ALLIANCE THEATRE PODCAST: AN EXPLORATION OF THEATER AND THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE IT HAPPEN.
Margarita Kompelmakher, Director of Community Partnerships and Engagement, and Trent Anderson, Director of Development are two members of the Alliance Theatre family most connected to our work as a nonprofit organization centered on community enrichment and development. On this episode of the Alliance Theatre Podcast, we chat about our gratitude for those that make our work possible, the community we are dedicated to and the ways in which our audiences and patrons are crucial to the work we do at the Alliance Theatre.
Margarita Kompelmakher, PhD serves as Director of Community Partnerships and Engagement for the Alliance Theatre.
Trent Anderson serves as Director of Development for the Alliance Theatre.
Learn more about the Alliance Theatre Podcast.
Why do we revisit this story every year? What is it about Scrooge’s journey that continually reveals something new about ourselves?
Every year about this time, I start to hunger to hear this story again. To make plain what I tend to forget or take for granted through much of the year. To remind myself that no matter how isolated or cynical one has become, there is always the possibility for transformation, the chance to replace our stony hearts with generous, loving ones. Gathering together to share in this story has become much more than simply tradition. It’s taken on the air of ritual, affording us the chance to reaffirm certain profound truths about our shared humanity.
One of those truths is the most basic of all: we need each other. I cannot know who I am without knowing who I am in relationship. To this community. To my family. To my friends. To my neighbors. To you. Scrooge, like many of us, seems to have forgotten this most basic of truths: that it is in relationship with others where we find meaning. Not in isolation. Not in things. But in community. Scrooge’s isolation impacts more than his own misery. It deprives his community of certain possibilities.
Similarly, the boundless gratitude of Tiny Tim is not just an individual virtue but a gift that is freely given to all in his orbit. Tim generously shares with all of us a vision for a more selfless, loving world. Each day, we’re given the opportunity to choose generosity, to reflect back to each other our authentic selves, and to help create that version of the world.
Like Scrooge on Christmas morning, “we haven’t missed it!” We still have time. Thank you for joining us again this year, and for reminding us of that beautiful truth.
Learn more about A Christmas Carol
Alliance Theatre, Fernbank Museum of Natural History Celebrate 10th Anniversary of PNC Foundation, PNC Grow Up Great Relationship
PNC contributions to Alliance, Fernbank benefitted more than 13,000 Atlanta students
Alliance Theatre and Fernbank Museum of Natural History are pleased to announce the 10th anniversary of their association with the PNC Foundation in support of PNC Grow Up Great®. Through this unique relationship, the arts and sciences have received $1.5 million from PNC Foundation, and over 13,000 pre-K students have participated in Georgia Wolf Trap arts-integration residencies, dozens of field trips to see a Bernhardt Theatre for the Very Young Production at the Alliance and hands-on STEAM programming at the Fernbank Museum.
To commemorate the 10th anniversary, the Alliance Theatre and Fernbank Museum will host a celebratory event as part of the Alliance’s annual Toddler Takeover Festival on Saturday, April 29, 2023 for all PNC Grow Up Great pre-K students and their families to visit the Alliance for a day of free theater performances, art-making, outdoor dance performances, music and much more.
“For the past 10 years, we have gladly supported the Alliance Theatre and Fernbank Museum through our PNC grants and programming; and we are proud to have given Atlanta’s youngest students and their families access to free, performing arts events and historic natural science exhibits,” said Eddie Meyers, PNC regional president for Georgia. “We know when there’s instruction outside of the classroom that includes fun, hands-on activities, children have a better chance of learning and retaining the information. These fieldtrips accomplish that in spades.”
As the number of field trips decline across the country, the relationship between Alliance Theatre, Fernbank Museum of Natural History and PNC Grow Up Great ensures that Atlanta Public Schools’ earliest learners benefit from the academic and social emotional growth that results from out-of-the-classroom learning opportunities. Research conducted through the Woodruff Arts Center’s Multi-Visit Program in partnership with the University of Arkansas’ National Endowment for the Arts Research Lab, shows that students who attend multiple art-centered field trips have higher levels of social-emotional skills, stronger school engagement and higher standardized test scores.
“Plus, studies have shown that 90% of a child’s brain develops by age five, which is why at PNC, we understand that a well-rounded education in and out of the classroom is a strategic investment in Atlanta,” added Meyers.
Support for Atlanta Public Schools
- In addition to field trips, the Alliance and Fernbank provide research-based support to Atlanta Public Schools and select Sheltering Arms early learning teachers, students, and families, to develop key early literacy and academic skills that will contribute to “scaffolding STEM concepts” and long-term academic and developmental success.
- Each of the 61 pre-K classrooms that feed into Atlanta Public Schools Kindergarten program receive special programming from Fernbank science educators and Alliance teaching artists. Teachers become equipped with tools to assist in increasing early literacy skills through arts integration, making learning fun for students.
