Donna Abbott Vlahos | The Business Review

NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman will speak to members of the League of Historic American Theaters on July 15 at 1:30 p.m. at Proctors, the historic theater in downtown Schenectady.

The chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts will be the keynote speaker at a five-day theater conference expected to draw 250 people to Proctors in Schenectady, New York.
NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman will speak to members of the League of Historic American Theaters on July 15 at 1:30 p.m. at the historic theater in downtown Schenectady.
Landesman was invited to speak by U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand.
Besides being NEA chairman, Landesman is part of owner Jujamcyn Theaters, which owns five theaters on Broadway. His producing credits include the hit musical The Producers.
The 35th annual theater conference, which kicks off July 13 with an awards luncheon, is the only national gathering of theater professionals focusing on historic theaters, according to Proctors officials.
The League includes more than 325 theaters.
The conference will include discussions, workshops, case studies, peer group sessions and a supplier expo. There will also be a tour of six historic theaters in the Albany/Hudson Valley area: Troy Savings Bank Music Hall , Palace Theater in Albany, Hudson Opera House , Bardavon 1869 Opera House in Poughkeepsie, Ulster Performing Arts Center in Kingston and Ritz Theater in Newburgh.