Last week’s tenth edition of the National Corporate Theatre Fund’s Broadway Roundtable provided an unmatched glimpse into the mind of today’s leading players in theatre both on-stage and off. .

This distinctive event, organized with great support from UBS, draws interest as a result of the panel of interdisciplinary artists and experts, and this year’s was very intriguing:  Olympia Dukakis, fresh from Elektra at ACT in San Francisco; Heather Hitchens, Executive Director of the American Theatre Wing; Santino Fontana, who opened a couple of days later as Prince Charming in the new Rogers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella;  Molly Smith, Artistic Director of Arena Stage in Washington, DC; Daryl Roth, producer of many Pulitzer and Tony Award winning shows, whose Kinky Boots started performances that weekend; and Paul Downs Colaizzo, the writer of Really Really, one of the Off Broadway sensations of the current season.

While we never know who will finally wind up on the panel, inevitably a common thread tends to emerge.  Last year, as we launched our Impact Creativity campaign for arts education, that topic really came to the fore.  This year, it was easy to see that creativity and community would be the common threads.  As the creator and co-organizer of the Tony Awards, the American Theatre Wing gives back to the national theatre community on and off Broadway, in and out of New York, through grants and programs like their “Working in Theatre” video series. Heather explained that this is all about the theatre industry being one big ecosphere and very interdependent. 

Daryl Roth told us about how seeing the film of Kinky Boots at Sundance several years started her on the journey of producing this musical version, which at its core is a story about people finding their true identity.  For all of her shows, especially The Normal Heart a couple of years ago, community outreach has been critical to not only building the audience, but also making sure the play or musical has a maximum impact.

This issue of identity and finding a place in the world takes many nasty turns in Paul Downs Colaizzo’s Really Really.  He described how grateful he was that a regional theatre, Signature in Arlington, VA, took a chance on the play last season and enabled it to make a move to New York with the benefit of a prior production.  Written six years ago when he was 21, the play chronicles a group of college students grappling with the consequences of an alleged date rape.  Class, gender, harrowing stakes in today’s new economy all combine to propel the characters in surprising directions.  Really Really marks the arrival of a new generation’s voice on the theatre scene.

Molly Smith just announced an amazing season next year at Arena. I asked her what most drove her decisions, and she said it was all about history this time.  This is especially true when it comes to The National Civil War Project they announced, along with three other theatres last week..  With plays about Paul Robeson, Camp David and more, the season illustrates Arena’s sense of place and time inWashington.

For individual artists like Olympia Dukakis, an embracing view of engagement also comes through.  As a past theatre manager, acting teacher and nationally prominent film and television star, she said one of her real concerns right now is how American actors are performing the classic Greek plays.  “They imitate the British,” she says.  She also wants actors to have more technique and grounding so that they are not just vehicles for a given director’s vision, but bring something fundamental to their characters in their own rights.  When I asked why she keeps coming to the theatre in these classic roles, she said, “I want to be shaken.  I don’t do it for fun.”

Santino Fontana recounted how the mentoring and training at The Guthrie Theater in Minneapolisgrounded him and launched his career.  The diversity of plays produced—Greek, Shakespeare, contemporary—offered great preparation.  He did his undergraduate degree at the Guthrie’s program, and then stayed on for two years to act at the theatre before moving to New York, where he has since won acclaim in Sons of the Prophet, Billy Elliott, and The Importance of Being Earnest.

Since last week, Paul’s next play has been announced at Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA; Santino opened to positive reviews in Cinderella; Kinky Boots has had a bravura first few performances, and the theatre world keeps turning.  We think about the economics, the management, and the education, all about the theatre so much. It’s a privilege to spend some time reveling in the art itself.  Thanks to UBS, and thanks to our panelists.

Follow Bruce E. Whitacre on Twitter: www.twitter.com/BEWhitacre

I was attending the Long Wharf Theatre’s Global Health and the Arts 2013 symposium, “Obesity and its Public Health Consequences.”

