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THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINAATCHAPEL HILLAugust 9, 1990Dr. Kermit H. Hunter9004 Villa Park CircleDallas, TX 75225Dear Dr. Hunter:In January of this year, I was fortunate enough to have beenasked to follow Mark Sumner as the director of the Institute.I gratefully accepted the offer and, while much of the timehere thus far has been spent learning the ropes, I have madeseveral changes in the operations.Perhaps the most immediate is that we will be moving the siteof the annual Managers, Directors and Promoters Conferencefrom Chapel Hill. Although the meeting has been held inother locations in the past, including Boone, NC, Branson,MO, and Amarillo, TX, it has now been five years since wevemet on the site of an operating company.So, this year we will gather in Cherokee and enjoy thehospitality of the Cherokee Historical Association. Thedates are set for October 5-7.The programming of the Conference will also vary somewhatfrom that of previous conferences. There will be an emphasison touring the CHA facilities, a performance of Tom DeTitta�?TsTHE REACH OF SONG (an historical drama of the north Georgiamountains which opened in 1989), and a look at therelationship of the Cherokee culture to the play itself.Of course, we will continue to have workshops and panelsessions, but for this year, at least, there will be fewerthan in the past. Those that we do have planned will includesome of the newer faces in outdoor drama from across thecountry.

On Saturday evening, October 6, we are preparing a specialprogram to follow an authentic Indian feast. It will be aninformal presentation by individuals associated with UNTOTHESE HILLS and several Cherokee, who will help us understandthe relationship between Cherokee culture, the community andthe play. Bill Hardy will serve as the Master of Ceremoniesand I°ve asked Barry Hipps to help put together the program.A tentative program for the evening would include thefollowing:Robert Bushyhead would join us to deliver theinvocation in the Cherokee language.The dining hall would be decorated with manyand varied Cherokee arts and crafts gathered fromprivate collections around the reservation.Bill Hardy would relate some of his experienceswith UNTO THESE HILLS over the years. I�?Tve askedhim to invite a member of the 1950s productioncompany to pass on an anecdote or two from theearly days of the show.I°m writing now to ask if you would join us for this specialevening. As playwright of this benchmark outdoor historicaldrama, your experiences, particularly relating to theresearch involved in writing the play, and your relationshipwith the Cherokee and community leaders, would be of greatinterest to all of us.Further, your thoughts on outdoor historical drama and theunique challenge of writing for this genre would beespecially helpful to those who are now in the process ofplanning and developing new outdoor dramas.As I remember, it has been several years since you�?Tve beenable to attend the annual meeting. Many of the "old hands"continue to come each year, of course; but there are more andmore new people on the scene, including many who arecurrently planning dramas for their communities. My bestguess is that the early and mid-90s will see a number of newproductions up and running.Because it is now less than two months until the Conferenceitself, we are on the fast track in putting together theprogram for it. As soon as the entire program has beenfinalized, I will be sure you receive a copy.

I am embarrassed to say that the Institute cannot afford tomeet your expenses in traveling to the Conference, but hopethat, as you have been associated with our operation for manyyears, you will understand and forgive.If the dates of October 5, 6, and 7 are possible for you, wewould be honored to have you join us in Cherokee for thisspecial program. As soon as you have a chance to look atyour schedule, I would be grateful to hear from you.Many thanks.Sincerely/,Director Jce. Frank aa¢pil Hardy Hipp