KINKY BOOTS to Take Part in The Shubert Theater's 'Art in Action' Project in New Haven

The Shubert Theater, the birthplace of some of Broadway's greatest hits, has grown from its storied history to become a leader in theatre education and community outreach in the greater New Haven area. They have unveiled an upcoming program aligning bullying/acceptance issues in society with a production of KINKY BOOTS.

The theater's on-going "Art in Action" program introduces a Broadway show to local students as they study the themes of the show, relate it back to an overall issue in society, and create a response in an artistic medium.

This year with KINKY BOOTS, the theatre has teamed up with the Co-Op High School Gay/Straight Alliance (GSA) to confront the gender stereotype issues that children face every day. The project, "KINKY BOOTS: You Can Change the World When You Change Your Mind," will teach participants the invaluable lesson of acceptance and addresses bullying.

As part of this initiative, a GSA high school summit will be held at New Haven's Co-Op High School on April 28, 2016. This summit will invite GSA groups from all high schools in the city to come together and participate in activity led by True Colors, a non-profit organization that ensures the needs of sexual and gender minority youth are both recognized and competently met in schools and other community organizations. The summit will feature workshops on "SAGA (Sexuality and Gender Acceptance)," "Christianity at the LGBTQ Community" and "Breaking Free: Coming Out."

On June 9, 2016, participants in the program will be encouraged to attend the 2 p.m. performance of KINKY BOOTS, where all GSA groups will be invited to attend a post-show talk back with the Co-Op GSA students and members of the cast.

This program was made possible by members of the greater New Haven community and beyond coming together to provide support: Broadway League, Dwight Hall at Yale, True Colors, and the Whitney Center. Each entity donated valuable time and resources to bring this "education via theatre" project to life.