Driven by the combination of Yale Medical School and other Yale University researchers, the proximity to the Boston research corridor, the Tri-state pharma industry, and the catalytic qualities of Long Wharf trustee David Scheer, its co-chair, the conference capitalizes on Long Wharf’s unique location in New Haven, CT.

The idea came from David’s desire to do more for Long Wharf Theatre. It played to his strengths, and as I’ll explain later, those of Long Wharf as well. In past years, the conference has focused on cancer, addiction, mental health and Alzheimer’s Disease. It’s a serious medical conference that is convened in and uses theatre to enliven and engage researchers and businesspeople alike.

Photo Caption: From left, Kelly D. Brownell, co-chair of this year’s conference, Director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity; James Rowland Angell, Professor of Psychology at Yale University; and David Scheer, co-chair and Long Wharf Trustee, President of Scheer & Company.

Stephen J. Linell, a scientist with The Jackson Laboratory in Maine said, “The synergy that comes from combining arts and various perspectives on the impact of illness and disease helps put into context the work scientists are performing. It also inspires creative thought about ways to approach the problem.”

Global Health and the Arts demonstrates how crucial a theatre can be in addressing complex technical and social issues, especially when they intertwine. As Long Wharf Director of Development Eileen Condon Wiseman, a key player in the convening said, “What we hear from the participants is how enlightening the experience is, and how different it is from traditional medical conferences. They find the theatrical presentations so illuminating and powerful because they breathe life and humanity into the scientific and academic conversations.”

Gordon Edelstein, the Long Wharf Artistic Director, plays a critical part in integrating theatre into the day-long conference, which concludes with a performance of a topical play on a Long Wharf stage. His keynotes are highly regarded by participants in encouraging out of the box thinking on their part; and for theatre people, they underscore the potential of our medium to engage our audience at every level. Click here to read Edelstein’s keynote remarks.

Throughout the day, scientists, researchers and bio-tech executives repeatedly referred to Gordon’s remarks and the theatrical interludes which included performances of brief scenes that highlight the social ramifications of the topic of the day.

The challenges in the theatre world in addressing obesity underscore one of the most unsettling public health issues of the day: the continuing social acceptability of prejudice against the obese despite mounting evidence that industrial and scientific causes underlie this rapidly growing disease.

The complexity of this problem, and its scale — two-thirds of the American public is overweight or obese — require a multi-dimensional approach to the solution. Topics covered included public engagement strategies, developments in cellular and molecular science, industry trends and challenges, the regulatory outlook, and assessments of the pace of innovation and how it can be improved and financed.

The day concluded with JANUARY JOINER, a world premiere by Laura Jacqmin, directed by Long Wharf associate artistic director Eric Ting.

“New Haven is becoming a quintessential 21st century, with an economy anchored in higher education, the life sciences, and the arts,” explained Long Wharf Managing Director Joshua Borenstein. “Our Global Health and the Arts event allows Long Wharf to demonstrate the benefit when all three sectors intersect to explore a critical issue. The diversity of perspectives elevates the level of discourse, and the day is a memorable and exciting one for everyone who participates.”

What first brought this to my attention was its success as a sponsorship vehicle. Companies pay to be here, and it is a real shot in the arm for the theatre. But attending it in person, it demonstrates so much more: that theatre can do more than explore our challenges as a society, it can actively engage in finding solutions. And the more complex the problem, the more suitable is theatre as a venue for the work of fixing it because theatre is itself so multi-dimensional.

Now that is my definition of euphoria.

Imagine a group comprised of accountants, tech executives, actors, corporate CEOs, playwrights and theater directors engaged in an urgent conversation. These rather divergent personalities are all discussing the state of theater education in America and its impact on our country’s economy, culture and future. They all agree that our nation’s future workforce can’t afford a curtain call on creativity.

