NAPAMA Honors Wolf Trap's Peter Zimmerman with Excellence in Presenting the Performing Arts

Yesterday afternoon, the Association of North American Performing Arts Managers and Agents (NAPAMA) awarded Peter Zimmerman, Wolf Trap's Director of Program and Production with the highly coveted award for Excellence in Presenting the Performing Arts. Bestowed yearly upon a distinguished arts presenter colleague for their many contributions to the field, the award is presented at the annual APAP Conference in New York City by a NAPAMA board member.

Zimmerman is widely respected amongst his peers for booking incredibly diverse, in-demand, and highly attended shows at Wolf Trap's dual venues, the outdoor Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, and the indoor The Barns at Wolf Trap. Zimmerman's 2012 schedule helped the non-profit achieve the #3 ranking in Pollstar's Worldwide Ticket Sales for the TOP 100 Amphitheatre Venues.

The criteria for award selection are as follows:

*The nominated recipient and his/her organization is a not-for-profit performing arts presenter.

* Proven dedication to the future of presenting the performing arts.

* A high level of professionalism.

* Unwavering respect for colleagues in the field (artists, managers and fellow presenters).

* Exemplary ethical behavior.

"To be recognized by an organization of agents and managers for excellence in presenting is a great honor to me as a booker for the Wolf Trap Foundation's two venues, the 7028 seat Filene Center Amphitheatre, and the 382 seat Barns at Wolf Trap. It truly validates Wolf Trap's reputation as a national leader in presenting and creating excellent and innovative performing arts programs," said Zimmerman. "The vast majority of the agents and managers I deal with on a daily basis care deeply about their artists' performing: in the right venue, at the right time, and for the right ticket price. That is the big picture approach to career sustainability for the artist and the presenting organizations. Agents and manager's primary focus is the artist, the presenter's is to their organization, but when we work together to bring excellent live experiences to OUR audiences, it keeps our industry vibrant, and our audiences clamoring for more."

Zimmerman is currently in the midst of booking Wolf Trap's 42nd summer season at the Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts. The highly anticipated schedule will open with A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor on Friday, May 24. The Barns at Wolf Trap Winter/Spring season is currently underway with more than 50 performances remaining.

Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded by Catherine Filene Shouse (1896-1994), produces and presents a full range of performance and education programs in the Greater Washington area, as well as nationally and internationally. Wolf Trap features three performance venues, the outdoor Filene Center and Children's Theatre-in-the-Woods, both located at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, and The Barns at Wolf Trap, located down the road from the national park and adjacent to the Center for Education at Wolf Trap. The 7,028-seat Filene Center is operated in partnership with the National Park Service and annually showcases an extensive array of diverse artists, ranging from pop, country, folk, and blues to classical music, dance, and theatre, as well as multimedia presentations, from May through September. The Barns is operated by the Foundation year round, and during the summer months is home to the GRAMMY-nominated Wolf Trap Opera Company, one of America's outstanding resident ensemble programs for young opera singers. Wolf Trap's education programs include the nationally acclaimed Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, Children's Theatre-in-the-Woods, a diverse array of arts education classes, grants, and a nationally recognized internship program that was included in Bloomberg BusinessWeek's 2009 List of "Best Places to Intern." As part of its ongoing commitment to protect and preserve the environment, Wolf Trap offers metro access and is a founding member of the Green Music Group. Visit the Wolf Trap website at www.wolftrap.org for more information.