Living Our Mission
I
wanted to see RENT since I was in sixth grade and I love that my first exposure was a live performance. Live performances add something to the watching factor that makes it much better. -Burncoat High student on Adopt-A-School 2018
Above, social media reactions from the cast to the AdoptA-School performance. Left, the theatre lobby display of students’ cross-curriculum projects related to the themes of RENT.
Adopt-A-School: RENT In the spring of 2018, we were thrilled to celebrate the fifth year of our Adopt-A-School program, using arts to enhance the curriculum in our public schools. Once again, we worked with Superintendent Maureen Binienda and the faculty of both South and Burncoat high schools to incorporate the themes, history and sociological impacts of a Broadway show into the curriculum across every subject as preparation for both schools (2,300+ students). 2018 was a special year as we brought both schools together into the same, exclusive, weekday morning performance of the musical RENT. Actors visited the schools the day before the performance. The tour gave students special permission to perform the show-stopping number “Seasons of Love” with the cast during the performance and held a post-show Q&A with the company. This incredible effort required 52 buses to transport students downtown simultaneously and would not have been possible without the support of the City of Worcester, Durham Bus Company, Greater Worcester Community Foundation, the Crickett Foundation, the McDonough Foundation and our Access to the Arts donors. At an annual cost of nearly $150,000, this program carries quite a price tag, but the impact left on the students, many of whom experience live theatre only through this program, is priceless. 8 • A Decade of Cultural Transformation • TheHanoverTheatre.org
Goddard Scholars Program Since 2011, we have been partnering with Sullivan Middle School to offer unique, immersive theatre experiences for gifted and talented students in their Goddard Scholars program. Annually, each sixth, seventh and eighth grade Goddard Scholars group attends both an interactive workshop with a teaching artist and a performance at the theatre. This year’s activities included workshops involving arts-integrated learning, public speaking and Shakespeare. Students attended performances of A Christmas Carol, with a special school visit from actor Jeremy Lawrence, and Othello. Over the last seven years, we have worked with hundreds of students through this initiative. Student Matinees Last season, 12,000 area students attended student matinees of A Christmas Carol, Encore, Othello, RENT and Beauty & the Beast. Student matinee tickets are significantly discounted in order to make these experiences possible for local schools. The Access to the Arts (ATTA) Fund This fund continues to be a vital source of support for community outreach programs, providing access to the performing arts to youth and families who cannot afford to participate.
