Several members of the USITT Conference Committee, along with the Commissioners Steering Committee and officers, visited the oldest bar in Cincinnati for food and music during a visit to the Ohio city. From left are Tammy Honesty, Nate Otto, Dan Denhart, Kim Williamson, the waitress, and Tony Hardin.

Photo/E.R. Lucas

Helen Willard
Stage Expo Sales Manager

Each May, members of the Conference Committee meet with the Commissioners Steering Committee to go over the programming schedule. During the day-long meeting, every session proposed for the conference was reviewed and scheduled for a particular day and time in a specific room. This year's meeting was held at the Hilton Netherland Plaza Hotel, which will be USITT's headquarters hotel during the 2009 Annual Conference & Stage Expo.

Tours of the Duke Energy Center's exhibit halls, meeting rooms, and ballrooms took place on Friday afternoon followed by a look at the meeting space and ballrooms at the Hilton. Afterward, many members of the group trekked to Arnold's, the oldest bar in Cincinnati, which was established in 1861. Others crossed one of the many bridges to Kentucky for dinner at a much newer restaurant, the Chart House, situated on Riverboat Row with a lovely view of the Ohio River and the Cincinnati skyline.

While in the "Queen City," members of the committee had an opportunity for a Taste of Cincinnati which took place on the street right in front of the hotel. There were about a half a million other people strolling and sampling, listening to music, and generally having a fine time.

To celebrate the end of another successful programming meeting, several members of the committee drove up Mt. Hope to Primavista, a northern Italian restaurant with a panoramic view of the downtown skyline, the Ohio River, stadiums, bridges, and northern Kentucky. Future visits will provide opportunities to check out more of the area's many fine restaurants.

Plan now to attend the 49th Annual USITT Conference & Stage Expo March 18 to 21 in Cincinnati. For information about exhibiting at Stage Expo, contact hpwillard@aol.com.

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