The Athenaeum Theatre is now offering a new service called the Arts and Entertainment Management Project at The Athenaeum (AEMPA) to its tenants and others of Chicago’s artistic community. The AEMPA is a resource for both emerging and established arts groups of all disciplines. The Project offers support through bi-monthly workshops and seminars, an informative quarterly newsletter containing grant submission deadlines, individual consulting and mediation. The AEMPA is run by Project Director Dr. Kate McGovern with the support of Athenaeum Theatre General Manager Fred Solari.
The Project will be holding its first seminar, on grant writing, Wednesday, March 30, at the Athenaeum, 2936 N. Southport Ave. The panel members will be Michelle Boone of the Joyce Foundation, Maureen Mizwicki of The Joffrey Ballet and Melissa Baresford of Baresford Associates. Titled "Writing the Winning Grant," it starts at 5:30 p.m. Dr. McGovern will lead the seminar, which costs $10. Other seminars to follow will include topics such as writing and understanding contracts, licensing material, copyrights and insurance for not-for-profit organizations.
Another part of The Project is a mediation service called MEDIARTS. This mediation service can be used by members of the artistic community to communicate their concerns when having difficulties with landlords, collaborating partners and/or members of the community at large. The AEMPA also offers individual consulting to emerging and established arts groups.
The Project also enables arts groups to share affordable office space in the Athenaeum, with communal office equipment, conference room and reception area. Additionally, smaller groups can use the Athenaeum as their mailing address, lending stability to fledgling organizations.
The AEMPA is an initiative developed by Dr. Kate McGovern. Dr. McGovern holds a master’s in arts, a doctorate in education, a J.D. and a master’s in Law. She has extensive experience acting and directing theater and is extremely active in the Chicago Arts community. Dr. McGovern is currently a member of the Lifeline Theatre Board, The Dance Center of Columbia College Board, is co-chair of the Chicago Associates of the Stratford (Canada) Shakespearean Festival and an active member of the American Bar Association and International Bar Association in the areas of cultural property and intellectual property. She teaches Entertainment Law and Theatre Law at DePaul University.
Built in 1911, the Athenaeum building was conceived as a community center to serve the mostly German neighborhood surrounding it. Over the years the Athenaeum also served as a commercial high school for St. Alphonsus Church, as well as a temporary church after a devastating fire in the early 1950s.
Today, the Athenaeum, under the direction of SCT Productions, continues its original mission as a performing arts center for the neighborhood as well as the entire metropolitan area. Meeting rooms have been transformed into studio theaters and classrooms into affordable office space for young arts organizations. The Athenaeum sponsors Dance Chicago, a five-week dance festival held annually in November showcasing the best of Chicago dance. Presently there are three studio theaters in addition to the original 1,000-seat main stage facility available for rental by outside producers.
For more information about The Arts and Entertainment Management Project at The Athenaeum or to sign up for a workshop or seminar, call the AEMPA at (773) 296-0948 or visit artsbridge.org. |
