A Mighty Roar Ignites Broadway
Inside the magical, unforgettable day for Broadway and 900 NYC public school students.
It won’t be easy, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be awesome.
That’s about the best way to describe the experience our nonprofit, Situation Project, had this past Tuesday afternoon. At Situation Project, our whole mission is centered on bringing NYC public school students to amazing cultural experiences. There is no good reason for a perfectly good seat to go empty in the cultural capital of the world. We’ve hosted over 30,000 deserving students to date, filling what would typically be empty, unsold seats. I can tell you firsthand, these experiences have a profound impact on the lives of these students.
The last few years have prohibited us from getting the kids back in the theater. We have been active with them virtually over that time in some inventive and engaging ways, but haven’t had them back in the theater. And before the school year ended, we felt it was important to make that happen. The kids need a break.
Given the reality of what our city’s students have gone through, we thought their first show back with us should be something special… something bigger and more ambitious than what we’ve done before–like an entire Broadway performance just for them. And not just any performance; a performance from the Tony-winning hit Broadway musical SIX.
We live in a very unpredictable world filled with so many reasonable, honest and reality-based excuses that keep us from doing what our hearts and minds want us to do. So when the idea first surfaced to bring 900 New York City public school students into Times Square to experience a student performance of the Broadway show SIX, the headwinds against making this a reality became abundantly clear…
- There is a citywide shortage of bus drivers. There were no DOE approved buses available– public transportation was our only option. Many of our kids travel in from the South Bronx… hundreds on a train at one time is a challenging proposition. By next year, this bottleneck will clear up–should we consider waiting until the fall?
- Crime remains an issue in the city–is now really an appropriate time to bring kids on public transportation to see a show?
- COVID counts remain high. Maybe doing it in the fall would be a better idea.
- Most of these kids haven’t been on a class trip in years. A room full of 900 kids might not be their best first trip back. Maybe we just bring a smaller group to see a show for now.
- We simply don’t have the time. This is graduation season and only so many school days remain. Maybe we do it in the fall when we can better plan.
- We are all exhausted. Our schools, teachers and administrators have been through a lot this year just trying to keep the school functional. Given this is a major undertaking, maybe this would be better suited when people are in a better head space.
There are countless reasons this event could not have happened, all legitimate and true excuses. Yet somehow something amazing happened. This show happened–with 900 students from 29 schools from all five boroughs of New York City. All seated together on time while the curtain came up just for these kids.
This event was unlikely to happen, and the fact that it didn’t get crushed by the realities of the world wasn’t by accident. It was through kind human beings who worked overtime to give something beautiful to the students of New York City.
I’m talking about the incredible leadership of Eileen Minnick and Leslie Barrett of Situation Project who “willed” this to happen. I’m talking about Principal Vincent Gassetto of MS 343, one of the founding schools of Situation Project, who was the first to commit hundreds of students to attend from the South Bronx even before knowing how we would actually get the kids down here.
I’m talking about all of the amazing teachers, volunteers and administrators who worked overtime to move mountains quickly to find a way to make this a reality. Who chaperoned from all 5 boroughs into Times Square, making sure the kids experienced this special event and safely returned them home to their loved ones.
I’m talking about the incredible Peter Avery, Director of Theater from the NYC DOE, who helped us expand our school base to 29 schools in all five boroughs for this event (in less than 3 weeks!). This man is such an incredible advocate for students–the NYC DOE is lucky to have him.
I’m talking about the thoughtful leadership of the producing office, Alchemation, led by Kevin McCollum–including Lucas McMahon and Anne Van Nostrand–who enabled this to happen. They are tireless advocates for expanding Broadway’s audience and consistently step up to action.
I’m talking about Boneau, Bryan, Brown; the fantastic Susanne Tighe and Adrian Bryan Brown, who helped coordinate the amazing talent.
I’m talking about Claire Dodson, of Teen Vogue who jumped in to facilitate and lead the cast and creative team in a riveting, powerful, and poignant post show discussion.
And last, but not least, I’m talking about the remarkable cast, creative team, crew, house staff, ushers and so many more amazing humans who stepped up to make it a reality. Putting on a Broadway show is a massive undertaking. Given this was their first performance back after the Tony Awards, I’m sure they were all exhausted. They had every reasonable excuse to say “lets just do this in the fall,” but never even mentioned it.
Was it a success? Was it worth all of the time, effort, stress, anxiety, planning, money and energy to make this happen?
I think cast member Brittney Mack answers this question best, when during an amazing talk back after the show with the students she said, “This is the most important audience we’ve had so far,” representing the next generation of Broadway artists and audiences. Well said Brittney.
So yes, it was a huge success… and the kids clearly let it be known by their roar as the show came to an end.
Turn up your volume for full effect.
Thank you to the amazing human beings that made this happen. While I was personally deeply moved by the overall experience, I was equally inspired by seeing true passion moved to real action.