Recently, IBM surveyed global CEOs and found that they view creativity as the most important leadership competency for the future. But what are we doing as a country to secure this vital resource? A significant number of young people today, when they enter the workforce, will never have been exposed to the valuable skills that come with arts education and specifically the theater experience — thinking on one’s feet; effectively communicating; practicing and rehearsing; writing; and collaborating as a team. This is a missed opportunity. According to the President’s Committee on the Arts & Humanities, in its groundbreaking report “Reinvesting in Arts Education,” arts education is a particularly powerful tool in reaching students who are otherwise turned off by standard school subjects.

Yet, some surveys on arts participation report that fewer than half of adults have participated in arts lessons or classes in schools – a decline from about 65 percent in the 1980s. In fact, government and arts education groups, as well as theaters themselves, have documented a nationwide decline in arts education of upwards of 40 percent. Most of the young people at risk of losing access to arts education come from disadvantaged communities.

The good news is that this meaningful conversation happening at the intersection of the corporate and arts community has yielded much more than just talk and good will. It has in fact led to a nationwide campaign called Impact Creativity, launched with a $250,000 grant from Ernst & Young and its CEO Jim Turley, to sustain and grow theater education programs serving more than half a million disadvantaged youth across the country. Ernst & Young employees have even recorded testimonials about theater education which can be viewed on the Impact Creativity website.

As a former accountant turned theater director and playwright turned non-profit executive, the synergy that feeds Impact Creativity and its otherwise disparate participants makes perfect sense to me. Over the course of the last 10 years, as executive director of the National Corporate Theatre Fund (NCTF), an association of 19 of the nation’s leading regional theaters, I have been engaging a broad cross-section of individuals across the country with a passion for theater education to explain the challenging circumstances around ensuring that all young people receive meaningful and beneficial arts education.

A perfect storm of state and local budget crises, the lingering recovery in philanthropy, and policy challenges in schools such as a hyper-focus on testing, as well as a resistance by local schools to spend precious resources on field trips to theaters, are keeping thousands of kids from seeing live theater even at greatly reduced prices, or even for free in many cases.

It is clear that challenging times are bringing out new solutions. Through the umbrella of the Impact Creativity campaign and the 19 NCTF theaters, we are able to hold a truly national conversation among the theaters themselves, prospective donors, and advocates about how to strengthen education offerings and challenge the status quo. We are working to address the issue of fragmentation in arts education which can make the entire sector increasingly vulnerable. Programs can benefit from a sharing of best practices across various theaters, assessments of nationwide education trends and using new technological tools.

In traveling around the country to visit with NCTF theaters, I have the amazing privilege of seeing inventive programs that take theater and young people to surprising places. The Illinois Institute of Technology, for example, uses the Goodman Theatre’s (Chicago) production of A Christmas Carol as part of its STEM curriculum to teach physics through stage mechanics and special effects in the show. In Rhode Island, Trinity Repertory Company has one of the country’s most dynamic and robust acting programs for children on the autism spectrum which uses theater based techniques to develop children’s voices and movements ultimately boosting their self-confidence, self-awareness and creativity. Hartford Stage, in partnership with Wells Fargo, has brought to life the bank’s financial literary curriculum through performance-based theater exercises and improvisational activities for middle school students. And at the Seattle Repertory Theatre, young women from diverse backgrounds are participating in the Y-We Speak program to create an original theater piece based on their life experiences empowering them with leadership skills.

These programs have shown me that enriching the nation’s youth through drama is inextricably linked to preparing a robust creative workforce of tomorrow. Strengthening this link, with partners in the arts and the corporate community, remains critical to the social, cultural and economic fabric of our communities. Impact Creativity will be at the nexus of these conversations in the year ahead. Join us.

Follow Bruce E. Whitacre on Twitter: www.twitter.com/BEWhitacre

NEW HAVEN – Beginning in October, Long Wharf Theatre’s education department will offer afterschool classes and performances at the Connecticut Center for Arts and Technology.

The school’s mission is to prepare youths and adults for educational and career advancement, through after-school arts and job training programming. “Our vision is to create a learning environment that inspires hope, innovation, creativity and excellence, while providing a path for individuals to revitalize the landscape of the urban community,” according to the center’s website, www.conncat.org.

