NEW YORK CITY: Theatre Communications Group (TCG) has named three TCG member theatres as the recipients of the Audience (R)Evolution Exploration Grants. This first cycle of funding, totaling $15,000, will go to Lexington Children’s Theatre, Target Margin Theater, and The TEAM (Theatre of the Emerging American Moment). The grants, funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF), will focus on peer-to-peer and fieldwide learning as they relate to theatre for youth and multigenerational audiences.
“Our research shows consistent growth in attendance when it comes to programming for young and multigenerational audiences and it is crucially important to engage new generations of theatregoers,” TCG’s executive director Teresa Eyring said in a statement. “These grants will empower peer-driven exchange of knowledge, along with innovative models that work.”
Lexington Children’s Theatre in Kentucky will use the grant money to explore the implementation of a “sliding scale” ticketing model. LCT aims to reimagine its current pay-what-you-can model to provide the community with greater access to programming.
Brooklyn’s Target Margin Theater will partner with social service agency the Center for Family Life to support a “Listening Sessions” series with local families. All participants will receive an honorarium, travel reimbursement, and be provided food and onsite childcare.
The TEAM, also located in Brooklyn, will use its funding to travel to Cumberland Gap, Tenn., next month to participate in “Crossing Roots: A Rural-Urban Theatre Workshop.” The workshop aims to engage local multigenerational participants in exploring memory and identity through devised theatre exercises. The TEAM will lead a workshop entitled “Devising Within a Democracy,” and will participate in other workshops being offered.
“Audience (R)Evolution is a great example of how Theatre Communications Group strengthens and advances the theatre sector,” Maurine Knighton, program director for the arts at DDCF, said in a statement. “Exchange, experimentation, and reflection are essential to theatres aiming to develop meaningful engagement with audiences and communities, and we are proud to support TCG in helping theatres do just that.”
