The 2013-2014 PNC Broadway Across America– Pittsburgh season promises the very best of Broadway to Pittsburgh! Packed with Tony® Award Winners including the 2012 Best Musical winner and 2012 Best Musical Revival winner, the lineup features audience favorites and fabulous new shows including: • THE LION KING (September 3–29, 2013) • WE WILL ROCK YOU (October 29–November 3, 2013) • ELF (November 26–December 1, 2013) • GHOST THE MUSICAL (December 31, 2013–January 5, 2014) • THE GERSHWINS’ PORGY AND BESS (February 25–March 2, 2014) • ONCE (March 11–16, 2014) • PETER AND THE STARCATCHER (May 20–25, 2014) And our Series Specials: • CHRISTMAS WITH THE RAT PACK (December 24–29, 2013) • WICKED (January 15–February 9, 2014) • MAMMA MIA! (February 11–16, 2014)
Volume 5 | Issue
1 :: June 2013
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Y T I L I B I S S E C C A ARTS
Athena Petredis, Diana Rath, Catherine Loevner, Kevin McMahon
The Cultural Trust was the beneficiary of the 2013 Cinderella Ball and partnered with 22 debutantes who volunteered more than 800 hours in the Cultural District. Catherine Loevner presented a check for $50,000 on behalf of the Women’s Committee of the Cinderella Ball to Kevin McMahon this June.
In May 2010, the Trust adopted a Diversity and Inclusion Plan to continue creating an environment in the Cultural District where everyone feels welcome and has a positive and enriching experience. In addition our Shared Services department has launched a Cultural District Accessibility Project to increase accessibility and inclusion of people with disabilities. Some of the highlights of the Accessibility Project include: • Received funding from Theater Development Fund to provide Open Captioning for the 2012-2013 PNC Broadway Across America season. The Trust also added an audio description program for the 20122013 Broadway Series. • A new infrared system for the Benedum Center, moving the other system to the Byham. Each venue provides a two channel system, which delivers both sound amplification and audio description at each location. • A dormant gift shop space in the lobby of the Benedum Center was transformed into a home for Guest Services. It has a direct entrance onto Seventh Street, and will be the centralized place for addressing seating concerns, requesting assistive listening and captioning devices and any other related Guest Services matters. • Al Rodibaugh-Director of Guest Services, Eric Thomas-Associate Director of Customer Service & Volunteer Services, and Vanessa Braun-Accessibility Consultant were awarded the Emerging Leader in Arts and
Accessibility Awards at the 2012 Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability National Conference. The award was presented by the Kennedy Center’s VSA and Accessibility Office. It is a major goal of the Trust and Cultural District organizations to make the arts accessible to as many people as possible so that everyone feels welcome and comfortable in the Cultural District. To this end, creating an environment of inclusion and accessibility has been a vital initiative and Shared Services continues to work towards making the arts accessible to all patrons. During the month of September, 2013 the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust will present Disney’s THE LION KING as part of its PNC Broadway Across America – Pittsburgh series. One matinee presentation of THE LION KING, on Saturday September 21 at 2pm, will be tailored for children within the autism spectrum and their families. This presentation will be modeled after similar successful performances sponsored by the Theater Development Fund in New York in September, 2012. Pittsburgh will be the second city to present an autism friendly Broadway touring production.
Vanessa Braun, Al Rodibaugh, and Eric Thomas
BEGINS ON SEPTEMBER 27
PITTSBURGH INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF FIRSTS (PIFOF) Beginning September 27, 2013, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust will present its third iteration of Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts (PIFOF). The month-long Festival will feature highly-acclaimed international companies and artists premiering works never before seen in the United States. They will capture your imagination, challenge you to think BIG, and leave you seeing the world in an entirely new way. Theater, dance, music, performance, visual arts – the real and the surreal will merge. This is your chance to be the first to experience highly innovative works right here in Pittsburgh! Adding to the immensity of the 2013 Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts is the opening night appearance of Studio Florentijn Hofman’s The Rubber Duck of The Netherlands. The Rubber Duck knows no frontiers; it does not discriminate and does not have a political connotation. The friendly, floating, four-story-high Rubber Duck has healing properties: it can relieve mondial tensions as well as define them. The duck has been on display in Amsterdam, Belgium, Osaka, Sydney, Sao Paulo and Hong Kong and will make its US debut as it floats along Pittsburgh’s three rivers. PIFOF will also feature a diverse array of performances by Marie Chouinard, NanoDanses’ Michèle Anne De Mey & Jaco Van Dormael, Robin Frohardt, the Perth Theatre Company, Zimmerman & de Perrot, Christopher McElroen & T. Ryder Smith, and the 2b theatre company. Along with the live performances, you cannot miss the exhilarating and meditative audiovisual exhibits by the Austrian artist Kurt Hentschalger and Ulf Langheinrich in the Wood Street and SPACE Galleries. Celebrate the intersection of visual art, theater, dance, music and technology with these global presentations in galleries and theaters throughout the Cultural District, in spaces both traditional and highly unexpected. Be the first to witness these never before seen artists and attractions hailing from The Netherlands, Quebec, Belgium, Australia, Switzerland and Nova Scotia, among others. Take a deep breath. Get ready. Everyone remembers their first. To learn more about PIFOF visit: TrustArts.org/first
Jennifer Schooley at 412-471-6086 The best Party of the Summer will be Friday, July 12! COSMOPOLITAN is going TO THE MOON! Don’t miss it! Details inside... Trust Members enjoying the Cast Party at Valozzi’s for LES BALLETS TROCKADERO DE MONTE CARLO. Non-Profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Pittsburgh, PA Permit No. 3001