“This is definitely an environment that I wanted us to be a part of,” said Director of Education Annie DiMartino. “The vibe there is safe and supportive.  I love what ConnCAT stands for.”

“ConnCAT is excited to enter into this collaboration with the highly reputable Long Wharf Theatre. I have great expectations for everyone involved.  There is a particular thrill in working with students who simply need a little push to become motivated and high achieving.  I have every hope that the work we do together will awaken the artist and scholar in each child.  This project has the potential to stir up the collective social conscience of the group as they wrestle with the present responsibility of taking ownership of the climate in their classrooms and neighborhoods,” said Genevive Walker, Director of Program at ConnCAT.

Teaching Artist Mallory Pellegrino will work with 7^th and 8^th grade students to create a performance of Dr. Seuss’ “The Sneectches,” a children’s tale about bullying, and an original piece on the impacts of bullying on the teens’ own lives. “Bullying is such a relevant topic these days,” Pellegrino said. “I remember from my childhood watching an animated video of the story, and when we were brainstorming about what we should work on with CONNCAT, I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to bring the story to life and then have the students connect on a personal and deeper level.”

After the teens create the show, which will use puppetry and student created set pieces, they hope to tour the Seuss story to area elementary schools.

Long Wharf Theatre’s relationship with CONNCAT is part of the education department’s 30^th anniversary season, a year in which the department has doubled the size of its staff thanks to a generous grant from the Werth Foundation. Long Wharf Theatre’s teaching artists will have residencies in five schools, including Fair Haven School, ConnecticutExperiential Learning Center, Elm City College Prep, and Educational Center for the Arts.

In addition, Long Wharf Theatre will partner with another five schools on its innovative PAIR program. For teachers participating in Long Wharf Theatre’s Ed Lab professional development series, a resident teaching artist will be assigned to their classroom to teach an arts-integrated lesson monthly.  “The PAIR program aims to assist teachers with effectively employing arts-based techniques for intellectual stimulation and creative growth in students,” DiMartino said.

 Long Wharf Theatre efforts at education expansion are the reflection of a firm institutional belief in the importance of arts education in students’ lives – that the arts create well-rounded, creative thinkers, confident in social situation, and empathetic to the world around them. “Arts education helps with the development of analytical, practical, and creative thinking skills, which are the three pillars for successful intelligence,” DiMartino said.

 For more information about Long Wharf Theatre’s education department, contact DiMartino at 203-772-8271 or visit www.longwharf.org.

500,000 Schoolchildren Throughout the Country To Benefit from National Fundraising Initiative Featuring Business Executives, Actors and Others Whose Lives Have been Shaped by Theatre Education

New York, NY: This August, Impact Creativity, the theatre education fundraising initiative of the National Corporate Theatre Fund, will be featured on 17 billboards, digital billboards and bus shelters throughout the New York City Metropolitan Area, courtesy of Clear Channel Outdoor, which is donating the high visibility spaces as part of the company’s commitment to theatre education.  Over 10 million impressions are expected over the course of the campaign that will bring greater awareness and support for this important effort in the New York region.

Business executives, artists and others including Ernst and Young CEO James Turley and Actors Richard Thomas and Kate Burton will send a simple message to motorists, commuters and passersby on major thorough fares including the Bruckner Expressway, the Long Island Expressway and the approach to the Williamsburg Bridge: “Theatre Education Changes Lives.”

“This is a time of great urgency for arts and theatre education programs throughout the country – a time when corporate America must step in and stop the hemorrhaging of these critical programs through devastating budget cuts that are occurring every day and that are jeopardizing educational opportunities for our children,” said Bruce Whitacre, Executive Director of theNational Corporate Theatre Fundwhich is spearheading the Impact Creativity campaign.  “Clear Channel Outdoor is stepping up to the plate in a big way and will enable Impact Creativity to reach millions more people.”

