The Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP) announced opened registration for its flagship event, the APAP|NYC+ conference.
With the conference taking place both online and in-person, January 2022 will mark its momentous return to New York City after last holding it in-person in January 2020, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The January 2021 convening was held entirely online as the pandemic surged.
Since APAP's last in-person convening and the COVID-19 pandemic closures of March 2020, the industry APAP represents---the live performing arts---had been mostly shut down until spring 2021 when vaccines became more readily available and government-mandated closures lifted and restrictions loosened.
During the height of the pandemic, performing arts organizations and arts professionals sought alternate ways to weather the many months of being unable to produce live events, schedule tours, or perform in packed venues. The field is one of the hardest-hit by the effects of the pandemic with losses in the billions, businesses closed, and arts workers sidelined for months. U.S. federal relief programs, the most significant among them the $16.25 billion Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program, were and continue to be a lifeline to supporting the industry as it recovers. Domestic touring still faces challenges amidst inconsistent health and safety mandates across the U.S.; and international touring, amidst pandemic COVID-related travel restrictions; and both, with the delta variant spreading. The way forward is still opaque.
APAP|NYC+ 2022 not only represents the recovering and reopening of the performing arts industry, but also the reimaging of one. The performing arts is not immune to the racial reckoning or the great resignation of the last two years, among many other issues the pandemic laid bare, including equity, ethics, and the environment. The conference itself will address these new realities head on, while also creating space for its evolving and growingly more human-centered ways of conducting business, with revamped exhibiting space and still featuring its signature in-person showcases. APAP with its initiatives like its 10/20/30 racial equity, diversity and inclusion pledge and $2 million+ ArtsForward program is poised to lead the way.
The in-person APAP|NYC+ 2022 conference will take place January 14-17, 2022 at the New York Hilton Midtown. APAP will also host a robust online conference, January 10, 11, and 13, and including events during the in-person conference. Registration and APAP membership are required for both the in-person and online gatherings. Through its conference registration portal, APAP is offering special introductory rates that include membership for those new to APAP.
Online pre-conference events, free and open-to-the-public, happen December 6-8, 2021. Advance registration is required.
