15 West 28th Street, New York, NY 10001 | www.tadatheater.com | 212.252.1619
Institutional supporters American Honda Motor Co* American Realty Capital Axe-Houghton Foundation The Barker Welfare Foundation Barnes & Noble Booksellers Bloomberg Philanthropies California Pizza Kitchen Chase Community Giving* Christian A. Johnson Endeavor Foundation Consolidated Edison Company of NY Dramatists Guild Fund, Inc. The Dorothy Loudon Foundation Duetsche Bank The Edith Allen Clark Charitable Trust The Ferriday Fund Charitable Trust
individual supporters ($100 and above) Anonymous (6) Catha and Martin Abrahams Sharon Alston-Harmon Anna and Dean Backer Gary Bagley Helene Banks and Mike Cioffi Beirne-Shafer Family Veronica and William Beirne Craig Beresin Mary Berner Susan Bernfield & Claude Millman Geri and Mark Besca Rick Brown Sarah and Chalmers Browne Micah Buchdahl Lorenzo Carcaterra Ann and Leslie Chao Manus Chaorineau Betsy Cohen and Juan Tie Jennifer and Ken Cohen Sabrina Coughlin & Turner Smith Lynne and George Downing Donna Drake and John Meyers Gene Dunham and Roger Kozol Marica Dunn & Jonathan Sobel Tracey and Bob Early Chris Eaton Kathleen and George Eichen Judith Eick Carolina Esquenazi & Jared Friedberg Arelis and Max Estevez Robert Evans Jody Falco & Jeffrey Steinman Gary Ferrar Amy and Anthony Fiore Kirsten Flowers & Jonathan Fitzhugh Ping and Roger Foster Kelly Francis-Callahan Linda Freitag Laura Friedrich Lin Fu Joanna and Angel Fuentes Anita and Dino Fusco Elma Garcia-Cannavino and James Cannavino Bruce and Keryn Geller Dara Genesi Alex Getlin Gaile Gibbs and Clark Warren
Fred and Suzan Ehrman Foundation The Lili & Steve Fishman Gift Fund The Friars Foundation Goldman Sachs & Co.* Google (and Google*) Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust Heart and Soul Charitable Fund The Hyde and Watson Foundation Jerome Robbins Foundation Elroy and Terry Krumholz Foundation Microsoft* Morgan Stanley* National Endowment for the Arts NYC Department of Cultural Affairs Dept of Youth Community Development
Maureen Gillespie Patrick Giovanniello Gail Dawson Gray & Howard Gray Lynne Gold-Bikin Faye Greenberg and David Lawrence Rande and Ken Greiner Lorri Gumanow & Les Levinowitz Lynne K. Halliday and B.H. Barry Margery and Sheldon Harnick The Healy Family Heather and Adam Heft Donald Henderson Winnie Holzman & Paul Dooley Catharine Hough Fredeka and Bernard Johnson Richard Johnson Dori Jones Katharine Jones Katty Jones and David Derby Alyssia Lazin Kapic & Pavel Kapic Isobel Konecky Randy Kushman Sandra Kwon and Jeen Pae Malcolm Lazin S. Lennard Mary Letitia Headly Bonnie Levy Nancy and Jerry Levy Betsy Lichtenstein & Matthew Grob Julie Lichtstein Lisa Lieberman & Mitchell Korbey Mike Lounsbery Kaila Mackenzie Deb MacRae Sally Mao Geradine Marotta Lisa Master and Ken Park Julia & Andrew McCall-Mboya Adina McGinley Julie and Bruce Menin Deborah and David Miller Julie Morrone & Jerry Abrahams Jeffrey Moskin Donna Murphy and Shawn Elliott Allyson Ocean Karen Oliver Heather Olson and Glenn Crotty Ursula and Gerald Oscar Ellen and Sandy Oxfeld
NYC Council Member Robert Jackson NYC Council Member Jessica Lappin NYC Council Member Stephen Levin NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn New York State Council on the Arts The Pinkerton Foundation Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute The Rudin Foundation, Inc. The Shubert Foundation, Inc. United Technologies* Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Winfield Foundation Xerox Corporation
Barbara Page and John Liu Leigh and Charlie Penner Lisa and Marc Pensabene Jerilyn and Brian Perman Marsha and David Perman Robert Perry Shelia Pohly Emily Remes and Craig Stewart Eileen and Brian Riano Erica and Geraldo Rivera Stephen Rodd & Janie Chobot-Rodd Margarita Rosa Peter Ross Alcides & Addison Roverano Mare and John Rubin Harriet and Daniel Saxon Joyce and Ivan Schmidt Amy and Jake Schrader Viktoria Schrager Susan and Robert Semmens Liesbeth Severiens Parke and Richard Parke Tobe and Ralph Sevush Byron Shafer Gretchen Shugart and Jonathan Maurer Randi and Brett Singer Jackie and Mark Soslow Pamela Sprayregen and Eric Weissman Katy Stokes and David Esseks Peter Tipograph Bruce and Honey Trevens Janine Nina Trevens and Andrew Bryant Curtis Trinko Diana A. Tully Frank Turaj Julie Turaj and Robert Pohly Kit and Myles Turner Leslie Uggams Lisa and David Untracht Hanie and Jerry Warshaw Elana Weinstein & Scott Sullivan Karen R. Weiss Kim and Andrew Wiley-Schwartz Deborah and John Wunderli
*Corporate Matching Program
