Citi Performing Arts Center Named “Champion of the Arts”

 Citi Performing Arts Center Named

“Champion of the Arts”

Receives Prestigious 2010 Arts|Learning Outstanding Arts Collaborative Award

 Citi Performing Arts Center will be honored on May 26^th

At 24^th Annual Champions of the Arts Awards Ceremony at State House

BOSTON (May 3, 2010) – Citi Performing Arts Center has been selected by Arts|Learning to receive the 2010 Arts|Learning Outstanding Arts Collaborative Award in the field of Performing Arts.  As the Massachusetts representative of the Kennedy Center Alliance for Arts Education Network, Arts|Learning recognizes Citi Performing Arts Center as a leader in providing, supporting, and advocating for quality arts education in Massachusetts, through the 2009 SpectrumBoston program.  Citi Performing Arts Center will be honored at the 24^th Annual Champions of the Arts Award Ceremony at the State House on May 26^th.

“Citi Performing Arts Center believes every youth has a right to a creative life, to experience art, and to express themselves creatively” said Josiah Spaulding, President and CEO of Citi Performing Arts Center. “The SpectrumBoston Education Program is a model for leveraging the resources of citywide partners and the power of community collaboration to increase the depth, breadth, and impact of arts education programs.”

Citi Performing Arts Center launched SpectrumBoston in 2009, to deliver 5 months of integrated programming and arts education opportunities throughout Boston.  Partner institutions included the Boston Public Library, Boston Public Schools, City of Boston, Museum of African American History, and WGBH.  From February to June 2009, Citi Performing Arts Center presented Ain’t Misbehavin’ at the Strand Theatre in Dorchester and The Color Purple at the Citi Performing Arts Center Wang Theatre.  The collaborative delivered in-school and out-of-school time education programs linked to onstage programming, and increased access for diverse audiences through discounted, subsidized, and free performance tickets.

In total, SpectrumBoston’s 5 months of performances, events, and workshops attracted over 27,500 participants. Education programming alone reached 7 community centers, 11 library branches, and 12 schools in 18 Boston neighborhoods. Over 420 students were served through in-school residencies, artist-meet-and-greets, and library workshops; 1,500 students, teachers, families, and community groups received complimentary tickets to performances of Ain’t Misbehavin’ and The Color Purple.  Audience diversity was achieved with African American attendance 18 times greater than traditional Broadway attendance benchmarks. 

In 2010, Citi Performing Arts Center built on the success of SpectrumBoston to become a leading contributor to two of Boston’s priority education reform plans: the Superintendent’s Five-Year Acceleration Agenda and the Mayor’s Community Learning Initiative. The Boston Public Schools and Citi Performing Arts Center were awarded a grant from Target Corporation to work with eight underperforming schools utilizing artist residences and ticket access (more information about the program available here). Citi Performing Arts Center has also become the first institutional partner of the City’s Community Learning Initiative working with Boston Center for Youth and Families, Boston Public Libraries and Boston Public Schools. Through these partnerships, Citi Performing Arts Center continues to provide youth with arts education and opportunities for creative development in-school and in their communities.  

For more information about the 2010 Champions of the Arts Award Ceremony and to view the complete list of winners, visit the Arts|Learning website.

For more information about Citi Performing Arts Center’s Education programs, call (617) 532-1256 or visit www.citicenter.org/education.

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About Citi Performing Arts Center

Citi Performing Arts Center [formerly The Wang Center for the Performing Arts], which includes both the Wang Theatre and Shubert Theatre, is one of the nation’s foremost not-for-profit performing arts institutions.  As New England’s largest cultural venue, it honors all aspects of the performing arts offering theatre, opera, classical and popular music, international ballet, contemporary dance, one-night engagements, and Broadway musicals. Its education/public programming initiative presents City Spotlights and SpectrumBoston. As a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization located in Boston’s historical Theater District, Citi Performing Arts Center offers a diverse mix of educational workshops and community activities through its education department; collaborates with artists and local performing arts organizations, and acts as a champion for the arts in the Greater Boston community by aggressively helping to make the arts an integral part of the community’s collective, daily experience.  For further information, please go to www.citicenter.org.

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