CONNECTIVE Agency Founder Joins Dallas Children's Theater Board of Trustees

Dallas Children's Theater (DCT), the leading youth and family arts center in Dallas, announced the addition of Manuel F. Valencia to its Board of Trustees. Valencia, the founder and partner at CONNECTIVE Agency, will join a distinguished group of trustee leaders and board advisors, and further promote the history, vision and mission of DCT to inspire young people to creative and productive lives through the art of theater.

As the largest professional theater for youth in the southwest U.S., DCT delivers over 500 performances by adult actors each year, both at home and on the road. Dallas Children's Theater has been recognized by TIME magazine as one of the top five children's theaters in the country.

"I'm honored to be part of such a culturally significant organization," Valencia said. "Our family and friends have enjoyed DCT programming for years, and I am excited to bring awareness and tell the stories of DCT to more members of the DFW community."

A NY/NJ native, MBA graduate from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and resident of Oak Cliff/South Dallas, Valencia brings more than 20 years' experience in building and growing public and private sector organizations, as well as board of director leadership roles at other family and education-focused nonprofits.

"On behalf of the Dallas Children's Theater, we welcome Manny Valencia to our board of trustees, and we look forward to his passion for sharing our story," said Robyn Flatt, founder and executive director at DCT. "Manny's experience as a connector and storyteller will be a valuable asset to our organization as we continue to grow in 2018 and beyond."

Every year, over 60,000 local students and teachers get to experience theater at DCT with discounted and free tickets through the Student Matinee Performance Series and Mayor's Summer Reading Club. Since the theater started in 1984, over 5 million people have seen a performance and over 25,000 children have gotten their moment on stage through the DCT Academy.

Dallas Children's Theater (DCT) features professional actors performing for an annual audience of 250,000 young people and their families through mainstage productions (10 in the 2018-19 season), a national-touring company, and an arts-in-education program. As the only major organization in Dallas focusing solely on youth and family theater, DCT builds bridges of understanding between generations and cultures, instilling an early appreciation of literature, art, and the performing arts in tomorrow's artists and patrons. To learn more about DCT, visit www.dct.org.