In Memory of Irene Haas Liz and David Kramer Elise and Jerome Pustilnik Lynne and Scott Schiffer In Memory of Ken Cohen Karen and Don Bergander Russell Borgman Lisa Brill Judy and Edson Burton Argero and Neil Clark James T. Delaney Eillen M. D’elia Catherine & Nicholas Demartini Lynne and George Downing Elizabeth and William Dunn Mary Beth Evans & Dave Moretti Laura and Edward Gillen Carroll and Malcolm Highet Kim Jessor The Lampiasi Family Jennifer and Anthony Landa Lori and John Lettieri Louisa Luisi Lisa Master and Ken Park Brian McCarthy Christine McGuinness New Players Company Margaret Schaefer Real Estate Group of Shearman & Sterling LLP Chris Smith Anne Vandevander Nancy Whittemore Susan and Charles Wimer Randi and John Wood Patricia and Wayne Yankus Susan Zalauf TADA! also wishes to thank the generous donors who contribute under $100. Every dollar makes a difference and we appreciate your support.
A letter from TADA!’s Executive & Artistic Director It’s the beginning of a new year at TADA! - filled with our unique blend of singing, dancing, acting and, of course, kids. As I’m writing this, I’m in TADA!’s rehearsal room hearing members of the Ensemble learn the brand new score for the musical Samantha Spade, Ace Detective: The Case of the Maltball Falcon. We’re preparing for a staged reading of the show, which will receive its world premiere at TADA! this Spring. It’s so exciting to have the talented writers, Lisa Diana Shapiro and Georgia Stitt, here with the Ensemble Members working on developing this new musical specifically for TADA!. The 2013/2014 Season will also bring two revivals (The Gift of Winter and Heroes) and a world premiere dance theater piece (Unsung). It’s astounding to think of the shows that wouldn’t have existed if TADA! hadn’t been around for the last 29 years -- such great works that have been produced at TADA! and at theaters across the country such as The Magic Pot: Three Tales From China, Everything About School (almost), The Gift of Winter and Sleepover. It’s also fun to see our Alum on TV -- like Kerry Washington (voted best dressed 2013 by People Magazine and star of Scandal), Emmy Winner Ricki Lake, and Jordan Peele, who does one amazing Obama impersonation on Key and Peele; on the big screen -- like Josh Peck, whose new film Battle of the Year is in theaters now; and on stage -- like Victoria Platt who performed recently at The Public. And that’s only some of what’s going on. Last season, we were thrilled to welcome so many kids into our Ensemble family. All 80+ of them were deserving to be on-stage but we didn’t have enough roles for them in our three-show season. Our priority is to serve the current Ensemble Members with as many opportunities as possible to learn and perform. It is through our rehearsals, Ensemble classes and youth development activities that TADA! becomes a second home for these kids. As a result, this year, TADA! will only hold auditions for specific shows as necessary. On the Education front along with all our returning school partnerships, TADA! is pleased to join forces with Success Academy; free, high-performing public charter schools, to provide arts education to four of their schools. With session dates that will range from August to June, this is TADA!’s single largest partnership with one school since the residency programs began in 1985. We have also moved the third annual Dance-A-Thon to November 2nd! We hope that this event will teach our kids about philanthropy and giving back, making their experience with the company even more meaningful. Plus, it’s going to be a really good time! In other news, TADA! happily welcomes two new staff members in key positions; Todd W. Fliedner as Director of Development and Adrienne Scott as Marketing & Press Manager. Please stop by and say hello to them, and me, the next time you’re in the neighborhood. And, please, read the rest of this report to learn all that TADA! accomplished last season.
tada! theater staff Janine Nina Trevens, Executive & Artistic Director Amy Fiore, Managing Director Joanna Greer, Associate Artistic Director Rod Christensen, Director of Education Todd W. Fliedner, Director of Development
Andy Bryant, IT Manager Carl Jaynes, Business Manager Matthew Haws, Ensemble Manager Adrienne Scott, Marketing & Press Manager Michael Lounsbery, Production/Space Manager Amy Grossman, Development Assistant Naomi Avadanei, Education Assistant
tada
tada! Youth Theater’s 2012/2013 annual report
We at TADA! were deeply saddened by the loss of two members of the extended TADA! family this past year. Ken Cohen, father of recent Ensemble alumnus Alec (who was most recently seen in Up To You) left us too soon in June and Irene Haas, author of the book The Little Moon Theater, illustrator of many of our past posters, and a member of the Artistic Advisory committee, passed away in April. We have been so touched by the many donations made in their memories. Both will be sorely missed.
