Family First Nights will Help Families Through Brooklyn Performance on May 24th

By: May. 20, 2005
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The League of American Theatres and Producers and The Harlem Children's Zone has invited 30 at-risk families to see Brooklyn: The Musical on Tuesday night, May 24th as part of the new program, Family First Nights.

Fans of Brooklyn will be able to adopt the families that night by donating money to buy these children and their parent refreshments and/or Brooklyn souvenirs.

The program will be piloted in New York with the Harlem Children's Zone, which will identify appropriate families, coordinate family participation, and organize transportation and other logistics. Brooklyn will serve as the first of three productions that families will attend; the other two will be named at a future date. Time Warner is the corporate sponsor for the New York City pilot.

On May 24th, the first phase of the program will be launched. The at-risk families will attend the evening performance of Brooklyn, now playing at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (236 West 45th Street). After the show, the families will attend a discussion with staff from The League and members of the production of Brooklyn, who will gather feedback from the families about their theatrical experience. One hundred families in total are expected to participate throughout the program.

In addition to providing orchestra tickets for families who may not otherwise be able to attend live theatre, all participating families receive family theatre packets. These will include study guides about the story of the production, backstage information about what to expect when they get to the theatre, information about Times Square, and a CD, to help familiarize them with the production.

Brooklyn: the Musical is a whimsical urban fairy tale that tells of a Parisian street singer who goes to her namesake city in search of her father; she finds fame as a pop star along the way. The show features both a pop-soul score and book by Mark Schoenfeld and Barri McPherson, played its first preview at the Plymouth (now the Gerald Schoenfeld) Theatre on September 23rd, 2004 before officially opening on October 21st. Jeff Calhoun directed, while Eden Espinosa, Ramona Keller, Cleavant Derricks, Kevin Anderson and Karen Olivo starred. To date, the musical has played just over 300 performances.

 Contributions to Family First Nights can be made using paypal (paypal.com), account name: QSACMETS@aol.com, or by calling 718-204-7601 and paying with a credit card on Monday or Tuesday.
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