During the 2019/20 season the Providence Performing Arts Center launched a new Education & Outreach initiative called Experience PPAC.  This program enabled all 10th grade high school students in the state of Rhode Island to attend selected touring Broadway show with their school at no cost, with busing provided. Due to COVID-19 we have been challenged to re-imagine this program for the foreseeable future.  If we cannot bring students into our beautiful historic theatre to see Broadway shows because they are not touring, then we are determined to continue what we started by bringing Broadway shows into their classrooms or onto their high school laptops. We have a unique opportunity to use content that has already been captured by TONY® Award-winning Broadway shows to engage high school students and share the rich lessons that these poignant stories have to teach us. 

For the 2020/21 Experience PPAC season, the Providence Performing Arts Center has been working with Broadway producers to bring Broadway directly to high school students across the state.  We have secured two amazing titles for the 2020/21 season/school year and this year viewing will be open to all high school students, not just 10th graders.  The two TONY® Award winning shows that we selected are Memphis and Kinky Boots. We have arranged permission to send links to teachers that they can play in their classroom or email to their students. We will have study resources/guides available for these performances on our website so that educators are able to build, or use provided lesson plans to further engage in student learning and enjoyment. 

Teachers/schools will register for whichever performance they are interested in viewing with their students.  They will be sent a link for educational use for themselves and their students to access the show they signed up to view.  They will have two weeks to access and view the performance. Following the performance, we will have a short survey for students and teachers to complete regarding their experience. 

We realize this experience is not the same as attending live theatre in person, but when theatre is back, we look forward to welcoming all the students back to the theatre for live and in-person performances.

Registration for our Experience PPAC performances will begin Tuesday, December 1, 2020. Registration forms will be available on PPAC’s website on the Experience PPAC page under the Outreach & Engagement tab.

February 1-12, 2021

Set in the turbulent south in the 1950s, Memphis is the story of Huey Calhoun, a white radio DJ whose love of good music transcends race lines and airwaves. Thanks in part to his passionate persistence, "race" music reaches the center of the radio dial, quickly exploding throughout mainstream America. But when Huey falls for a beautiful black singer he has set on the path to stardom, whether the world is really ready for this music, and their love, is put to the test.
(Viewing time two hours and 10 minutes)


 

 March 1-12, 2021 

Kinky Boots is the winner of every major Best Musical award, including the Tony, the Grammy and London’s Olivier Award. Based on true events, this huge-hearted hit tells the story of two people with nothing in common—or so they think! Charlie is a factory owner struggling to save his family business. Lola is a fabulous entertainer with a wildly exciting idea. With a little compassion and a lot of understanding, this unexpected pair learns to embrace their differences and creates a line of sturdy stilettos unlike any the world has ever seen! But in the end, their most sensational achievement is their friendship.
(Viewing time two hours and 12 minutes with a 10-minute trivia intermission.)

For more information on Experience PPAC, please contact Dana Brazil, Director of Outreach and Engagement, at [email protected] or (401) 574-3132.