Youth Theater
arts education programs The 2012/2013 Season focused on friendship, acceptance, individuality and perseverance. Three musicals and a special musical revue ran for a total of 87 performances for thousands of audience members at TADA!’s 90-seat theater on West 28th Street, just north of the Flatiron district and south of Herald Square. Ticket prices continued to be subsidized by funders in order to be offered for as little as $6 per child. The Kids Club program, now in its second year, entitled each child in TADA!’s classes and camps to a free ticket to every production. The season started in November with Sneak Peek (Nov 16-18; 4 performances). Audiences were invited to see selected musical numbers from the three productions of the upcoming season, as well a special tribute to musical legend Liza Minnelli. Our winter show, was a revival of The Little Moon Theater (Jan 19-Feb 17; 25 performances). Based on the book by the late Irene Haas, a traveling troupe of actors meet an odd assortment of characters including an endearing fairy godmother who is just one wish away from retirement. In spring, Adventures from Ezra Jack Keats came to life on the stage (April 19- May 19; 23 performances) as 2 one-acts based on beloved books by the author and illustrator, “Apt. 3” was a dance-theater piece where the sound of a saxophone takes brothers Sam and Ben through the cacophonous halls of their apartment building. In “Maggie and the Pirate”, feisty Maggie spends her days with her friends and pet cricket Nicki, until one day it goes missing with a note left in her place saying “the pirate was here.”
Cast member in The Little Moon Theater Winter 2013
The summer show was a revival of Sleepover (July 11-August 3; 35 performances). This show, originally commissioned by TADA! in the 1980’s, was re-worked to bring a fresh and modern twist to a classic theme and integrated pop music created and performed by two bands comprised of TADA! alumni: Love Jones Girlz and 212 Green.
TADA!’s ticket subsidy program provided non-profit organizations and public schools discounted group tickets ($6 children and $10 adults) making TADA! accessible to a socio-economically diverse audience. More than 30 organizations took advantage of this program, with many booking multiple shows and performances. Organizations that attended include Black Spectrum Theater, Harlem Children’s Zone, and Children’s Aid Society. TADA! also partnered with the Children’s Museum of the Arts to present concerts of Maggie and The Pirate and Sleepover at the museum. In return, their museum-going kids created a rotating collection of artwork to display in TADA!’s lobby and enjoyed discounted show tickets.
resident youth ensemble During the 2012/2013 season TADA!’s Resident Youth Ensemble maintained its highest number of members with 82 active kids ages 8-18. 84% of Ensemble members returned and TADA! admitted 23 new Members. As in previous years, free classes were offered in dance and improv. At the request of some members, TADA! introduced advanced classes for teenagers. Guest artists were once again brought in (including some TADA! alumni) to teach tap, hip hop, improvisation, contemporary/ acro dance and musical theater improv. Other benefits provided this year included transportation subsidies for members who demonstrated financial need; free, healthy snacks provided during each class and rehearsal; private voice lessons; H.O.T (Hang Out Time) during which Ensemble members were given the chance to socialize and enjoy a sense of community with their peers without additional responsibility; and application assistance and audition preparation for middle, high school and college admissions. This year we also arranged and took our high school students on college Cast member on the set of Sleepover Summer 2013 tours, visiting campuses including Yale, SUNY Purchase, Rutgers and Pace. In the 2012/2013 Season five Ensemble Members took advantage of Job RAP (Readiness Apprenticeship Program) where high school-aged members are hired for paid positions within different departments in the organization at a rate higher than minimum wage. Opportunities were made available in the administrative office and/or working behind the scenes as Assistant Choreographer, Assistant Director, and Production Assistant and allowed those kids to stay in the program during their crutial years, rather than being forced to seek after-school employment. Additional benefits given to members included free tickets to Broadway’s “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” Pan-Asian Repertory Theater and The New York Pops; a family excursion day at Governor’s Island and a Cabaret event for members to show their peers, family and friends talents they normally wouldn’t have the chance to showcase. At the beginning of the season artistic staff met with Members and their families one-on-one to discuss progress, challenges, a course of study and goals for the year. Once again TADA! met its goal that 100% of Ensemble seniors graduated high school. Graduates in 2013 will attend Northwestern University (winner of a Ron Brown Program scholarship), Marymount Manhattan, Wagner College, American University, the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati and Macalester University.
