Childrens Theater Company And School

TO CREATE EXTRAORDINARY THEATRE EXPERIENCES THAT EDUCATE, CHALLENGE, AND INSPIRE YOUNG PEOPLE.

OUR 2021-22 SEASON MARKED A RETURN TO LIVE, IN-PERSON PERFORMANCES WHICH FEATURED TWO WORLD PREMIERES AND TWO BELOVED MUSICALS. THE SEASON BEGAN WITH ANNIE IN NOVEMBER 2021 UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THEATER LATTE DA'S PETER ROTHSTEIN. NEXT WAS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF BINA'S SIX APPLES, PLAYWRIGHT LLOYD SUH'S FANTASTICAL TRIBUTE TO HIS FAMILY'S ESCAPE FROM THE KOREAN WAR AND A CO-PRODUCTION WITH ATLANTA'S ALLIANCE THEATRE. OUR SECOND WORLD PREMIERE WAS SOMETHING HAPPENED IN OUR TOWN, BY MARIANNE CELANO, PHD, ABPP; MARIETTA COLLINS, PHD; AND ANN HAZZARD, PHD, ABPP; ILLUSTRATED BY JENNIFER ZIVOIN. THE MULTI-RACIAL TEAM OF AUTHORS, ALL CHILD PSYCHOLOGISTS, ENTHUSIASTICALLY HELPED US SHARE THIS PLAY WITH OUR COMMUNITY IN THE MOST INCLUSIVE, MEANINGFUL WAY POSSIBLE. THE BOOK FOLLOWS TWO FAMILIES - ONE WHITE, ONE BLACK - AS THEY DISCUSS A POLICE SHOOTING OF A BLACK MAN IN THEIR COMMUNITY. THE STORY AIMS TO ANSWER CHILDREN'S QUESTIONS ABOUT SUCH TRAUMATIC EVENTS, AND TO HELP CHILDREN IDENTIFY AND COUNTER RACIAL INJUSTICE IN THEIR OWN LIVES. TO CLOSE THE SEASON, CTC TEAMED UP ONCE AGAIN WITH BROADWAY PRODUCER KEVIN MCCOLLUM TO REVISIT OUR 2016 HIT, DIARY OF A WIMPY KID THE MUSICAL. THE THEATRE SERVED OVER 105,000 PATRONS, INCLUDING NEARLY 23,000 STUDENT TICKETS DURING THE FIRST SEASON FOLLOWING THE COVID PANDEMIC SHUTDOWN. SCHOOL MATINEE PERFORMANCES OFFERED DEEPLY DISCOUNTED TICKETS AND TRANSPORTATION SUBSIDIES FOR SCHOOL GROUPS FROM ACROSS THE TWIN CITIES AND GREATER MINNESOTA AREA. SENSORY FRIENDLY PERFORMANCES, AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETATION, CLOSED CAPTIONING, AND AUDIO DESCRIPTION WERE AVAILABLE FOR ALL OUR PRODUCTIONS IN 2021-22. CTC'S ACT PASS PROGRAM PROVIDED $5 TICKETS TO PUBLIC PERFORMANCES TO ASSURE ACCESSIBILITY FOR ALL FAMILIES IN OUR COMMUNITY.

RECOGNIZING THAT PEOPLE OF COLOR ARE STILL GREATLY UNDERREPRESENTED IN OUR STAFF AND IN THE FIELD AS A WHOLE, CTC EXPANDED ITS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM IN 2021-22, CONSISTING OF FORMAL LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PIPELINES THAT AIM TO REFLECT THE LARGER COMMUNITY. WHAT STARTED WITH ONE ARTS ADMINISTRATION STUDENT FROM HOWARD UNIVERSITY, AND UP TO TWO POST-GRAD PERFORMING APPRENTICES, THE EXPANSION CREATED OPPORTUNITIES FOR EARLY CAREER THEATRE ARTISTS AND ADMINISTRATORS WITH A PRIORITY ON THOSE WHOSE LIVED EXPERIENCE IS FREQUENTLY MISSING FROM THE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THEATRES. THIS SEASON-LONG, FULL-TIME, PAID FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM STRIVES TO ADDRESS ECONOMIC AND INSTITUTIONAL BARRIERS TO CAREERS IN THEATRE. FOUR OF THE FIVE FELLOWS WE CURRENTLY HAVE IN PLACE IDENTIFY AS BIPOC; THEY OCCUPY POSITIONS IN GRAPHIC DESIGN, EDUCATION, STAGE MANAGEMENT, PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT, AND PERFORMANCE.

