Hey folks,

Thanks to everyone who responded over the weekend to my question about 
whether you can attend the planned showcase conference this November 
based on the costs outlined in the e-mail (which is attached in its 
entirety below.)

The Board still needs to hear from the rest of you by tomorrow 
afternoon. Please, please, give this some consideration and let us 
know, yes or no, if you can attend given the plans and the costs listed 
below. We can't take the chance of bankrupting the organization at this 
juncture and if we throw this party and no one comes, that's exactly 
what's going to happen.

So your input is more than crucial and we have a very short window to 
make a final decision.

Please read through this again and let us know. Just reply to this 
message with a yes or no. I'm keeping track of the responses here. I've 
highlighted the conference fees and hotel costs in the attachment - 
plan on three nights hotel at $100 per night ($85 plus taxes) for the 
sake of your calculations.

Thanks again, everyone.

Bob


Robert Boyer
Patten Performances Director
UTC Fine Arts Center
www.utc.edu/finearts
423.425.4379


On Friday, January 4, 2008, at 03:56 PM, Robert Boyer wrote:

> As most of you know, the Board has been hard at work on planning for 
> our first showcase/booking conference which is scheduled to occur 
> Sunday - Tuesday, November 8-10, 2008. The showcase and trade show 
> functions would happen Sunday and Monday, while presenters would stay 
> through Tuesday for the fall booking meeting.
>
> We are at a go/no go decision point and there has been some discussion 
> about the economic feasibility of the conference as planned. Even with 
> our best and most creative efforts to keep costs down, this is still 
> an expensive endeavor and before we sign any contracts with anyone, we 
> need to have a feel for what you as presenters and agents can support. 
> While we expect participation from a number of (as yet) non-member 
> presenters and agencies, you folks will be the core upon which we 
> would depend to not go in the hole on this first attempt. We also hope 
> to attract more Tennessee presenters as members through this 
> conference.
>
> Accordingly, we need some feedback now.
>
> I'm going to describe the concept of the conference to you and include 
> some projected registration and meal fees. I need you to say whether 
> your organization can support attendance under these parameters, I'll 
> repeat, your response is critical, so please take a minute to read 
> this over and tell us whether you could attend this conference.
>
> The plan is to host the conference at the Niswonger Performing Arts 
> Center and the General Morgan Inn & Conference Center in Greeneville, 
> TN, about halfway between Knoxville and Bristol, just south of I-81. 
> Both facilities, as is most of downtown, is wi-fi ready. The General 
> Morgan is a historic hotel, recently renovated, and top-of-the-line in 
> both accommodations and food. NPAC is a state-of-the-art 1100 seat PAC 
> several blocks away, but still within walking distance.
>
> We are planning for 30 showcases over a 2 day period, with tables for 
> 30 agencies/artists representatives to be available in the lobby of 
> NPAC. There will be no "trade show" feel to this setup; agents will be 
> free from shipping and setting up displays and materials, presenters 
> free from having to lug around bags full of printed materials. Rather, 
> everyone will show up with their wireless laptops and do business off 
> of their websites.
>
> We are hoping to have Dixie Carter and/or Hal Holbrook as featured 
> speakers on Monday evening (subject to Lee Warren's ability to 
> convince her/them to speak to us). We have a shuttle arranged to 
> convey folks between the venues in the event of bad weather. We have 
> state of the art facilities for this conference.
>
> However. These things cost money and while for agencies and artists, 
> we are working to keep total costs (travel/hotel/food/conference 
> fees/showcase fees, etc) for attendance below that of other statewide 
> showcase conferences, the fact of the matter is that travel to 
> Greeneville will be expensive. Larry Kosson of SMG has investigated 
> some flights from northeastern cities and notes that most round-trip 
> tickets are in the range of $400. On the presenter side, there are the 
> considerations of travel time (especially from west Tennessee) to 
> Greeneville, and the cost of registration, meals and hotel.
>
> To insure our success, we need presenters to see the artists who 
> showcase and we need the artists and agencies to showcase for us. This 
> has to make economic sense (especially for the showcasing artists who 
> will have significant travel costs) for everyone. So let us know if it 
> does for you. So look over your calendar, look over these proposed 
> conference costs, and let us know by noon Tuesday, January 8 if you 
> can commit to attending this conference.
>
> Proposed Conference Fees and Meal/Hotel Costs:
>
> Conference Registration
> Presenter (TN Presenter member):  $75
> Artist/Agency Representative:  $200
>
> Showcasing
> Showcase Fee:  $200
> Showcase Application Fee:  $25
>
> Meals & Hotel
> Meals & Reception:  $150/person
> Hotel Rooms: $85 single or double per night plus taxes
>
> Please respond Monday or Tuesday with a yes or no as to your 
> ability/interest in attending such a function this fall. We are fully 
> aware of why some may choose to attend as well as choose not to; no 
> explanations are necessary.