Trinity Rep Annual Project Discovery Gala Raises $85,000 And Education Endowment Announced

Trinity Repertory Company held its 2018 Project Discovery Gala, which supports education programs at Trinity Rep, on November 14. Through ticket sales, sponsorships, and a live auction, the event raised more than $85,000. The event was co-chaired by resident actors Rebecca Gibel and Charlie Thurston with Barbara and Larry Schoenfeld, and Ken Sigel and Sarah Kelly. Resident actor Joe Wilson, Jr. served as emcee and auctioneer.

At the event, Trinity Rep also announced at the event that over $1 million has been raised for an endowment fund to ensure the permanence of the Project Discovery student matinee program at Trinity Rep. This first benchmark for the endowment campaign has been led by Trinity Rep board member Paul Choquette over the course of the past two years. Trinity Rep will continue to seek gifts to grow the endowment, which will ensure Trinity Rep's ability to continue to introduce children to the power of live theater at little or no cost in perpetuity.

"Education is one of Trinity Rep's core values, and we are so thankful for the generosity of those supporting the Project Discovery Gala and the endowment for helping to put those values into action," said Executive Director Tom Parrish. "The Project Discovery endowment when fully funded will secure the permanence of this flagship program that has impacted so many young people and been a model for arts education around the country."

Education at Trinity Rep

The funds raised at the 2018 Project Discovery Gala support education programs at Trinity Rep, whose dedication to education through art is one of its guiding principles as the State Theater of Rhode Island. At the center of the gala's focus is Project Discovery, which has given access to live professional theater to more than 1.4 million students since 1966 and offers study guides, in-school workshops, and residencies for students, as well as professional development and preview nights for teachers.

Education at Trinity also includes Creative Classrooms, an arts integration program that builds community and develops 21st century skills in the classroom; the Young Actors Summer Institute (YASI), which offers electives such as playwriting, musical theater, and Shakespeare to youth in the summer; Studio Classes taught year-round by Trinity Rep's artistic and education staff and company members; Trinity Zoo, the company's teen improv troupe; Teen Ambassadors, who meet 2-3 times a month and see mainstage productions free of charge, as well as attending master classes with staff; the Write Here! Write Now! playwriting competition; and the Trinity Rep Active Imagination Network (TRAIN), which uses drama as therapy for children with autism spectrum disorders.

Trinity Rep reaches nearly 20,000 K-12 students each year through its education programming. More info is at www.trinityrep.com/education.

Trinity Repertory Company

Rhode Island's Tony Award-winning theater, Trinity Rep has created unparalleled professional theater for and with its community since its founding in 1963. Trinity Rep strives to facilitate human connection and has been a driving force behind the creativity that fuels and defines the region for more than 50 years.

Trinity Rep is committed to reinventing the public square and inspiring dialogue by creating emotionally-stimulating live productions that range from classical to contemporary and innovative education programs for all ages and abilities. Its annual production of A Christmas Carol has brought families together for 41 years and made memories for over a million audience members.

Subscriptions for the 2018-19 Season are now on sale. The season includes Pride & Prejudice by Kate Hamill, black odyssey by Marcus Gardley, a special limited-engagement of An Iliad by Lisa Peterson and Denis O'Hare, Macbeth by William Shakespeare, The Song of Summer by Lauren Yee, Little Shop of Horrors with book and lyrics by Howard Ashman and music by Alan Menken, and José Rivera's Marisol.

For more information on our 2018-19 Season, call the box office at (401) 351-4242 or visit Trinity Rep's website at www.TrinityRep.com.

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