to step away, how does this hand-off look and is there such a thing as a graceful transition? How do we hold multiple generational perspectives at once? We want to not only prepare for potential adversity, but what opportunities can we identify from our unique circumstance?

*Kaisha Johnson, 2017 conference; Lisa Monet Photography*

*Blakform — Career Development Platform Model From Blakdance, 2022 conference; Julie Vincent Photography*

*Advancing Indigenous Performance session, 2018 conference; Ambience Photography*

*Cathy Weiss, 2018 conference roundtable; Ambience Photography*

YOUR PROPOSAL

Professional Development format *

In-Conference Session (Hosted Peer Learning or Invited Speakers/Moderators)

Webinar / Online Learning (Hosted Peer Learning or Invited Speakers/Moderators)

Written Report / Knowledge Product

Op-ed / Blog post

Your idea *

Tell us about your idea including its content and activities. What is it about and how will participants be engaged?

Who will be most interested in this topic? *

Agents & managers

Artists

CEOs

Funders or policymakers

Marketing professionals & promoters

Media & journalists

Presenters

Producers

Why will these audiences be interested in this session, and what will they learn and/or take away? *

What is the recommended level of familiarity or skill that participants need to have to get the most out of this session? *

Beginner

Intermediate

Advanced

Why did you choose this skill level? *

WAA is committed to centering the experiences and voices within the performing arts who are historically uninvited such as BIPOC and LGBTQIA people. Will the topic or the proposed speakers invite and center these perspectives? Choose all that apply. *

Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Indigenous Pacific Islander

Asian American, Pacific Islander

Black

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, Two-spirit

Latina/o/x

None of the above

If you selected a perspective above, how will BIPOC or LGBTQIA perspectives be invited and centered?

Speakers

If you have specific speakers in mind, please list their names, roles (moderator, panelist, presenter, etc.), and a brief bio of everyone with a speaking role.

Your name *

First Name

Last Name

Your email address *

Your phone number *

(###)

###

####

Your organizational affiliation (if applicable)

Are you a current WAA member? *

Yes

Not sure

Have you previously attended a WAA Annual Conference? *

Yes

I agree to the submission terms *

If your proposal is selected, each speaker is responsible for their own travel and accommodations and will be offered a to be determined discount on their conference registration fee. Speaker's for In-Conference and Online sessions also agree to be photographed and video recorded and provides WAA permission to use the photos/video for organizational and promotional purposes in the future. For written material, the writer acknowledges full liability for any copyrighted material used, understanding that any legal repercussions resulting from such usage fall solely upon them. Additionally, the writer hereby grants Western Arts Alliance authorization to publish and reproduce the work for organizational and promotional purposes in the future.

I agree

Thank you for your proposal! Your idea will be reviewed by the Professional Development Committee and selected based on our guidelines, values fit, and alignment to current themes and initiatives. We will let you know whether your proposal has been selected on a rolling basis.

Western Arts Alliance stands in solidarity with Indigenous peoples and is based respectfully in the now occupied traditional lands of the Chinook, Multnomah, Kathlamet, Clackamas, Tualatin Kalapuya, and Molalla tribes.

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