Broadway Bridges Kicks Off Today With 24 Participating Shows

Broadway Bridges resumes today with 24 shows participating in this fall 2024 cycle. Broadway Bridges is The Broadway League's initiative that seeks to offer every New York City public high school student the opportunity to attend a Broadway show prior to graduation.

“Broadway Bridges creates an incredible opportunity for students to experience live theatre – many for the very first time – which introduces them to the world of Broadway and encourages them to become lifelong patrons and supporters of the arts,” said Jason Laks, Interim President of The Broadway League. “We are thankful to partner once again with NYC Public Schools, the United Federation of Teachers, and the New York City Council to present another season of Broadway Bridges, and in so doing provide vital access points for educators to enrich their students' learning experiences.”

Broadway Bridges offers NYC public schools in all five boroughs $10 Broadway tickets for their tenth-grade students. As the largest theatre education partnership in the history of New York City, a total of 461 New York City public high schools have been served by the program, with representation from each of the 51 city council districts. To date, 2,417 teachers and administrators have registered for Broadway Bridges. The tickets purchased are based on availability and are timed to coincide with the demands of the school calendar.

Last year, 25,105 students and chaperones participated in Broadway Bridges. This year will mark the program's largest fall cycle yet, with over 15,000 tickets being distributed. Since launching in 2017, the program has introduced over 100,000 New York City public school sophomores and chaperones to Broadway. The program has been so successful in New York that it is currently launching in 24 cities across the country, as well.

"For the past three years, we have had the privilege of attending shows through Broadway Bridges. The impact that this program has had on our community has been profound,” said Philip Santos, Principal at Leadership and Public Service High School, Manhattan. “We have had close to two hundred students be exposed to the world of Broadway and it is literally changing lives. It is a joy to walk up the train steps into Times Square, walk to the theater, be seated and watch students as they see a part of the city that can be foreign but that also belongs to them. This is their city. Broadway belongs to them and Broadway Bridges makes this a reality."

FALL 2024 PARTICIPATING SHOWS INCLUDE:

& Juliet

A Wonderful World: The Louis Armstrong Musical

Aladdin

Back to the Future: The Musical

Chicago

Death Becomes Her

Hadestown

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Hell's Kitchen

Maybe Happy Ending

MJ The Musical

Moulin Rouge! The Musical

Once Upon A Mattress

SIX

Stereophonic

Suffs

Swept Away

Tammy Faye

The Great Gatsby

The Hills of California

The Lion King

The Notebook

Water for Elephants

Wicked
 

“My first job after high school was working as an usher for Broadway houses on the Great White Way. Never in a million years would I think my theatre world and education field would collide,” said Kathy Kong, M.S.Ed., School Counselor and former Coordinator of Student Activities at John Dewey High School, Brooklyn. “I am beyond grateful to Broadway Bridges for giving me the privilege and opportunity to expose young people to live theatre on Broadway. Broadway Bridges helps fill the gap of accessibility between high school students and Broadway. I hope Broadway Bridges continue to get the support they need, in order to be able to offer these opportunities to future generations of high school students.”

More information is available at BroadwayBridges.org.