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March 11, 2025 | ,

Chautauqua President Announces Departure

CHAUTAUQUA, N.Y. (March 11, 2025) — In a joint announcement to the Chautauqua community today, Institution Board of Trustees Chair Candace L. Maxwell and Institution President Michael E. Hill, Ed.D., announced President Hill will leave his role as Chautauqua’s 18th president May 31, 2025. ”My eight-plus years in service to Chautauqua have been among the most rewarding and challenging of my career,” Hill said. “…it has been the honor of a lifetime to work alongside the talented Chautauqua team to advance our mission.” Hill said he is leaving his post as Institution president to accept the position of president at...

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March 6, 2025 |

Announcing the 2025 Guest Judges and Jury for The Chautauqua Prize

Gena E. Chandler and Andrew Krivák to Serve as Guest Judges for The Chautauqua Prize Chautauqua Institution proudly announces the 2025 guest judges and jury for The Chautauqua Prize.  Awarded annually since 2012, the Prize celebrates a book of fiction or literary/narrative nonfiction that provides a richly rewarding reading experience and honors the author for a significant contribution to the literary arts. New this year, the Prize also accepted nominations of full-length poetry collections for consideration. Books published in 2024 were accepted as submissions for the 2025 Prize from September to December 2024. The 2025 Prize finalists and award-winning book will...

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February 27, 2025 |

Join Us for Informational Webinars This Spring

All Chautauquans are invited to join us for the Spring 2025 Webinar Series addressing topics ranging from food and beverage service to the facilities master plan. All registrants will receive reminders in advance of each webinar.  Webinars will be recorded and posted to the Community Portal for viewing at your convenience. Please click on the topic links below to register for each webinar. Upcoming Webinars Traffic and Livability Study 1:15 p.m. • Friday, March 14 Presenters: Shannon Rozner and Billy Leone  IDEA  1:15 p.m. • Friday, March 21 Presenter: Amit Taneja  Food & Beverage Plans3:15 p.m. • Friday, March 28 Presenters: Brittany Beckstrom and Sebastian Baggiano Master Plan &...

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February 24, 2025 |

Chautauqua Arts Education Staff Represents Chautauqua Institution at SphinxConnect 

“The mind of an adult begins in the mind of a child.”   Award-winning poet, educator, publisher, producer, and Chautauqua Institution’s Rudell Artistic Director of Literary Arts Kwame Alexander said this during his conversation with Aaron Dworkin in the closing plenary at SphinxConnect this past January. It was at Chautauqua last summer (2024) where Alexander met Aaron Dworkin, founder of the Sphinx Organization, who was at Chautauqua to give the morning lecture in the Amphitheater.  SphinxConnect is the largest and longest-standing global convening dedicated to excellence and inclusion in the arts. The conversation between Alexander and Dworkin centered around Alexander’s deep...

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February 18, 2025 |

Chautauqua Institution Receives Grant From The Children’s Guild Foundation Supporting Its Accessible and Inclusive Arts Education Programs

Chautauqua Institution announced today that Chautauqua Arts Education has been awarded a $60,000 grant from The Children’s Guild Foundation (CGF) to support its arts education programming for students with disabilities. This generous award will support programming over three years, providing sustained support for program offerings and adaptations that foster greater accessibility and engagement for students of all abilities.   The CGF is a longstanding supporter of organizations serving children with disabilities throughout Western New York, including an interest in supporting educational initiatives. For more information about the CGF and its work, visit www.cg.foundation. This latest grant award reflects a continued partnership...

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February 14, 2025 | ,

Chautauqua Theater Company Announces 2025 Mainstage Season

Chautauqua Theater Company (CTC) today announced their full mainstage season for 2025.   In addition to the previously announced world premiere of Tell Me You’re Dying by C.A. Johnson, CTC will produce Execution of Justice by Emily Mann, a reexamined version to be directed by Mann herself.   Emily Mann is a Tony-nominated director and playwright and a Tony Award-winning Artistic Director.  In her 30 years as Artistic Director and Resident Playwright at McCarter Theatre Center, she wrote 15 new plays and adaptations, directed over 50 productions, produced 180 plays and musicals, and supported and directed the work of emerging and legendary...

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February 13, 2025 |

Chautauqua Climate Change Initiative: February 2025

Landscapes of Hope Ten summers ago, in the aptly named Paradise Valley north of Yellowstone National Park, I witnessed a remarkable sight. A North American Pronghorn walked across an open field and down to the Yellowstone River.  What’s so remarkable about that? Well, let me tell you.  Pronghorn are one of North America’s most impressive mammals. They have the longest land migration in the continental U.S. and are the fastest land animal in North America, attaining speeds close to 60 miles per hour. It is believed this impressive speed resulted from the pronghorn evolving alongside its principal predator, the North...

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February 4, 2025 |

Bonnie Raitt to Headline First Major Concert Outside Chautauqua Institution’s Summer Season 

Chautauqua Institution is expanding its tradition of live music with an exciting new offering this fall. On September 5, 2025, Bonnie Raitt — a 13-time Grammy Award winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee — will take the Amphitheater stage. This event marks the first major concert outside of Chautauqua’s traditional nine-week season, which is in session from late June to late August, opening the door for more spring and fall programming on the grounds.    “Bringing one of music’s most celebrated artists to the stage, we hope this concert welcomes both longtime patrons and new audiences to Chautauqua...

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January 24, 2025 | ,

2024: An Anniversary Year in Review

Chautauqua Institution 2024 Annual Report Introduction  The 150th anniversary of our storied institution, celebrated in 2024, had long been a milestone we eagerly anticipated. It offered the opportunity to honor the Institution’s significant influence and impact, not only in the history of the United States but well beyond its borders.  We anchored our anniversary year with the theme The Seasons and Stories of Chautauqua, which came to life through multiple recognitions of Chautauqua’s seasons. These included the publication of “Chautauqwhat? A Short History of a Place and an Idea” by Archivist and Historian Jon Schmitz (now in its second edition), a reenactment of...

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January 23, 2025 |

The Young Playwrights Project: Inspiring Creativity and Building Connections in Chautauqua County 

As winter settles over Chautauqua County this January, the Young Playwrights Project (YPP) is once again breathing life into classrooms across the region, marking its eleventh year of empowering young minds through the art of storytelling. For 2025, the program has expanded its reach, now serving eight schools and bringing the magic of playwriting to 33 third and fourth grade classrooms. The participating schools include Bush, Fletcher, Lincoln, Love, and Ring Elementary Schools in Jamestown; Chautauqua Lake Elementary School in Mayville; Clymer Central School in Clymer; and Hewes BOCES Educational Center in Ashville.  At its core,YPP is all about inspiring...

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