In 2012/2013 TADA!’s Arts Education Programs reached nearly 25,000 students. TADA!’s classes and school programs for grades pre-K-12 were taught by TADA!’s roster of 48 professional Teaching Artists. For the In- and After-School programs, TADA! served many schools located in low-income urban neighborhoods and all programs were designed to address the different abilities, strengths, and challenges of participating students. Regardless of any individual child’s ability, TADA! worked to highlight every student’s talents and set a high standard for them to take chances and creative risks. TADA! held 238 Arts Education Programs at 58 schools and community centers including Musical Theater Writing Residencies, Literacy- Integrated Residencies, Musical Theater Skills Building, Assembly Programs, Staff Development, and Student Presentations. TADA!’s on site classes ran for 6-11 weekly sessions in the fall, winter and spring. Almost 50 weeklong and one-day camps were held on-site whenever school was out, all summer long and during school holidays from September to May. TADA!’s goals for all education programs are for students to appreciate the ways in which the three art forms of singing, dancing and acting are synthesized to form musical theater; learn how to cooperate and work together as a team; and gain the sense of accomplishment that comes from the presentation of their work to their classmates, school community, family and friends. A crowning jewel for TADA!’s education programs is the In-School Musical Theater Writing Residency where over the course of 20 weeks, students develop, write and perform an original musical based on their curricular study. Programs this year culminated with performances of “Who Was Alexander Hamilton?” and “Let’s Explore” by 5th Grade students at PS 69 Brooklyn based on the Social Studies curricular topic of American Exploration; and “Fire” and “The Playground Connection” by students at PS12 based on the curricular theme of slavery during the 1600s, which utilized historical information about Groot Manuel, a slave who petitioned for his freedom and went on to build the first black community in Brooklyn.
Students from PS 69 Brooklyn
Financial aid was awarded to approximately 20% of students in on-site classes and camps ranging from partial to full scholarships. Over $20,000 in scholarships was awarded in 2012/2013. TADA!’s Resident Youth Ensemble also presented schooltime performances for the winter and spring productions and an activity-filled study guide for teachers and interested parents was created. CLASSES/CAMPS
financial update
RESIDENCIES
INDIVIDUAL GIVING
GOVERNMENT GRANTS
TADA! is pleased to share that the outlook for FY14 is bright. The organization has reduced some payroll costs, kept all other expenses in tight check and has already secured one new and one largely increased in-school residency program, growing that budget line by 17%. A separate FUNDRAISING EVENTS individual donor has also pledged a $250,000 gift over the next 36 months. BOX OFFICE FOUNDATION/CORPORATE GRANTS OTHER EARNED INCOME
Income: Classes/Camps 24% Residencies 23% Individual Giving 22% Government Grants 10% Foundation/Corporations 10% Fundraising Events 4% Other 4% Box Office 3%
We also continued to meet the financial aid and scholarship needs of our constituency by providing financial assistance for classes and camps; and maintaining the consistently low ticket price of $6 per child, even though ticket sales provide a mere 5% of TADA!’s annual budget. The TADA! Resident Youth Ensemble also grew to serve more kids than ever before, which costs EDUCATION EXPENSES the organization an average of $10,000 per member, per year, but is provided at no cost to the members. THEATER EXPENSES TADA! is unfortunately projecting a budget deficit for FY13. This comes on the heels of two successful fiscal years and illustrates TADA!’s need for institutional support towards capacity building, long-term stability and growth. The budget shortcomings in FY13 primarily fell into two areas, the most significant in foundation support where TADA!’s largest funder did not renew MARKETING EXPENSES their gift for all similar organizations, citing the possibility of a funding priority shift. Special event income also suffered due to the hurricane in fall 2012, which occurred during promotion of a usually successful season kick-off event. Despite these set-backs, TADA! made great strides in many income areas, most notably a 7% increase in residency programs and 4% increase in class and camp income, despite many program cancellations around Hurricane Sandy. ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES BUILDING RENT & RELATED EXP. DEVELOPMENT EXPENSES
Expense: Education programs 30% Theater programs 28% Administration 17% Building rent & related 14% Development 6% Marketing 5%
TADA! Board of Directors
Stephen T. Rodd, President Laura S. Friedrich, Vice President Chalmers Browne, Treasurer (interim) Don Healy, Secretary Sharon Alston-Harmon Ken Greiner
Sheila Peluso Erica Rivera Janine Nina Trevens Julie Turaj Lisa Gold Untracht Elana Weinstein
TADA! artistic advisory Board Kaye Ballard Kenneth Cavander Michael Colby Delia Ephron John Forster Sheldon Harnick Richard Peaslee
Chita Rivera Marcia Rodd Michael Rupert Stephen Schwartz John Shea Charles Strouse Leslie Uggams