09/18/2026
🎭 Meet the NCOT Keynote Speaker: Adam Burke!
We are excited to welcome Adam Burke, Artistic Director of Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, as a Keynote Speaker for the National Conference on Outdoor Theatre (NCOT)!
Adam Burke is the Artistic Director at Children’s Theatre of Charlotte—recipient of the Harold Oaks Award for Sustained Excellence in TYA and Drama League Award nominee. At Children’s Theatre of Charlotte Adam led the development of over 30 new works including The Best Christmas Pageant Ever the Musical; The Invisible Boy; The Magic Kite; Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba; and The Night Diary. During Adam’s tenure in Charlotte, Children’s Theatre of Charlotte has developed several major community projects including The Kindness Project. This major new works initiative currently includes five adaptations of award-winning children’s books that demonstrate and encourage kindness. The latest piece was a new musical adaptation of Crystal Hubbard’s book, Catching the Moon: The Story of a Young Girl’s Baseball Dream. Prior to Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, Adam was the artistic director of the Scioto Society, which produces the outdoor drama Tecumseh. Before that, Adam was the artistic director of the Chicago Theatre for Young Audiences, an artistic associate at Childsplay Theatre in Tempe, Arizona as a recipient of the Theatre Communication Group’s New Generations fellowship, and an assistant professor of theatre at St. Mary’s University. Adam holds degrees from the University of Arizona and Northwestern University. During his tenure in Chicago, Adam worked at the Goodman, Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare and Northlight Theatres and as the resident director at Open Eye Productions. Adam participated in the International Directing Symposium, hosted by LaMama Theatre, in Umbria, Italy; the National Advanced Stage Combat Workshop, hosted by the Society of American Fight Directors, ASSITEJ’s (International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People) One Theatre World, and the ASSITEJ International Directing Symposium in Stuttgart, Germany. Adam is a recipient of the ASSITEJ/USA Ann Shaw Fellowship and of the Chicago Drama League International Research Grant. Selected directing credits include: Miracle on 34th Street, RENT, The Reluctant Dragon, Into the Woods, Shrek the Musical, A Flea in her Ear, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, Charlotte's Web, Matilda the Musical, School of Rock, and Ella's Big Chance: a Jazz Age Cinderella.
Don’t miss out! Register now at the link in our bio! 🔗