“Clear Channel Outdoor is proud to work with the National Corporate Theatre Fund in promoting theatre education inAmericawhich we believe is critical in preserving and nurturing our cultural and artistic offerings here in the U.S.,” said Harry Coghlan, President and General Manager of Clear Channel Outdoor, New York Division.  “Clear Channel is pleased to use the power of our outdoor advertising here in New York City to encourage people in theNew York area to act now and support theatre education.”

Impact Creativity, a $5 million fundraising effort to aid theatre education programs, was launched in May 2012 with over $200,000 from accounting firm Ernst & Young and its partners.   Impact Creativity, the only national platform to support theatre arts education, seeks to narrow the widening arts education funding gap across the United States by providing direct funding to education programs at 19 prominent resident theatres serving the country’s largest cities with teaching artists, playwriting, acting and student matinee programs.  Together these programs serve more than 500,000 children.  This funding gap was the chief focus of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities’ report titled “Reinvesting in Arts Education” which was published in 2011.  The report called on Americans to invest in arts education as an essential tool in helping our children succeed in the global economy and in life.

In June 2012, NCTF partnered with the nation’s leading taxi technology company, Creative Mobile Technologies which donated screen time on its media screens in 10,000 taxicabs throughout the country including 6,600 taxis in New York City. That effort has reached more than 6 million people and is expected reach millions more when the second part of the taxi video campaign rolls out in early August.  On July 7 2012, “Impact Creativity” was featured as the “Impact of the Day” on AOL’s homepage, which itself generated 13 million viewers.  The August billboard campaign is expected to provide in excess of 10 million impressions.  Together these components make “Impact Creativity” the largest theatre education visibility campaign ever undertaken in the United States.

About Impact Creativity and NCTF:

National Corporate Theatre Fund(NCTF) is a not-for-profit association dedicated to sustaining America’s finest not-for-profit theatres, on the stage and in the community, through innovative partnerships with companies, individuals and artists. From its base inNew York, NCTF provides a national vehicle for the flow of theatre, collaboration and ideas to and from key markets.
Since 1978, NCTF has raised millions of dollars for its member theatres. NCTF’s 19 current member theatres contribute to the creative and cultural life of each community they serve – benefiting children, employees and the economy.  Many of these distinguished theatres have received the Regional Theatre Tony Award and all operate with budgets of at least $5 million.  They enrich the lives of the local residents, provide creative opportunities for distinguished and emerging performers, serve as incubators for new works, and engage over 500,000 children, most from economically disadvantaged neighborhoods through their theatre education programs.

Impact Creativity member theatres include the Actors Theatre of Louisville, Alley Theatre, Alliance Theatre, American Conservatory Theater, American Repertory Theater, Arena Stage, Center Theatre Group, Cleveland Play House, Dallas Theater Center, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, The Goodman Theatre, The Guthrie Theater, Hartford Stage, Long Wharf Theatre, Manhattan Theatre Club, The Old Globe, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Trinity Repertory Company, and Walnut Street Theatre.

For more information and to view the personal stories of celebrities and others impacted by arts education, please visit www.impactcreativity.org.

About Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc.

Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. is a global leader in the outdoor advertising industry providing clients with advertising opportunities through billboards, street furniture displays, transit displays, and other out-of-home advertising displays. It is one of the world’s largest outdoor advertising companies, reaching over 141 million adults each month in theUnited Statesand an additional 374 million internationally, with close to one million displays in over 40 countries across five continents, including 49 of the 50 largest markets in theUnited States. Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. offers many types of displays across its global platform to meet the advertising needs of its customers. This includes a growing digital platform that now offers over 750 digital displays across 37U.S.markets. Clear Channel International operates in 30 countries across Asia,AustraliaandEuropein a wide variety of formats and operates over 3,500 municipal advertising contracts worldwide.

