WELCOMING p.1 ENTERTAINING p.2 ENGAGING p.4 FULFILLING COLLABORATING p.6 PREMIERING p.8 EDUCATING p.12 GATHERING p.14 PRESENTING p.18 TRENDING p.20 ACHIEVING p.22 INSPIRING p.24 APPRECIATING p.26 AT&T Performing Arts Center 2015 REPORT TO THE COMMUNITY COVER: Allison Semmes as Diana Ross and Julius Thomas III as Berry Gordy in Motown The Musical. Photo by Joan Marcus. THIS PAGE: Reliant Lights Your Holidays. Photo by Renato Rimach. INSET: Photo by Carter Rose. Entertaining. Educating. Inspiring. The AT&T Performing Arts Center is always in motion. Enriching our community today and envisioning what the Center can be tomorrow. It wasn’t that long ago that the concept of a center for the performing arts was just a dream. Thanks to the passion, dedication and generosity of many, that seed took root and the nonprofit Center became a reality that has enlivened downtown Dallas through breathtaking art and inviting spaces. A campus where memories take shape, traditions begin and different kinds of people come together to find a place in the arts. In many ways, the Center has helped change the course of our city. Today, we hope this Report to the Community helps you consider what the Center has become in your life. Whether you joined us for a free community event, attended a record-breaking Broadway show, enjoyed provocative original works or delighted in every performer who came singing, dancing and leaping into your midst, your experience always remains top of mind. It is your presence, alongside so many others, that defines what the Center means to North Texas. You are the community and we are too. As we look forward, we are always seeking ways to strengthen and grow our organization and its position in the community. How can our campus continue being a fertile ground for original works, reaching new levels of artistry? How can we continue collaborating with fellow arts organizations so the rising cultural tide lifts us all? As you look through this report, we hope you see how far we have come and the potential ahead. The Center is always in motion. Where we go, and how we get there, is something we do together. Best regards, Matrice Ellis-Kirk Douglas T. Curtis Chair, Board of Directors President & CEO COVER: Allison Semmes as Diana Ross and Julius Thomas III as Berry Gordy in Motown The Musical. Photo by Joan Marcus. THIS PAGE: Reliant Lights Your Holidays. Photo by Renato Rimach. INSET: Photo by Carter Rose. 1 Presenting performances that inspire and astound, forming the backbone of the Center’s business operations and fulfilling its mission. The Center continues to pursue heavy-hitters like Disney’s Newsies, Motown The Musical and The Book of Mormon for its Broadway Series, while sharing new theatrical standouts with Off Broadway On Flora. From iconic entertainers like Johnny Mathis to the sold-out performance of jam band Widespread Panic, the Center presents diverse performers to attract longtime patrons and up-and-coming audiences alike. MOTOWN THE MUSICAL Julius Thomas III as Berry Gordy (center) and the all-star cast bring to life the founding of the legendary record label. Photo by Joan Marcus. 2 AT&T Performing Arts Center DISNEY’S NEWSIES Presenting performances that inspire and astound, forming the Inspired by the real-life newsboys’ strike of 1899, the energetic musical delivers. Photo by Deen van Meer. backbone of the Center’s business operations and fulfilling its mission. 2015 Report to the Community 3 NEIL DEGRASSE TYSON The astrophysicist enthralls the audience with the science behind beloved films as part of the speaker series, #hearhere. Photo by Carter Rose. 4 AT&T Performing Arts Center Proactively seeking future patrons to help them find their place at the Center. The provocative new speaker series #hearhere (formerly #thinkspeak) sold out every performance in its inaugural season and garnered critical acclaim with shows by BROADWAY EN ESPAÑOL Actors Monica Gómez, Jose Armendariz, Frida Espinosa-Müller Cosmos host Neil deGrasse Tyson and NPR stars Ira Glass and Rodney Garza translate Motown The Musical. Photo by Nate Rehlander. from This American Life, Radiolab’s Jad Abumrad, and Serial’s Sarah Koenig. Serving a rapidly growing Hispanic audience, Broadway en Español offers real-time Spanish translations of select PIN DROP DISCO Attendees create their own headphone concert, choosing from the live Broadway productions at the Margot and Bill Winspear mixes by DJs Spinderella of Salt-N-Pepa, Sarah Jaffe, DJ emptycylinder and Taylor Rea of Zhora. Photo by Carter Rose. Opera House, translated by actors with Cara Mía Theatre Co. Spinning in a younger crowd, Pin Drop Disco captivates new audiences through a “silent” DJ concert. Fans stay in their headphones but venture outside their comfort zones in our scenic Annette Strauss Square. By working with a growing list of social service organizations, Community Partners is making the arts accessible to hundreds of people who might not otherwise be able to attend shows. COMMUNITY PARTNERS The cast of Disney’s Newsies answers questions after the show from the youngest members of the Wesley-Rankin Community Center, a participating agency in the ticket access program. Photo by Stevan Koye. 2015 Report to the Community 5 ST. VINCENT AT SOLUNA FESTIVAL The rock star plays alongside the Dallas Symphony Orchestra to a sold-out Winspear Opera House. Photo by Sylvia Elzafon. 