International Presenting Now: Collaborative Models, Practices, and Pathways Toward a Sustainable Future

This roundtable conversation amongst national arts leaders aimed to reimagine international presenting for a new age. While acknowledging the steep challenges faced—particularly post-COVID—this invited, participatory gathering looked ahead, exploring inspiring new pathways for sustaining and furthering global exchange and international touring in the United States. This event livestreamed on the global, commons-based, peer-produced HowlRound TV network on Monday 9 January 2023 from St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn, New York.

Organized by the International Presenting Commons (IPC) with HowlRound Theatre Commons, the meeting brought together artists, presenters, creative producers, and funders to uplift innovative models and explore new collaborative practices that emerged during COVID that can contribute to building a sustainable and robust ecosystem for the presentation of international work in the United States. The session, and the work of the IPC over several years, is premised on the belief that global live art exchange remains essential to the world, in particular to the cultural health of the United States as a whole and to diverse individual communities that presenters and artists serve across the country.

This conversation was moderated by Emil Kang, program director for Arts and Culture at the Mellon Foundation, and made use of a "long table" format. The conversation began with a small group including Roya Amirsoleymani (Portland Institute for Contemporary Art), Rika Iino (SOZO Media), Mara Isaacs (Octopus Theatricals), Edgar Miramontes (REDCAT), Michael Orlove (National Endowment for the Arts), Ronee Penoi (ArtsEmerson), Samora Pinderhughes (musician, filmmaker, and multi-disciplinary artist), Zeyba Rahman (Doris Duke Charitable Foundation for Islamic Art), Meiyin Wang (Perelman Performing Arts Center), and Du Yun (composer and performer). After the first hour, the conversation expanded to include feedback, ideas, and provocations from a larger group of sixty artists, creative producers, presenters, and funders.

About the IPC

The International Presenting Commons (IPC) is an emergent, evolving, volunteer group of United States–based performing arts, presenters, and creative independent producers who have joined forces to keep international cultural exchange and engagement alive and vibrant now and into the future. IPC does this through advocacy, active learning, resource sharing, and collaboration among performing arts presenters, artists, producers, and funders who work together to build more sustainable policies and funding models for the exchange of work around the world. The group’s mission is in service of its increasingly diverse communities throughout the country. IPC celebrates its role as part of a global cultural ecosystem by partnering with artists and presenters from all over the world. IPC does its work through a commons-based approach and is currently organizing with the support and thought partnership of HowlRound.

The IPC’s values include:

• Artists and other cultural workers, creative practices, and a culture of care
• Advocacy and shared leadership
• Reciprocity, celebrating diversity and diaspora, and global dialogue
• Addressing structural racism, equitable practices, and a commitment to learning and change
• Interdependence, collective action, and network building
• Climate consciousness, sustainability, and reducing our carbon footprint

About HowlRound TV

HowlRound TV is a global, commons-based, peer-produced, open-access livestreaming and video archive project stewarded by the nonprofit HowlRound. HowlRound TV is a free and shared resource for live conversations and performances relevant to the world’s performing-arts and cultural fields. Its mission is to break geographic isolation, promote resource sharing, and develop our knowledge commons collectively. Anyone can participate in a community of peer organizations revolutionizing the flow of information, knowledge, and access in our field by becoming a producer and co-producing with us. Learn more by going to our participate page. For any other queries, email [email protected] or call Vijay Mathew at +1 917.686.3185 Signal. View the video archive of past events.