David Rodger
Louisville Conference Promotions Coordinator

Information about the 2006 USITT Conference & Stage Expo in Louisville, Kentucky is as close as your computer and is available 24/7. Just visit the USITT website.

If you are still thinking about coming to Louisville March 29 to April 1, the website will certainly help you decide. The "Louisville Information" section is where you will find out about local attractions - museums, river boats, art galleries, theatres, and, of course, Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby. Other local resources include a list of places to eat, transportation guides (including a link to the previous Sightlines story about all the cities within a day's drive of Louisville), and maps.

Just a reminder, a really special feature of the Louisville conference is the opportunity to take part in the world-famous Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville. USITT and ATL are offering a special package of discount tickets for three shows - Tuesday afternoon, Tuesday evening, and Wednesday evening. The ticket package is only $110 for members. More information about the new plays will be available in December when ATL has made its final decisions about the plays in the 2006 Humana Festival. Stay tuned.

If you are ready to register, the conference website is designed to make it easy to do so either online using USITT's secure server, or off-line by downloading PDF registration forms. Forms for conference registration and housing are available now, as well as forms for students to participate in programs like Young Designers' Forum (YDF), Stage Management Mentoring Project (SMMP), and Awards for Young Designers and Technicians in the Performing Arts (YD&T).

It's easy to find all these registration forms. At the top of the navigation column on the left side of every page on the Conference website is a link called Conference Forms.

The amount of scheduling and organization that goes into USITT's annual conference is incredible. Hundreds of sessions, each involving several presenters, need to be confirmed and booked into rooms in one of several locations. Detailed information about conference sessions is available in the "Sessions" section. This on-line database includes session times and places, names of presenters, and session descriptions. You can search by day or by Commission. Up-to-date information about Professional Development Workshops is also available in the Sessions section.

A website this complex is only possible with the help of talented and dedicated people. Kudos go to the members of the Commissions and the Conference Committee who have spent countless hours developing and scheduling the sessions and workshops. The office staff deserves special hugs for their patient and persistent efforts compiling and organizing all this data and for their friendly help when called or e-mailed with questions. Technical expertise and programming wizardry is provided by Gordon Ferguson and Tim Clinton. A big "bravo" to them all.

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