Philadelphia Artists Collective Incorporated

COLLABORATIVE ARTISTS CREATING THEATRICAL PERFORMANCES. IN THE 2022/2023 SEASON, PAC STAGED TWO PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTIONS: WINE IN THE WILDERNESS IN OCTOBER 2022, AND JANE EYRE IN MAY 2023. WINE IN THE WILDERNESS BY PLAYWRIGHT ALICE CHILDRESS EXAMINES RACE, GENDER, AND CLASS AGAINST THE BACKDROP OF THE 1964 RACE RIOTS IN HARLEM. THE WORK WAS PRODUCED AT POTH BREWERY, AN UNCONVENTIONAL THEATER SPACE IN THE HEART OF PHILADELPHIA'S BREWERYTOWN NEIGHBORHOOD. PRESENTED AS PART OF THE CITY'S ANNUAL FRINGE FESTIVAL, THIS PRODUCTION REACHED A TOTAL OF 129 PATRONS. JANE EYRE REPRESENTED PAC'S LARGEST PRODUCTION TO-DATE, WITH THE WORLD PREMIERE OF AN ORIGINAL SCRIPT BY PLAYWRIGHTS JESSICA BEDFORD, KATHRYN MACMILLAN, CHARLOTTE NORTHEAST, AND MEGHAN WINCH, ADAPTED FROM CHARLOTTE BRONTE'S CLASSIC NOVEL. PRESENTED AT THE CHRIST CHURCH NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE IN PHILADELPHIA'S OLD CITY, THIS PRODUCTION RAN FOR 12 PERFORMANCES AND FEATURED A CAST OF ELEVEN ACTORS (INCLUDING TWO MEMBERS OF THE ACTORS' EQUITY ASSOCIATION), SETS DESIGNED BY MEGHAN JONES, LIGHTING DESIGNED BY ALY DOCHERTY, COSTUMES DESIGNED BY JANUS STEFANOWICZ, AND CHOREOGRAPHY BY K. O'ROURKE, WITH DIRECTION BY KATHRYN MACMILLAN. JANE EYRE REACHED A TOTAL OF 839 PATRONS. BOTH WINE IN THE WILDERNESS AND JANE EYRE WERE RECOMMENDED FOR THE PRESTIGIOUS 2023 BARRYMORE AWARDS.PAC PRESENTED TWO STAGED READINGS IN THE 2022/2023 SEASON: THE CONTRAST IN NOVEMBER 2022, AND CHILDREN OF THE SUN IN MARCH 2023. THE CONTRAST (PLAYWRIGHT: ROYALL TYLER) WAS PRESENTED AT THE INDEPENDENCE SEAPORT MUSEUM AND IN COLLABORATION WITH ACTING WITHOUT BOUNDARIES, A THEATER PROGRAM THAT PROVIDES AN OPEN FORUM FOR THE CREATIVE AND ARTISTIC EXPRESSION OF TEENAGERS AND YOUNG ADULTS WITH PHYSICAL DISABILITIES. THIS PRODUCTION REACHED A TOTAL OF 164 PATRONS. CHILDREN OF THE SUN (PLAYWRIGHT: MAXIM GORKY) WAS PRESENTED AT THE BLUVER THEATRE AT THE DRAKE, AND REACHED 74 PATRONS. KEEPING WITH PAC'S COMMITMENT TO ARTS ACCESSIBILITY, BOTH OF THESE STAGED READINGS WERE ENTIRELY FREE OF CHARGE FOR AUDIENCE MEMBERS.IN ADDITION, PAC PRESENTED CLASSIC SLAM: PHILLY REAWAKENED IN FEBRUARY 2023 AT THE COMMUNITY EDUCATION CENTER IN WEST PHILADELPHIA. THIS 90-MINUTE POETRY SLAM FEATURED LIVE JAZZ MUSIC AND CONNECTED AUDIENCES WITH THE VISCERAL POWER OF AN INTIMATE, IMPROVISATIONAL THEATRICAL PERFORMANCE. IN JUNE 2023 PAC PRESENTED ITS ANNUAL NEW VENTURES PLAY FESTIVAL, AN INITIATIVE DESIGNED TO IMPACT THEATER'S FUTURE THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW WORKS. EMERGING PLAYWRIGHTS WERE INVITED TO SUBMIT SHORT PLAYS BASED ON THE THEME "THE EVOLUTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS." SUBMISSIONS WERE REVIEWED BY A PANEL OF LOCAL PHILADELPHIA THEATER ARTISTS, WITH 10 PLAYS ULTIMATELY SELECTED TO BE PERFORMED AT TWO LIVE READINGS AT THE BLUVER THEATRE AT THE DRAKE. THE NEW VENTURES PLAY FESTIVAL WAS COMPLETELY FREE OF CHARGE FOR AUDIENCE MEMBERS, AND REACHED A TOTAL OF 75 PATRONS.