WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME Partners with The Mayor's Fund to Offer Tickets to Students

The Tony Award nominated play and Pulitzer Prize finalist What the Constitution Means to Me is proud to announce a new partnership with The Mayor's Fund to launch the NYC Civics and Arts Fund that will subsidize tickets for hundreds of students through the rest of the show's Broadway run through August 24, 2019.

The Civics and Arts Fund, launched by The Mayor's Fund in partnership with the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment and DemocracyNYC, will sponsor opportunities for youth to experience art and performances that advance the City's civic culture. The Fund will work with partners across New York City's iconic art and performance institutions, from Broadway and Museum Mile to borough and community-based groups, to connect young adults to art performances and creative programs that promote civics learning, thinking and engagement. What the Constitution Means to Me will be the first show to partner with the new program.

The Civics and Arts Fund will identify compelling programs or performances to spotlight and provide opportunities for approximately 500 students and local youth to attend these programs each year. In addition to helping drive the fundraising, the Mayor's Fund and the Civics and Arts Fund will also collect new ideas on future projects to be considered for Fund support and partnerships. Considered performances and programs will provide an exposure to a compelling singular cultural endeavor and also enable and support a deeper educational experience inspired by the original work.

What the Constitution Means to Me and the Civics and Arts Fund will work with several education and community engagement partners including New York Theatre Workshop, The Debate Society, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and The New York Historical Society to identify eligible groups and funding for the program and provide educational materials to surround the performance. What the Constitution Means to Me began preview performances at the Helen Hayes Theater (240 W 44th Street, New York, NY) on March 14, 2019 and officially opened March 31, 2019. It was recently extended for the second time and will play through August 24, 2019.

Heidi Schreck's timely and galvanizing play, directed by Oliver Butler, became a sensation off-Broadway this fall before transferring to Broadway this spring and receiving two Tony Award nominations (Best Play, Best Actress in Leading Role in a Play), two Drama Desk Award nominations (Outstanding Play, Outstanding Actress in a Play), two Drama League Awardnominations (Outstanding Production of a Play, Distinguished Performance), an Outer Critic Circle Award nomination (Outstanding New Broadway Play) and a Lucille Lortel Awardnomination (Best Play). It was recently named a Pulitzer Prize Finalist for Drama, received the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best American Play, and the Obie Award for Best New American Play.

Fifteen-year-old Heidi Schreck earned her college tuition money by winning Constitutional debate competitions across the United States. In her boundary-breaking new play, the Obie Award winner resurrects her teenage self in order to trace the profound relationship between four generations of women in her family and the founding document that shaped their lives. This hilarious, hopeful and "achingly human" (Exeunt Magazine) exploration breathes new life into our Constitution and imagines how it might impact the lives of future generations.

Written and performed by two-time Obie Award winner Heidi Schreck (Grand Concourse, "I Love Dick") and directed by Obie Award winner Oliver Butler (The Amateurs, The Light Years),What the Constitution Means to Me features Schreck, Mike Iveson (Gatz, The Sound and the Fury) and New York City high school students Rosdely Ciprian and Thursday Williams, all in their Broadway debuts. Ben Beckley (Small Mouth Sounds First National Tour) understudies Iveson.

What the Constitution Means to Me features scenic design by Rachel Hauck (Hadestown), costume design by Michael Krass (Hadestown), lighting design by Jen Schriever(Eclipsed), and sound design by Sinan Refik Zafar (Hamlet).

What the Constitution Means to Me was commissioned by True Love Productions. This production originated as part of Summerworks 2017, produced by Clubbed Thumb in partnership with True Love Productions.

Tickets for all performances are on sale now and available via Telecharge.com. Tickets range from $49 to $179. For groups of 10+, call 1-800-BROADWAY x2.

Photo Credit: Joan Marcus