6 AT&T Performing Arts Center The Center joined the Dallas Symphony Orchestra to present an epic evening for the Soluna Festival. Grammy Award-winning indie rock genius St. Vincent performed with DSO members in the Winspear Opera House. A one-year experiment called the Elevator Project concluded in the success column. The initiative provided six growing dance and theatre organizations a temporary stage in the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre. This special collaboration aimed the Center’s spotlight on these stimulating performances in the Dallas Arts District. Combining forces to create more than the sum of our parts. 2015 Report to the Community 7 Taking the lead as a catalyst for new works that define our cultural milestones. 8 AT&T Performing Arts Center TWYLA THARP 50TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR The world premiere of Yowzie. Photo by Sharen Bradford/The Dancing Image. TITAS Presents and the Center offered nine Texas debut performances and two world premieres in 2015: Absent Matter Taking the lead as a catalyst for new works by Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion and that define our cultural milestones. the Twyla Tharp 50th Anniversary Tour by the dance legend and cultural icon. Launched in Dallas, Tharp’s momentous tour was co-commissioned by TITAS Presents, the Center and five other leading American performing arts organizations (including the Kennedy Center and New York’s Joyce Theater). Doug Curtis (left) and TITAS Presents Executive & Artistic Director Charles Santos (right) with Twyla Tharp at a special live broadcast from Hamon Hall of KERA’s Think. Photo by Carter Rose. 2015 Report to the Community 9 THE DALLAS OPERA’S EVEREST The death-defying opening scene of the world premiere of Joby Talbot and Gene Scheer’s daring creation. Photo by Karen Almond/The Dallas Opera. Supporting the extraordinary world premieres of our celebrated resident companies … The continued growth of Dallas Black Dance Theatre has proliferated stirring and grand works (like Oremus at the Cultural Awareness series) by promising choreographers who are sparking interest in this iconic company. From climbing treacherous heights in Everest, to the witty comedy Great Scott, the original productions of The Dallas Opera are reinvigorating the opera genre and captivating new and old fans alike. Dallas Theater Center’s distinctive and compelling storytelling ranges from cultural narratives like Stagger Lee to side-splitting, raucous premieres like MOONSHINE: That Hee Haw Musical. DALLAS THEATER CENTER’S STAGGER LEE Cedric Neal and Tiffany Mann in an original musical about achieving the American Dream. Photo by Karen Almond/Dallas Theater Center. 10 PREMIERING DALLAS BLACK DANCE THEATRE’S OREMUS Choreographed by company dancer and resident choreographer Richard A. Freeman, Jr. Photo by Sharen Bradford/The Dancing Image. ANITA N. MARTINEZ BALLET FOLKLORICO’S 40TH ANNIVERSARY In a special performance, founder Anita N. Martinez was honored for her 40 years of cultural and civic contributions. Photo by Adrian Vit. … and their creative achievements. For four decades, Anita N. Martinez Ballet Folklorico has presented the traditional folk dance of another time and place that influences the here and now. The Ben Stevenson-choreographed Dracula brought its drama, daring and fanged dancing to Dallas for the first time and compelled viewers to see Texas Ballet Theater in a new, darker light. TEXAS BALLET THEATER’S DRACULA Dancers Carl Coomer and Leticia Oliveira in the thrilling show. Photo courtesy of Texas Ballet Theater. 2015 Report to the Community 11 OPEN STAGES: BACKSTAGE SPOTLIGHT High school technical arts students learn the skill of rigging in the Winspear Opera House. Photo by Stevan Koye. Cultivating audiences, creators and innovators who are the future of the performing arts. A new lunchtime concert series, Sammons Lunch Jam, features the celebrated students from our neighbor, Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. The free weekly concerts in Sammons Park provide a performance platform for the students and create a gathering place in the Arts District neighborhood. Open Stages, the Center’s education program, continues to bring thousands of students to the campus for performances and career experiences. All of the Center’s education efforts are supported through the generosity of donors, including Bank of America, The Moody Foundation, Neiman Marcus and Sammons Enterprises, Inc. 12 AT&T Performing Arts Center SAMMONS LUNCH JAM Senior Sam Schwall shows off his instrumental skills in a jazz performance.