The Road Back: The Woods in Winter

Posted January 21, 2026

Winteronthe Hill Banner 2026

Managing Director Sara Young on APT's winter months

After a rather mild start to January, there is no doubt it is winter in the APT woods. People often ask me what working at APT is like this time of year. What is there to do? It’s true, the off-season is much quieter with only a fraction of the staff that we have in high season. But we keep ourselves very busy!

In some ways, the off-season is busier. Unlike traditional theaters who produce one or a couple shows at a time, and are planning and executing throughout the year, we do the bulk of our planning in the winter and then execute it all in the spring and summer. It takes a different kind of preparation to make sure we’re ready. Here, in no particular order, are six areas that soak up a lot of our attention.


Casting

While we love to welcome back members of the acting company from year to year, there are always several roles to cast. On average, about 60% of the company repeats from one season to the next, which leaves many roles left to fill.


The casting team, Artistic Director Brenda DeVita, Associate Artistic Director Carey Cannon and Artistic Associate Alys Dickerson, devote hundreds of hours to casting over the winter. So far this off-season, there have been five audition trips to Chicago, one to New York, spent a day in general auditions in Madison and two days in Spring Green. And there are still a few roles yet to cast.


A look back at our 2025 casting chart.

The Design Process

Before the 2025 season ended, Brenda DeVita had hired the teams of directors and designers for 2026. The team for each play meets several times before preliminary designs are due in early January. From there, the production staff studies those designs and feeds back on feasibility of time and budget. Sometimes changes need to be made, and it all has to be ready to build before April when the production shops start work.


Scenic designer Courtney O'Neill and director Shana Cooper discuss the set for The Winter's Tale at last year's Design Conference. 


The Book of Summer

The marketing team, led by Jess Amend, starts work on the Book of Summer before the previous season ends, but it really kicks into high gear in December and January. Jess, along with Associate Marketing Director Hannah Jo Anderson and Artistic Director Brenda DeVita, discuss the upcoming season with our long-time collaborators at Planet Propaganda. Planet’s designers develop concepts while Jess writes the copy. 


The group works back and forth until they are happy with the words and artwork which will form the basis of the whole season’s marketing. Then it’s on to Kari Hamann, the production designer who gets it all ready for the printer. The rest of the marketing team adds lots more information – event dates, full moons, etc. – until it’s ready for the printer and, ultimately, your mailbox!


The 2025 Book of Summer. 


Schedules

A major part of preparing for the season is developing the many schedules that make APT run smoothly. Production Stage Manager/Artistic Associate Evelyn Matten takes lead on this project. 


The first step is the performance calendar. Then the general rehearsal schedule, which lays out which play gets “primary time” each day - meaning they get first choice of which actors they want for rehearsal. The rest of the staff is also feeding into the overall schedule with special events, tech rehearsals and more.


A snippet of the 2025 performance calendar in its final, program-ready form. 

Budgeting

Okay, it may not seem like the most exciting project, but the budget is critical to APT’s stability and success. We take it very seriously. In the winter, we’re essentially working on three budgets at once. We’re closing out the year that just ended and evaluating if we met our financial goals.

Second, our fiscal year begins in January so we’re tracking and perhaps tweaking projections as we learn more about the current season’s plays and operations.

Finally, we begin creating the following year’s budget in February. Our goal is to have a full working draft of the 2027 budget before rehearsals and shops get up and running in April.


Long-Term Planning and Projects 

We’ve learned our lesson: don’t try to take on big projects during the season. We have our hands too full producing nine plays and welcoming tens of thousands of audience members, which leaves little time for big-picture planning. So, all of those activities, from strategic planning to building new picnic tables, and everything in between are kicked to the winter months to allow proper attention and head space.


A snowy view from the top of Aisle 6. 

So, that's just a glimpse behind the snowy curtain of wintertime APT. This is our opportunity to prepare for our favorite part of every year - your arrival. So while it may be less relaxing than you might think, we wouldn't have it any other way. See you soon!