Education/Outreach Programs
An essential part of Victoria Theatre Association’s mission is community involvement through educational and artistic outreach opportunities. Victoria Theatre Association continually invites audiences and performers to share their energy and talent through the following:
Physicians for Kids Discovery Series
Through Discovery, the stage becomes a classroom – a place where theatre professionals partner with educators and parents to ignite students’ quest to discover the world, each other, and most importantly, themselves. More than 45,000 students annually attend a Discovery presentation: professionally produced theatre programming designed to comply with the Ohio Department of Education Academic Standards and Benchmarks. In addition, students and teachers receive detailed study guides for preparation before and after their theatre experience. Workshops for students and teachers by theatre professionals, as well as scholarship and bussing opportunities for schools with financial concerns, add to the extensive opportunities offered by the Physicians for Kids Discovery Series.
Education Projects
Each year Victoria Theatre Association's Education and Outreach team offers an in-depth education project at no charge to participating students and teachers. Each project is built around a particular performance and theme: Past projects, for example, have focused on the Holocaust, or been built around productions such as In the Footsteps of Celie in association with THE COLOR PURPLE and Changed for Good in association with WICKED. A typical project begins with hands-on theatre workshops in the classrooms; is followed by a critical writing or art project that explores key themes of the work in question (especially its historical context) and connects those themes to the present day; and culminates in students’ attendance at the performance. Click here for more information about this season's projects.
KeyBank African-American Arts Festival
With the month-long Visual Voices art exhibit as its centerpiece, the 2009-2010 African-American Arts Festival features an array of performances, events and exhibits – all celebrating the rich and diverse cultures of not only the continent of Africa, but also African-Americans.
Visual Voices
Each February Victoria Theatre Association partners with Willis “Bing” Davis, curator of Dayton’s EbonNia Gallery, to display an exhibit of art by local African-American artists inside the Schuster Center. Exhibits are built around a theme. Past themes have included a tribute to Paul Lawrence Dunbar and “Dayton Skyscrapers,” which celebrated African-American men and women who stand tall as role models in the Dayton community.
IMPACT
The IMPACT program nurtures fledgling local theatre companies by renting them state-of-the-art theatre space at greatly reduced rates as well as providing access to our professional technical and marketing staff. IMPACT is meant to nurture and mentor smaller companies until they are established enough to “graduate” from the program.
Chase Backstage Broadway
Area high school students are given the chance to explore the behind-the-scenes world of professional theatre. Students interested in technical theatre watch the set and lights being loaded into the Victoria Theatre or the Schuster Center; aspiring actors get to chat with professionals about careers, finding the perfect audition song, and what life is like on the road.
Chase Background on Broadway
Informative and entertaining talks by theatre professionals focusing on production history, musical highlights, and insider anecdotes are offered prior to selected performances of each show in the Broadway Series.
Chase Broadway University
Area high school and college students are invited to participate in master classes with the stars of our stage. It is an opportunity for musical theatre performance majors to strut their stuff and get feedback from professionals working in the field.
Chase Broadway University Summer Camp
Each summer, students have the opportunity to attend a three-day summer day camp in association with a Broadway series show. Each of the three days includes master classes with the stars as well as other workshops and lectures from the talent working in the field in Dayton and the surrounding areas.
Schuster Center Celebration Choir
The Schuster Center Celebration Choir was convened in 2003 to celebrate the opening of the Schuster Center for the Performing Arts. Its members liked singing together so much that this temporary choir became a permanent group. The SCCC is open to all. This intergenerational, multi-ethnic group mirrors the diversity of the Greater Dayton community and its repertoire encompasses a broad range of styles. Click here for calendar of rehearsals and events.
Schuster Center Broadway Children's Choir
In addition to the adult choir, there is the Schuster Center Broadway Children’s Choir. Geared toward students ages 9-17, this choir brings together children from across the Miami Valley to celebrate singing and create community. Click here for a calendar of rehearsals and events.