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Media Contact:

Michael Woloz, Connelly McLaughlin & Woloz

212-437-7373

mwoloz@cmw-newyork.com

Ernst & Young LLP and its Partner Group

 $5 Million Campaign Heeds the Call of White House Report Encouraging More Private Funding for Arts Education

NCTF to Leverage Power of Corporate and Individual Philanthropy To Help Over 500,000 Youths Succeed in School, in Life, in the Marketplace

New York, NY (May 2, 2012): Monday night, at the National Corporate Theatre Fund’s (NCTF) 2012 Annual Chairman’s Awards Gala at the Pierre Hotel in New York City, NCTF launched its “Impact Creativity” campaign – a $5 million fundraising effort to support theatre education programs in 19 American cities impacting more than 500,000 youth – with a launch gift of $200,000 from Ernst & Young LLP and its partners and principals.  Chairman and CEO of the global Ernst & Young organization James S. Turley was an honoree, along with Harry Connick, Jr., the Cleveland Play House and the Cleveland Clinic. The gala itself, which was emceed by David Allen Grier, brought in $473,000 for Impact Creativity and the Fund for New American Theatre, which helps fund theatres across the NCTF national network.

 “Impact Creativity was launched in response to the alarming decline in funding for arts education and seeks to motivate corporations, foundations and individuals to help shape a more intelligent, diverse, confident and creative 21^st century workforce by investing in arts and theatre education as essential learning,” said Bruce Whitacre, Executive Director of NCTF.  “We know the powerful impact of theatre education on our youth which is why we have decided to step up to the plate and try to narrow the funding gap.  NCTF is very grateful to Jim Turley and to Ernst & Young LLP for its significant launch gift, the people of Ernst & Young for sharing their experiences with the arts and to all the honorees, presenters and attendees at the Chairman’s Gala for being there for the launch of Impact Creativity.”

According to the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities’ 2011 report, “Reinvesting in Arts Education: Winning America’s Future Through Creative Schools,” arts education funding is declining nationwide, with several minority communities seeing the sharpest drop-offs in funding, as much as a 40% reduction in services.  The report shows that arts education is especially effective in breaking through to disadvantaged youth who may have been turned off by “inside the box” teaching and the core subjects. The report also reveals that CEOs are expressing strong concern about the creativity and viability of the American workforce.

“Tomorrow’s workforce must act confidently, communicate effectively and think creatively – all qualities that can be enhanced through arts and theatre education,” said Jim Turley, who has been the Chairman of NCTF for the past six years.  “Ernst & Young’s support of Impact Creativity advances our philanthropic commitment to education by getting underprivileged youth involved in theatre.  We hope our participation sparks more interest in the value theatre education brings to children, corporations and communities, while inspiring others to contribute to Impact Creativity and NCTF.”

Broadway producer Margo Lion, Co-Chair of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities said,  “It is critically important that corporate America step forward to support theatre arts education, now only available in about three percent of our nation’s schools.  The opportunity to participate in these classes provides a powerful tool in building an engaged and dynamic learning environment, an environment that encourages our young people to stay in school and move on to college.  Efforts by NCTF to shine a spotlight on these programs and demonstrate the powerful link between arts education and our nation’s future are badly needed.”

Hal Holbrook, Honorary Chair of the National Corporate Theatre Fund, lamented cuts in arts and theatre education and underscored the importance of “Impact Creativity,” remarking, “My wife, Dixie Carter, and I loved watching football games.  Our hero was Peyton Manning.  I wonder how many members of the Congress in Washington, “that grand old Benevolent National Asylum for the Helpless” as Mark Twain described it, have any idea that when they are cutting away support for arts education in America they are denying millions of young people who cannot play football the same emotional benefits that an athlete gets on the playing field:  working through aggressions and pain and disappointments and loneliness on a stage, in a performance, acting or dancing or singing, where hope can bloom in a young person’s heart and the desire to succeed can become as strong as wanting to score a touchdown.  I was one of them.”

