Chautauqua Institution welcomed five new trustees during the August Board of Trustees meeting. Each brings a unique perspective and a wealth of experience in areas that are vital to the Institution — including philanthropy, finance, education, marketing and organizational development. Among the new appointees is Ronn Richard, recently retired CEO of the Cleveland Foundation, where he led transformative growth over two decades. Under his leadership, annual philanthropic giving increased tenfold, from $14 million to more than $145 million and endowed funds more than doubled to $3.2 billion. Richard’s strategic relocation of the Foundation’s headquarters to Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood catalyzed economic...
Dear Chautauquans, Next week is Thanksgiving, and I owe you all a big thank you. Not only do you gather every weekday morning each summer as the most engaged and thoughtful audience around, you are uncommonly generous in sharing your ideas, suggestions and connections with us as we move through our yearly planning cycles. Planning and executing a 45-lecture series is truly a community effort, and it is an honor and a privilege to steward that process and shape our storied Chautauqua Lecture Series platform. We of course are right in the thick of that work for 2026, with much...
Chautauqua Theater Company (CTC) today announced its dynamic 2026 mainstage season, featuring two standout productions: the world premiere of Best for Baby, a larger-than-life comedy by Sharyn Rothstein directed by Oliver Butler, and August Wilson’s acclaimed theatrical memoir How I Learned What I Learned, directed by CTC’s Producing Artistic Director Jade King Carroll. The season will also mark the grand opening of the Roe Green Theater Center, a state-of-the-art home for theater at Chautauqua, and the introduction of CTC’s new playwrighting fellowship in partnership with the Drama League. Best for Baby is a CTC commission and was presented as a...
Dear Chautauquans, The Chautauqua Institution Board of Trustees convened for its fall meetings on Nov. 7–8, 2025, at Chautauqua. Over the course of two days, the board engaged in both a strategic “Deep Dive” session and a formal business meeting to review institutional progress, financial performance and long-range priorities that will shape our future. Building a Foundation for Relevance and Resilience The meetings opened with reflections on a successful 2025 summer season that demonstrated clear progress in strengthening patron satisfaction, community relationships and operational stability. Across Chautauqua’s programs, overall patron sentiment has improved, and our partners and supporters have expressed...
Every year since 2015, the Young Playwrights Project has unleashed the imaginations of Chautauqua County students through the art of playwriting. In 2025, over 500 third and fourth grade students wrote plays about the silly and the serious, giving us a peek into the world from their point of view. Now, we present a mini-documentary that pulls back the curtain and shines a spotlight on the experience of one student and her in the Young Playwrights Project. This video follows Ring Elementary third grade student Thea Baehr and her teacher Beth Johnson through the program’s 2025 cycle. In the video,...
Chautauqua Institution’s YouTube channel is introducing a new membership structure designed to strengthen the sustainability of our digital programming and make it easier for viewers to choose their level of access. You know the value of Chautauqua’s programming — and we heard you, time and time again in recent months, when you said that the ability to experience that programming online is important to you. Now, we’re asking for your help in securing the future of this work and the experience of Chautauqua at your fingertips. The easiest way to do that is to join at the sustaining membership level,...
Chautauqua Institution has named Stephine Hunt Interim Michael I. Rudell Director of Literary Arts, starting on Jan. 1, 2026. This comes following her impactful tenure as manager, and then managing director, of literary arts, where she has played a key role in shaping the Institution’s literary programming alongside the outgoing artistic director, Kwame Alexander. As interim director, Hunt will oversee programming of the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle, the platform that honors at least nine outstanding books of fiction, nonfiction, essays and poetry with community discussions and author presentations every summer — and which celebrates its sesquicentennial in 2028; the...
Dear Chautauquans, For more than 150 years, Chautauqua has been a place where people gather to learn, reflect, grow and connect. We have weathered periods of social change, economic challenges and cultural transformation because we have always adapted — thoughtfully and deliberately — to meet the needs of the moment while safeguarding our mission for the future. That same spirit of resilience guides us now. As we look ahead to the 2026 Summer Assembly and beyond, we are making strategic programming decisions designed to strengthen Chautauqua’s financial foundation, protect the experiences that matter most, and position the Institution for another...
Pathway to Financial Resilience Update from Kyle Keogh Dear Chautauquans, With sincere gratitude and appreciation for your valued contributions to the community, I write to share an important update as we navigate a challenging chapter in Chautauqua’s journey. As we shared in our summer meetings, Chautauqua is undergoing a much-needed evaluation of how best to ensure our long-term financial resilience. As a part of this process, we have determined we must take decisive action to achieve a net budget reduction of $4-6 million. To achieve this objective, we have made the difficult decision to reduce staffing levels and operational budgets...
Step One:Accommodations Finding accommodations should be your first priority when planning a visit to Chautauqua. Accommodations can fill up long before gate passes even go on sale. All accommodations within the Institution’s grounds are privately owned except for the Athenaeum Hotel and Bellinger Hall dormitory. Step Two:Buy Tickets, Passes & Registration A gate pass or single ticket is required to enter the grounds and acts as your passport to the Chautauqua Experience. Visit tickets.chq.org or call 716-357-6250 to make your purchases. Step Three:Youth Registrations Chautauqua’s programs for youth present a diversity of activity, in settings varied and historic. Step Four:Register for a...