Sundance Lab Hosts NYC Theater Forum

According to Variety.com, Sundance Institue Theater is hosting a three-day conference on new play development. Some of the country's biggest institutions devoted to developing new works are taking part. No exact dates were given for the conference.

Participating organizations must support development  (i.e. give writing grants, etc), as opposed to direct production. Confab will be held at the Time Reception Center in Gotham and is supported by the Andrew Mellon Foundation with cooperation from the Howard Gilman foundation.

Some of the participants include the O'Neill Playwrights' Center, which developed Broadway shows like "Avenue Q" and "In the Heights," as well as New Dramatists and the Sundance Lab itself, which played an active role in the development process of "Passing Strange," "Grey Gardens" and "Spring Awakening."

According to the Sundance Institute Theater Program A.D. Philip Himberg, this is the first forum for industry leaders to come together. Himberg hopes this will be the first of many conferences, which in future might extend to include producing organizations as well as play developers.

"The long-term goal of creating this network is to encourage more production of new work in a larger range of American regional theaters and in New York," added Himberg.

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