Impact Creativity will be engaging many artists as advocates for the cause. Tony Award winning actress Phylicia Rashad said, “We cannot thrive culturally or economically without that which brings us together, opens our hearts and minds and awakens our children to the infinite possibilities of their own skills and talents.  Studies show the endless benefits of exposure to theater.  Now NCTF, through its Impact Creativity campaign, is showing us what we can do about it.  Impact Creativity is taking the lead in rallying our nation’s companies, foundations, and theater donors to support one of our great resources:  the arts education programs that these outstanding theaters provide our children across the country.  Bravo!”

Also announced at the Chairman’s Awards Gala was an exciting new media partnership between NCTF and the nation’s leading taxi technology company Creative Mobile Technologies (“CMT”). CMT will roll out a series of PSAs that feature video content provided by NCTF theatres that will be showing on 10,000 taxicab screens in cities across the United States.  Millions of taxi passengers in New York, Connecticut, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston and other media markets will be enlightened and inspired by these visual expressions.

The media partnership between NCTF and CMT was launched when WABC-TV reporter, Sade Baderinwa, announced the winner of the NCTF video competition.  Baderinwa presented Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, CT with a $10,000 grand prize, which was co-sponsored by CMT, WABC-TV and ABC Regional Sports and Entertainment Sales.  The Long Wharf Theatre video was selected by a panel of judges including philanthropist and producer Cheryl Henson, playwright David Henry Hwang, and Julie Woffington, Executive Director of the Educational Theatre Association of America. All submissions are available to view at www.facebook.com/NationalCorporateTheatreFund

Panelist of Judges, Including Playwright Henry David Hwang, Executive Director of the Educational Theatre Association Julie Woffington, and President of the Jim Henson Foundation Cheryl Henson, To Decide   Overall Winner 

Winning Theater To Be Awarded $10,000 For Its Education Programs at  NCTF’s Annual Chairman’s Gala on April 30 

This week the National Corporate Theatre Fund (NCTF) announced four finalists in its video competition aimed at highlighting the importance of theater education’s contribution to crucial skill development needed for the 21^st century workforce.  Over 5,000 votes were cast on NCTF’s Facebook page, which received over 13,000 visits during the competition.

Trinity Repertory Company in Providence, RI, Alley Theatre in Houston, TX, Actors Theatre of Louisville in Louisville, KY, and Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, CT were ultimately selected as the four finalists from the 13 submissions.  A distinguished panel, consisting of theater dignitaries such as playwright Henry David Hwang, Executive Director of the Educational Theatre Association Julie Woffington, and President of the Jim Henson Foundation Cheryl Henson, will soon review the four videos and choose the overall winner.  The winning theater will receive $10,000 for its theatre education program, which will be announced at the NCTF Annual Chairman’s Gala on April 30. View the finalists athttp://www.facebook.com/ImpactCreativity 

“Each of the theaters in the competition were challenged to submit a video that unfolds the story of why theater and arts education is critical for our students—taking arts education out of the abstract and personalizing the impact,” said Bruce Whitacre, Executive Director of NCTF.  “All of the selections were extraordinary in their reflection of the impact of theater education on young people and in developing the necessary skills needed to assemble the creative workforce critical to America’s viability in the 21^st century workplace. We are amazed at the tremendous level of participation thanks to our member theaters and voters.  We eagerly await the announcement of the overall winner at our gala on April 30.”

The competition comes on the heels of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities 2011 landmark report, “Reinvesting in Arts Education: Winning America’s Future Through Creative Schools,” which was led by Committee Co-Chairwoman and Broadway producer Margo Lion.

A major focus of the Committee’s work on the national level has been set on the importance of arts and humanities education for the future of our national economy.  At a recent NCTF sponsored luncheon with corporate executives, Lion underlined the growing importance of arts education to American companies and culture, saying “It really is up to corporate America to step forward and ensure that theatre arts education, which is now only available in about three percent of our nation’s schools, is restored to its place as a foundation of our economy, and our society.  Efforts by NCTF to put a spotlight on these programs and demonstrate the link between arts education and our future are badly needed.”