Heather Hitchens News

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director) has relaunched its popular podcast series, Downstage Center, with an all new format.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director) has relaunched its popular podcast series, Downstage Center, with an all new format.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director) continues the 2011 season of its legendary, long running, and newly revamped television show, 'Working in the Theatre,' with an all new episode on 'The State of Theatre: Institutions and Producers.'

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director) launched a revamped version of its legendary and long running television show, 'Working in the Theatre,' reflecting exciting changes to its look, feel, and format.

The American Theatre Wing has announced the recipients of its 2011 National Theatre Company Grants. This year's recipients are: Buntport Theater Company (Denver, CO), FUSION (Albuquerque, NM), Mo'olelo Performing Arts Company (San Diego, CA), Pig Iron Theatre Company (Philadephia, PA), Rude Mechanicals (Austin, TX), Synchronicity Theatre (Atlanta, GA), TheatreSquared (Fayetteville, AR), TimeLine Theatre (Chicago, IL), Transport Group (New York, NY), Watts Village Theater Company (Los Angeles, CA). The companies will be celebrated at a private luncheon on October 24th, 2011 in Manhattan.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman of the Board of Directors; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director) raised more than $550,000 at their annual Gala last night. All of the proceeds will go towards The Wing's education and outreach programs. The event was held at New York's legendary Plaza Hotel in honor of Sir Howard Stringer (Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Sony Corporation and longtime American Theatre Wing Board Member), and included a special tribute to Douglas B. Leeds (Former President and dear friend of The Wing).

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and an all-star line-up of performers, including Angela Lansbury, James Naughton, Kelli O'Hara, Elaine Paige, Colin Donnell, Marilu Henner, Gala Co-Chairmen Theodore S. Chapin & Marva A. Smalls and more honored Sir Howard Stringer with the American Theatre Wing last night, September 26. Celebrity guests included Samuel L. Jackson & LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Judith Light, Lucie Arnaz, Nora Ephron & Nick Pileggi, Jane & Morley Safer, Jim Dale, William Ivey Long, Susan Fales-Hill, Mario Buatta, Ted Hartley & Dina Merrill, Melissa & Chappy Morris and Susan Patricoff. BroadwayWorld was on hand for the event and brings you photo coverage below!

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director) has announced that its annual Gala will be held on Monday, September 26 at 6:30 PM at The Plaza Hotel (Fifth Avenue at Central Park South) and will honor Sir Howard Stringer, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Sony Corporation and longtime American Theatre Wing Board Member.

The American Theatre Wing today announced that applications are now being accepted for the 2012 Jonathan Larson® Grants. The grants, given annually to honor emerging composers, lyricists and book writers, help to continue Tony® Award-winning composer Jonathan Larson's dream of infusing musical theatre with a contemporary, joyful, urban vitality.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director) has announced that its annual Gala will be held on Monday, September 26 at 6:30 PM at The Plaza Hotel (Fifth Avenue at Central Park South) and will honor Sir Howard Stringer, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Sony Corporation and longtime American Theatre Wing Board Member.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees) today announced that Heather Hitchens has been appointed as the organization's next Executive Director. The decision was made at a meeting of the American Theatre Wing's Board of Trustees on Wednesday, May 4. Hitchens is an energetic and nationally recognized arts executive, with nearly 20 years of experience in performing arts administration, policy, and program development. She most recently served as the Executive Director of the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), the oldest and largest state arts agency in the country, with a budget of $40 million. Hitchens will begin her tenure as Executive Director on July 5, succeeding Howard Sherman, who has been the Wing's Executive Director for 8 years and concludes his tenure on June 30. During her four year tenure at NYSCA, Hitchens oversaw the distribution of over $123 million in grants to more than 2,000 New York State organizations in every artistic discipline. She also fostered closer collaboration and partnerships between the arts and other sectors including tourism, economic development, and parks, and in collaboration with a number of public and private funding sources, launched the Cultural Data Project, which is developing more comprehensive and reliable data about the impact of the arts in New York State. Prior to working with the NYSCA, Hitchens served as the CEO of the Delaware Symphony Orchestra and the renowned national arts organization Meet The Composer, where she established a multi-million dollar endowment fund and fostered a thirty-fold increase in individual giving. She holds an M.S. in Arts Administration from Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA and a B.M. in Percussion/Music Business from DePauw, Greencastle, IN. "The Wing is a uniquely collaborative organization," said Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman 0f the Board of Trustees. "Our fruitful and long-term partnership with the Broadway League in bestowing the Tony Awards is a key element of the Wing, as are our various media, educational, and grant-giving programs. Howard Sherman brought the Wing into modern times, expanding, creating and widening the scope of the activities with intelligence and skill, and his contributions have made the Wing a more important place. Building on what Howard achieved, our extraordinary search committee did yeoman service, and their choice of Heather Hitchens speaks well for us all. From my vantage point as Chairman, I feel Heather is the perfect person to guide us into the next phase of collaborations, mining new opportunities and strengthening old ones." "I am absolutely thrilled to become the American Theatre Wing's next Executive Director," enthused Heather Hitchens. "It is a tremendous opportunity to continue my life's work in advancing exceptional artists and their craft, and to return to the place that my career began and a place that I love - the theatre. I look forward to working with the Wing's board and staff to continue showcasing and supporting artistic excellence and innovation in the national theatre community." Search Committee-member and Tony Award®-winning playwright David Henry Hwang added, "From an impressive pool of final candidates, Heather Hitchens emerged as the Search Committee's unanimous choice. Her knowledge of the cultural sector is second to none, she has elevated every organization with which she has been associated, and she possesses a clear and practical vision to advance the Wing's mission. With Heather as our new Executive Director, the American Theatre Wing is poised to take a major step forward to support artistic excellence in the theatre." The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees; Howard Sherman, Executive Director) is a not-for-profit organization best known as the creator of the Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards®, which it presents annually with The Broadway League. In addition to "Downstage Center," "In The Wings," "Working in the Theatre," and a host of other online resources, The Wing operates many activities, all dedicated to recognizing excellence and supporting education in theatre, including SpringboardNYC, the Theatre Intern Group, the National Theatre Company Grants and the Jonathan Larson Grants. Visitors to americantheatrewing.org can listen to, watch or download from ATW's extensive media collection, and learn more about all of its programming for students, aspiring and working professionals, and audiences who want to learn more about the making of theatre. Follow ATW on Facebook.com/TheAmericanTheatreWing, youtube.com/americantheatrewing and Twitter.com/TheWing.

The American Theatre Wing (Theodore S. Chapin, Chairman, Board of Trustees) today announced that Heather Hitchens has been appointed as the organization's next Executive Director.