Opera
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • 2023 Season
        • Sweeney Todd
        • La Tragédie de Carmen
        • 2023 Young Artists
        • 2023 Festival & Guest Artists
        • 2023 Directors & Designers
        • 2023 Opera Conservatory
  • About
        • Mission & History
        • Past Productions
        • Leadership
        • Performance Venues & Accessibility
  • Young Artists
        • Young Artist Program
        • Audition FAQs
  • Alumni
  • Opera Conservatory
  • Opera Guild
  • Media
        • Press Releases
        • Chautauquan Daily Articles
        • Opera Virtual Porch Events
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets
Theater
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • About
        • Leadership
        • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Accessibility
        • New Play Development
        • Young Playwrights Project
        • Past Productions
        • Our History
  • Conservatory
        • Acting Conservatory
        • Design & Directing Fellowships
        • Alumni in the News
  • Your Visit
  • Get Involved
        • Conservatory Application
        • Administrative & Production Positions
        • Friends of CTC
  • Press
        • Press Releases
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets
Give
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Make a Donation
  • Ways to Give
        • Appreciated Securities
        • Capital Support
        • Chautauqua Fund
        • Endowment/Naming
        • Gift Planning
        • Honor Your Host
        • Honorary/Memorial
        • Matching Gifts
        • Monthly Giving
        • Program Sponsor
        • Scholarships
  • Membership Opportunities
        • 1874 Society
        • Bell Tower Society
        • Bestor Society
        • Daugherty Society
        • Lewis Miller Circle
        • NOW Generation
        • Foundation Membership
  • Foundation
        • History & Mission
        • Board of Directors
        • Foundation Staff
        • Foundation Membership
        • Foundation Publications
        • Contact
  • Advancement
        • Institution Board of Trustees
        • Advancement Staff
        • Advancement Publications
        • Contact
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets
Foundation
  • Home
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Mission
  • Board of Directors
  • Staff
  • Publications
  • Membership
  • Endowment/Naming
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets

Summer

  • Fall / Winter / Spring
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Discover
        • About The Summer Season
        • Plan Your Experience
          • Experience Planner
          • 2023 Season
          • Buy Gate Passes and Tickets
          • Ticket Information
          • Vacation Safely at Chautauqua
          • Visit Must-Dos
        • About Chautauqua
          • 150 Forward Strategic Plan
          • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) at Chautauqua
        • Places To Stay
          • Athenaeum Hotel
          • Private Accommodations
          • Denominations and Religious Organizations
          • Nearby Accommodations
        • Explore the Grounds and Gardens
          • Maps and Directions
          • Bus and Tram Tracker
          • Accessibility at Chautauqua
          • Plaza Cam
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
        • Eat, Drink & Shop
          • Dining
          • Heirloom Restaurant
          • Shopping & Services
          • Food Festival at Chautauqua
        • Experience Community
          • African American Heritage House
          • Chautauqua Women’s Club
          • Bird, Tree & Garden Club
          • LGBTQ and Friends
          • “Friends of” Groups
          • CPOA (Property Owners)
          • Denominations and Religious Organizations
          • Chautauqua Cinema
          • Chautauqua Trail
          • CHQ Dialogues
        • Resources
          • The Smith Memorial Library
          • Post Office
          • Chautauqua Bookstore
          • Services & Amenities
          • Business Center
          • Property Owner Resources
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
          • Program Archive
          • Chautauqua Institution Archives
          • FAQs
          • The Chautauquan Daily
          • CHQ&A Podcast
          • Chautauqua Magazine
          • Grounds Policies
  • Schedule
        • Discover Chautauqua
        • Events
          • All Events
          • Weekly Themes
          • Event Calendar
          • Experience Planner
        • Lectures
          • Chautauqua Lecture Series
          • Interfaith Lecture Series
          • Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle
          • Other Lectures
        • Performing & Visual Arts
          • Entertainment and Concerts
          • Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra and Classical Concerts
          • Galleries
          • Chautauqua Chamber Music
          • Dance
        • Resident Programs
          • Chautauqua Literary Arts
          • Chautauqua Opera Company & Conservatory
          • Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
          • Chautauqua Theater Company
          • Chautauqua Visual Arts
          • Chautauqua Climate Change Initiative
        • Classes
        • Religion
          • Daily Worship
          • Sacred Music
          • Abrahamic Program for Young Adults
          • Mystic Heart Interspiritual Meditation Program
          • Denominations and Religious Organizations
          • CHQ Dialogues
        • Recreation
          • Chautauqua Health & Fitness Center
          • Sports Club
          • Golf Club
          • Swimming
          • Tennis Center
          • Sailing
          • Youth Recreation
          • CHQ Trail
        • Youth & Family
          • Day Camps
          • Educational Experiences
          • Youth Activities Center (YAC)
          • Youth Recreation
          • Babysitting
          • Family Scholarship Program
  • Groups
        • Book a Group Experience
        • Road Scholar
        • Chautauqua on a Budget
        • Tour Chautauqua County
        • Chautauqua Travels
  • Festival Schools
        • School of Music
          • Conducting Fellowship
          • Instrumental Program
          • Opera Conservatory
          • Piano Program
        • Dance
        • Art
        • Theater
        • Chautauqua Music Camps
        • Alumni
  • Giving
        • Make a Donation
        • Membership Opportunities
        • Ways to Give
        • Chautauqua Foundation
        • Advancement
  • Buy Tickets
  • Give
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets

Fall / Winter / Spring

  • Summer
  • CHQ Assembly
  • Discover
        • About Year-Round at Chautauqua
        • Plan Your Experience
          • Experience Planner
          • Vacation Safely at Chautauqua
          • Grounds Access and Operations
          • Visit Must-Dos
        • About
          • 150 Forward Strategic Plan
          • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) at Chautauqua
        • Arts Education
        • Classes
        • Resident Programs
          • Literary Arts
          • Chautauqua Opera Company & Conservatory
          • Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra
          • Chautauqua Theater Company
          • Chautauqua Visual Arts
          • Chautauqua Climate Change Initiative
        • Explore the Grounds and Gardens
          • Maps and Directions
          • Accessibility at Chautauqua
          • Plaza Cam
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
        • Eat, Drink & Shop
          • Dining
          • Shopping & Services
        • Resources
          • The Smith Memorial Library
          • Post Office
          • Chautauqua Bookstore
          • Services & Amenities
          • Business Center
          • Chautauqua Lake Conservation
          • Property Owner Resources
          • Program Archive
          • Chautauqua Institution Archives
          • FAQs
          • The Chautauquan Daily
          • CHQ&A Podcast
          • Chautauqua Magazine
          • Grounds Policies
  • Accommodations
        • Weddings & Conferences
        • Athenaeum Hotel
        • Other Places To Stay
        • Private Rentals
        • Check Athenaeum Hotel Room Availability

  • Recreation
        • Chautauqua Health & Fitness Center
        • CHQ Trail
        • Golf Club
          • Golf Course
            • Membership Rates
            • Pro Shop
            • Scorecards
          • Events & Banquets
        • Golf Instruction
          • Adult Golf Clinics
          • Jr. Golf Clinics & Camps
          • Learning Center
          • Private Lessons
        • Golf Tournaments
          • Upcoming Events & Tournaments
          • Group Outings
          • NJCAA Golf Championship
  • Groups
        • Road Scholar
        • Book a Group Experience
        • Tour Chautauqua County
        • Chautauqua Travels
  • Festival Schools
        • School of Music
          • Conducting Fellowship
          • Instrumental Program
          • Piano Program
          • Opera Conservatory
        • Dance
        • Art
        • Theater
        • Chautauqua Music Camps
        • Alumni
  • Giving
        • Make a Donation
        • Membership Opportunities
        • Ways to Give
        • Foundation
        • Advancement
  • Buy Tickets
  • Give
  • Donate
  • Buy Tickets

looking for something?

  • Contact
  • Blog
    • Announcements
    • Institution News
    • From Our President
    • Chautauqua Theater Company
    • Chautauqua Opera Company
    • Chautauqua Foundation
  • Quick Reference Guide to Chautauqua
  • Request an In-Kind Gift
  • Make a Donation
  • Send Programming Suggestions
  • Staff Directory
June 15, 2020 | From Our President

A Summer Unlike Any Other

By Michael E. Hill
President, Chautauqua Institution

Summer is a time of rituals for me. 