- Integrated arts and science classrooms will receive a 12-session, Georgia Wolf Trap – Early Learning Through the Arts STEAM – residency and four planning sessions with an Alliance Theatre teaching artist, two customized workshops, streaming access to all Alliance virtual productions, and a private field trip to Fernbank. Students will also receive Fernbank-curated science learning resource kits that include books, exploratory toys, and discounted admission to the museum.
Furthermore, the relationship with PNC has also supported the development of two collaborations between the Alliance and Fernbank, the Bernhardt Theatre for the Very Young production, DINOSAUR, and the animated short, THE CURIOUS CARDINAL.
“Over the years, I have had the privilege of witnessing hundreds of students and countless educators experience the wonderful partnership we have with Alliance and Fernbank through the PNC Grow up Great initiative,” said Bridget L. Bailey, early learning coordinator for the Atlanta Public Schools Office of Early Learning. “This unique collaboration has been instrumental in connecting educational learning experiences with drama and science, while providing unimaginable experiences for early learners in our district.”
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
Christmas is weeks away.
For many of us, we are scrambling to figure out the right gift for those who matter most to us. With it being weeks away, we thought it a nice idea to provide friends and patrons of the Alliance Theatre with some assistance by way of our 2022 Holiday Gift Guide.
Big gifts are great, but the best gifts are those small treasures that create memories and moments that last a lifetime. Here you’ll find a carefully curated selection of holiday gift suggestions for your family, friends, and loved ones.
LET THEM CHOOSE THE SHOW, DATE, AND TIME – GIVE A GIFT CERTIFICATE
Gift certificates are valid for Alliance Theatre productions, classes, and camps. They can be emailed directly to the recipient, or you can have it sent to you to print and present to the recipient. Let your loved one choose the show or activities, dates, and times that works best for them with this flexible, thoughtful gift for the theater-lover in your life.
TICKETS
Our season is only half-way through, and the second half of the season includes award-winners like the Pulitzer Prize winner – The Hot Wing King – written and directed by P-Valley creator Katori Hall and the Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition winner, The Many Wonderous Realities of Jasmine Starr-Kidd, and world-premiere musicals like The Boy Who Kissed the Sky and Water for Elephants.
DINNER/LUNCH AND A SHOW
Make an evening or afternoon of it with lunch or dinner and a show.
Dinner and shows make for a wonderful experience, especially when you can connect the food to a show’s theme, like when you find yourself hungry from the smell of freshly cooked wings made for the annual Memphis Hot Wang Festival in The Hot Wing King. You may long for a fish market after you experience Seattle with a budding young guitarist as he seeks to find purpose through creativity in The Boy Who Kissed the Sky. You’ll even find yourself missing the flavors of the circus after a thrilling experience with Water for Elephants.
The Alliance is close to several restaurant options in Midtown, including our favorite campus spot, Twelve Eighty. Chick-fil-A, located across the street at Colony Square is always a favorite for families. You can also expose a loved one to the culinary mastery of Chef Scotley Innis at 5Church or a locally sourced, healthy options at Sweetgreen.
MEMBERSHIPS AND SEASON TICKET PACKAGES
Membership has its privileges. And an Annual Membership to the Alliance Theatre provides a unique opportunity to experience the Alliance’s performances on the Coca-Cola and Hertz Stages a full year of theater. When you begin your annual membership now, it will be good for productions this season and next, for a full year from purchase.
Annual Membership packages include:
- Convenience and flexibility to book the date and time that works for you online.
- Discounts for add-on tickets, parking, acting classes, and camps.
- Early access to preferred performance dates and times.
Another option is to build a Choose Your Own package with exactly the shows your loved one wants. CYO Packages start with three shows for as little as $60.
GAMES
ACTivism, the game where arts meet activism, is another great option of a gift to pair with tickets to an Alliance Theatre performance.
Each round, players respond to creative and conversational prompts using cards inspired by famous activists and civil and human rights issues. ACTivism, a fun and informative family-friendly game that asks, “how will you stand up for what you believe in?” is available for purchase through our partner Brave + Kind Bookshop.
CLASSES
While you are still trying to figure out what show from our season to get your loved one, here are a few other pairing ideas for you to consider.
Maybe you have a child who commands everyone’s attention when they are in a room, or a family friend who has always wanted to perform but never quite had the courage or confidence. Classes are a great way to encourage and support your loved one as a holiday gift. There are classes for youth and teens, as well as classes for adults.
The Alliance provides classes for a variety of skill levels from beginners to professionals.
ALLIANCE THEATRE STORE
Alliance Theatre merchandise makes the perfect gift for the theater-lover in your life – even if it’s you! Now offering the official ornament keepsake for the 2022 production of A Christmas Carol (more coming soon!)
CAST ALBUMS
Scrambling to find the perfect gift for the show-tune loving, music theater singing person(s) in your life, some of our favorite shows are available.
If you caught Troubadour when it premiered at the Alliance and couldn’t stop humming its music, the soundtrack to the musical, composed by Sugarland co-founder Kristian Bush is now available for purchase.
Other favorites from previous Alliance Theatre seasons are also available for purchase, including Ride the Cyclone, The Prom, Tuck Everlasting, and Lin Manuel-Miranda’s Bring It On.