While the Minnesota Theater Alliance has many roles within the performing arts community of Minnesota, one of the things they do is help provide financial aid to many different theater companies. At the start, they were funded through a two-year, $50,000 grant from the McKnight Foundation. This money helped kickstart the alliance and made it easier for them to start their goals.
Once that grant was done, the alliance worked to fundraise to help them get some of the funding necessary. Those theater companies who decide to benefit from the Minnesota Theater Alliance are also charged membership fees to help them meet some of those goals.
The Minnesota Theater Alliance Conference
Since its inception in 2010, the Minnesota Theater Alliance has hosted a conference as a way to foster collaboration and cooperation between the different theaters in the state of Minnesota and the different professionals in the industry. This is a great opportunity for different theater professionals, and others interested in the theater industry, to come and learn more about the different theater companies, the issues that are plaguing the industry, and more.
There are a lot of different topics that are brought up during the conference and attendees can choose which of the speakers they would like to talk about. The event typically lasts three days and some speakers will give more than one presentation if popularity is there. Some of the topics that are often available to help attendees learn include:
- Different areas of theater expertise
- Artistic topics
- Administrative topics
- Production ideas
- Managing a theater company
Attendees are able to choose the types of sessions they would like, with some being keynote speakers, hands-on sessions and more. One of the best parts of these sessions is the ability to socialize and network, which can be great for anyone looking to break out into the Minnesota theater scene. If you are trying to get your foot in the door and meet more people, then this is the conference to go to.
Supporting the Performing Arts Through the Minnesota Theater Alliance
There are so many things that the Minnesota Theater Alliance is able to provide to the 100+ theater companies in the state. These companies provide some of the best in entertainment and specialty arts to those in the state and they need the necessary support to make sure they get it all done. Thanks to the Minnesota Theater Alliance, established in the state in 2010, this is now possible. Members of the performing arts and others interested in supporting the industry can utilize some of these services at any time.