Broward Center Presents ART HEIST Through April 4

Socially distanced groups interview suspects at five locations in Downtown Miami and Fort Lauderdale to solve the world's biggest true-crime art caper.

By: Mar. 30, 2021
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The Broward Center for the Performing Arts (@browardcenter) and Right Angle Entertainment have announced Art Heist Experience (@artheistexperience), an interactive, socially-distanced theater experience which takes audiences in small groups on a quest in and around the Broward Center's Downtown Fort Lauderdale campus to gather clues to solve a real-life art heist March 16 - April 4.

Based on a true story of the world's biggest art caper, Art Heist Experience is a true-crime walking show where socially distanced groups of up to 35 people move through five walkable locations to gather clues. The amateur detectives interact with a wild group of wily career criminals, slimy con men, rumpled art-recovery specialists, a possible inside man, a gentle psychopath and the larger-than-life but definitely real self-proclaimed "Greatest Art Thief of All Time."

The cast of exclusively South Florida-based actors, through conversations and scenes, will reveal clues to the detective audience that lead them on their way. Sharp sleuths will guess who the liars are and hopefully solve the case. No two performances will ever be the same, as the actors improvise with every interaction. Every good crime story has someone getting framed and Art Heist is no different, as the experience ends with the sleuths having the opportunity to become living art inside a giant picture frame that they can share on social media and by using #artheistexperience.

The story is based on the biggest art heist in history, which took place on March 18, 1990, when two thieves disguised as police officers entered Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in the middle of the night, telling guards they were investigating a disturbance. Valued at a half a billion dollars, 13 works of art, including paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer and Monet were stolen. The $500 million pieces, as well as the robbers, remain at large today.

Art Heist Experience contains some mature themes, making it recommended for ages 13 and up.

The masterminds behind bringing back live theater, employing local actors and presenting it outdoors are creator/producer Justin Sudds and writer/director TJ Dawe and Ming Hudson. Dawe co-created The One Man Star Wars Trilogy, One Woman Sex and the City, and PostSecret: the Show, which have toured internationally. Hudson is a physical theater practitioner, freelance performer, devised theater creator and teacher and instructor at the Canadian College of Performing Arts.

Tickets for performances at the Broward Center are $39.50. Performances are offered in the afternoon and evenings, Tuesday - Sunday. Each detective squad is limited to 35 and begins its journey at the Broward Center AutoNation Box Office. Tickets are available online at BrowardCenter.org and Ticketmaster.com, the only official ticketing service of the Broward Center.

Ticket buyers for the Broward Center performances are encouraged to arrive at the Broward Center AutoNation Box Office 15 minutes before their scheduled time as the tour start time may vary in order to manage tour group size due to physical distancing guidelines. The tour is wheelchair accessible. Rain or shine.

The Broward Center for the Performing Arts is preparing for the day when it can once again welcome audiences to the theater. Ticket sales benefit the Broward Center's Road to Recovery Fund to support operations as the Center prepares for the day when the doors reopen, the curtain rises and the lights return to the Broward Center Stages.

All programs, artists, ticket prices, availability, dates and times are subject to change without notice. Visit arshtcenter.org for up-to-date information.



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