As President of the 146-year-old Chautauqua Institution located on 750 acres about an hour and 20 minutes south of Buffalo, my summer is usually a highly scripted affair. Over nine weeks, Chautauqua explores the best in human values through some 3,000 individual events. Ours is a storied institution replete with traditions and a sing song routine for those of us called to be stewards of this special place. On a normal June 15, which is when I am writing this, we would be preparing to receive more than 100,000 summer visitors. Our artists, speakers, preachers, some 1,200 seasonal workers and others would be descending on our grounds to open up 100-plus public buildings in preparation to explore nine themed weeks centering on the most pressing issues of our time.

As I look out my window onto Bestor Plaza, our town square, I don’t see any of that occurring. I see a few residents walking by in masks, having just visited the Post Office on the grounds. Through my open window, I hear one of our small business owners talking about the promise of a Phase Three reopening of her shop and what it will mean if people want to access it. A few members of my staff have returned to their offices for the first time in four months but many of our offices are still dark as we work through COVID-19 safety plans and protocols.

So what does this mean for our summer? Will we break the arc of tradition that so many have come to know about Chautauqua? You may have read in The Buffalo News or another media announcement that Chautauqua Institution’s Board of Trustees voted in May to cancel all in-person programming on our grounds. Some might think that we are simply going to “moth ball” the place and try again next year. But what I find so thrilling is that we have no intention of breaking that all-important arc of tradition.

In June we previewed a new way of engaging with others for the summer. Chautauqua is unveiling an ambitious effort we’re calling “CHQ Assembly,” a multi-platform online digital collective that will allow us to share all nine theme weeks, our featured lecture speakers, our chaplains of the week, our interfaith speakers, performing arts events, an impressive set of online master and enrichment classes and a space for Chautauqua Visual Arts that allows people to view exhibitions, view artwork, and shop in our Gallery Store, only hinting at the hundreds of young visual and performing artists who will be studying with us online.

COVID-19 has surely shaken the foundations of all of our worlds. We have been quarantined inside our homes, and, for many, the thought of re-emerging into society is either thrilling or horrifying. Organizations across the country are struggling with how to keep their missions alive – financially and programmatically. This summer at Chautauqua, though, we have a chance to not only maintain many of our vehicles for sharing our mission, but we get to invite others to share it with us in a way that’s as simple as watching Netflix, signing into your Apple TV, your Roku or viewing things on any internet-enable device. Our team has worked hard and with breakneck speed to make this portal to our mission available in a matter of weeks. We hope you’ll help us refine this experiment – what we’re calling a beta test – by joining us on the journey. Visit Assembly.chq.org to sign up for a free 90-day subscription to the video platform, click through to learn.chq.org to explore the available master and enrichment courses, and begin to explore the conversations we will curate on CHQ Assembly’s Virtual Porch. All CHQ Assembly platforms will be live by June 28. 

This is Chautauqua’s first step toward expanding its reach far beyond our Western New York boundaries and curating a dynamic space to convene people year round.

While all of us are looking at a summer far different from the traditional, I’m excited to think about what opportunities are emerging from this very unique time.  I may not be hosting large garden gatherings. We may not have 4,000 people in our Amphitheater for a lecture, a concert or a religious service. But we will be convening people, as we have for 146 summers prior, to explore  the best in human values with the desire to take all we’ve learned back out in the world to make it a better place. What has long been our calling now has new relevance. Through CHQ Assembly, we aim to translate that into greater, more meaningful impact.

Save Your Trip

Fill out the form below to save your trip. You will receive a link to your saved list via email.

  • Hidden
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Save Your Favorites

Fill out the form below to save your favorites. You will receive a link to your favorites list via email.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
Hidden

Notice!

You have now entered the season. Some website content may differ depending on the current season we are in: Summer or Fall/Winter/Spring. You can toggle between the two season options at any time.

Okay

Subscribe to Chautauqua Institution’s email newsletter

  • About
  • Resources
  • Sustainability
  • Contact
  • Whistleblower Policy
  • Careers
  • Ethics Point
  • Privacy Policy
  • ADA Compliance
Chautauqua Institution
P.O. Box 28
One Ames Ave.
Chautauqua, N.Y. 14722

1.800.836.ARTS
  • Privacy Policy
  • ADA Compliance

© 2022 Chautauqua Institution. Chautauqua Institution is a non-profit organization, dependent upon your gifts to fulfill its mission. Gate tickets and other revenue cover only a portion of the cost of your Chautauqua experience.