Eagle Theatre Takes #GivingTuesday To The Next Level

Eagle Theatre's season finale, The Spitfire Grill - The Musical, opens tonight! But, there is more than just holiday magic cooking at South Jersey's only year-round professional equity theatre. This non-profit has decided to take the season of giving to the next level by spreading its philanthropic wings. Throughout the run of The Spitfire Grill - The Musical, November 16th - December 16th, actors from the production will be participating in a post-performance basket donation. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to another local non-profit organization, AVANZAR, formerly known as Atlantic County's The Women's Center, dedicated to empowering individuals and families by working to secure their physical safety, emotional well-being, and individual freedom.

"AVANZAR's noble mission has a direct correlation to the themes and message of The Spitfire Grill - The Musical. Upon working on the production, we felt as though we were being called to help in any way we can. We passionately and unanimously agreed that we must do our part, from one non-profit to another.", says Ted Wioncek III, Artistic Director of Eagle Theatre.

In addition, Eagle Theatre has joined #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving that harnesses the collective power of individuals, communities and organizations to encourage philanthropy and to celebrate generosity worldwide. Occurring this year on November 27th, #GivingTuesday is held annually on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving (in the U.S.) and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday to kick-off the holiday giving season and inspire people to collaborate in improving their local communities and to give back in impactful ways to the charities and causes they support.

The Eagle Theatre is a 501(c)3 registered non-profit. As with most non-profit professional theatres, 50% of the theatre's total costs are covered by ticket sales. The other half is obtained through contributions from generous donors, as well as, grantors and support from local businesses. Donors and fans of the theatre support the telling of great stories through their attendance and contributions. On December 1st, the theatre plans on reaching out to Eagle Theatre fans and connecting with them on a personal level.

92Y − a cultural center in New York City that, since 1874, has been bringing people together around its core values of community service and giving back − conceptualized #GivingTuesday as a new way of linking individuals and causes to strengthen communities and encourage giving. In 2014, the third year of the movement, #GivingTuesday brought together 30,000 partners in 68 countries and registered 32.7 million impressions on Twitter, with its eponymous hashtag mentioned 698,600 times. Since 2012, online giving on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving has increased more than four-fold, based on findings by Blackbaud and the Indiana University's Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, produced in partnership with the Case Foundation.[1]

"We have been incredibly inspired by the generosity in time, efforts and ideas that have brought our concept for a worldwide movement into reality," said Henry Timms, founder of #GivingTuesday and executive director of 92Y. "As we embark on our fourth year of #GivingTuesday, we are encouraged by the early response from partners eager to continue making an impact in this global conversation."

"#GivingTuesday is an opportunity for patrons to help sustain live professional theatre, nurture future generations of artists, and enhance the quality of life and cultural landscape of Southern New Jersey. It allows us to connect to donors on a personal level and let them into a little secret; without them, there would be no us", concludes Wioncek.

More information and tickets are available online at www.EagleTheatre.org or www.facebook.com/TheEagleTheatre or by calling the Box Office at 609-704-5012.

About #GivingTuesday: #GivingTuesday is a movement to celebrate and provide incentives to give-the 2015 iteration will be held on December 1, 2015. This effort harnesses the collective power of a unique blend of partners-nonprofits, businesses and corporations as well as families and individuals-to transform how people think about, talk about and participate in the giving season. #GivingTuesday inspires people to take collaborative action to improve their local communities, give back in better, smarter ways to the charities and causes they celebrate and help create a better world. #GivingTuesday harnesses the power of social media to create a global moment dedicated to giving around the world.

To learn more about #GivingTuesday participants and activities or to join the celebration of giving, please visit: www.givingtuesday.org