CTC'S THEATRE ARTS TRAINING PROGRAM (TAT) PROVIDES INSTRUCTION IN STORYTELLING, ACTING, DANCE, VOICE, DIRECTING, AND PLAYWRITING FOR YOUNG PEOPLE AGES 2-18. IN ADDITION TO SEQUENCED CLASSES DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR, THEATRE ARTS TRAINING ALSO OFFERS SUMMER AND OTHER SCHOOL VACATION CAMPS FOR STUDENTS AT ALL SKILL LEVELS AND PROGRAMMING FOR HOMESCHOOL GROUPS DESIGNED TO MEET THEIR EDUCATIONAL GOALS. TAT ALSO INCLUDES THE PRE-PROFESSIONAL INSTITUTE, WHICH PROVIDES HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH AN INTENSIVE, FOUR-YEAR, CONSERVATORY-STYLE LEARNING EXPERIENCE. THE SENIOR COMPANY PROGRAM PROVIDES STUDENTS WITH DEMANDING MATERIAL THAT SEEKS TO CHALLENGE THEM AS ARTISTS, EDUCATE THEM IN A PROFESSIONAL SETTING, AND INSPIRE THEM TO BE ACTIVE VOICES IN THEIR COMMUNITY. THE SCHOOL YEAR TAT SERVED 1825 STUDENTS AND SUMMER CLASSES AND CAMPS HAD NEARLY 1400 STUDENTS ENROLLED.IN TWIN CITIES PUBLIC SCHOOLS, CTC MAINTAINS GRADE 1-5 RESIDENCIES SERVING STUDENTS AND TEACHERS WITH HIGH-QUALITY, RESEARCH-BASED THEATRE ARTS AND STORYTELLING ACTIVITIES. TIED TO STATE AND NATIONAL STANDARDS, THESE ACTIVITIES BOOST STUDENTS' ACHIEVEMENT IN LANGUAGE AND THEATRE ARTS. THROUGH THE NEIGHBORHOOD BRIDGES PEDAGOGY, STUDENTS BUILD CRITICAL AND CULTURAL LITERACY AS THEY QUESTION TEXTS, UNCOVER WHOSE PERSPECTIVE HAS BEEN MARGINALIZED, AND RE-TELL STORIES FROM THEIR OWN POINTS OF VIEW.CTC'S EARLY CHILDHOOD INITIATIVE COMBINES THEATRE ARTS-BASED LEARNING EXPERIENCES WITH BEST PRACTICES IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION TO SUPPORT THE HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT OF EARLY LEARNERS AGES 2-6. CTC TAKES A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION THAT INCLUDES BOTH AGE-APPROPRIATE LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES, INCLUDING EARLY BRIDGES, AND PRODUCTIONS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY FOR EARLY LEARNERS. THROUGH THE CREATIVE PLAY PROGRAM, CTC ALSO FOCUSES ON SERVING EARLY LEARNERS FROM COMMUNITIES COPING WITH COMPLEX TRAUMA AND TOXIC STRESS. THE PROGRAM UTILIZES THEATRE-BASED ACTIVITIES ALIGNED WITH TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE PRACTICES TO SUPPORT DEVELOPMENTAL REPAIR IN EARLY LEARNERS.

CTC COMMISSIONS AND DEVELOPS NEW WORKS FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES, MANY OF WHICH GO ON TO BE PRODUCED ON OUR STAGES AND BY OTHER THEATRES ACROSS THE NATION AND THE GLOBE. OUR NEW PLAYS AND MUSICALS ADDRESS COMPLEX SOCIAL ISSUES, SPEAK TO THE RICH DIVERSITY OF OUR NATION, AND SEEK TO CHALLENGE OUR AUDIENCES BY THEIR UNIQUE AESTHETIC AND THEATRICALITY. WE PREMIERE 90% OF THE WORK WE COMMISSION. IN 2021, CTC AND PARTNERS AT PENUMBRA (ST, PAUL, MINN.), NATIVE VOICES AT THE AUTRY, LATINO THEATER COMPANY (BOTH IN LOS ANGELES), AND MA-YI THEATER COMPANY (NEW YORK CITY) RECEIVED A GRANT FROM THE ANDREW W. MELLON FOUNDATION TO LAUNCH A NEW PROJECT CALLED GENERATION NOW: COMMISSIONING BIPOC ARTISTS FOR MULTIGENERATIONAL AUDIENCES. THE GOAL IS TO CREATE 16 NEW WORKS OVER FIVE YEARS, REPRESENTING AFRICAN AMERICAN, AMERICAN INDIAN, LATINX, AND ASIAN AMERICAN VOICES AND STORIES. PLAYS FOR NEW AUDIENCES (PNA) LICENSES QUALITY SCRIPTS FOR MULTIGENERATIONAL AUDIENCES AND ACTORS. WRITTEN BY SOME OF THE WORLD'S MOST EXTRAORDINARY PLAYWRIGHTS, PNA'S 300+ SHOW CATALOG FEATURES PLAYS AND MUSICALS FOR ANY PROGRAMMING NEED. PNA OFFERS CONTEMPORARY WORKS THAT ARE TOPICAL, RELEVANT, AND EVEN FANTASTICAL. IN ADDITION, PNA OFFERS MANY REIMAGINED CLASSICS.