Project Grant

Using high quality theater productions that are topic-based is a wonderful resource for increasing awareness and giving a forum for issues in our community. For this particular project, our outcome is to create awareness surrounding Women's Issues by producing a show starring nine actresses, each delivering monologues dealing with unique issues in their lives. We have partnered with the Saint Cloud State University Women's Center to continue the conversation after the curtain falls be hosting a series of round table discussions with local women advocates and experts ranging from resources on campus, through Anna Marie's shelter in the community, and other experts in women's issues. So by inviting the audience to participate in these discussions, we will measure round table participation, total show attendance, and follow-up contact to both Pioneer Place and The Women's Center. Additionally, through cross-promotions, on-site displays and literature, and an event geared at bringing awareness to women's issues, we intend to use this production as a catalyst to spread the word about our local resources - especially as they pertain to the Women's Center - while entertaining our audiences with an amazing production. Personnel from that organization will be on hand for each of the performances and will be given an area to share their information, add attendees to their mailing lists, and share general information regarding the Center. The success of this component of the event will be measured through increased attendance at Women's Center programming, amount of literature distributed, and the number of additions to their mailing and email lists throughout the run of the show. Finally, we will conduct a survey with our audiences to ask them how this experience fulfilled their expectations, what they learned through the production, and whether they think bringing shows like this to Central Minnesota are beneficial for raising awareness to our local resources as well as the entertainment value.There are a number of resources available to use to use in the evaluation process of this production. First, in regards to attendance, we have the technology in our box office software to identify the audience that participated through many demographics including age, income, and location. This data is important to evaluate whether or not we are reaching beyond our traditional season ticket base and reaching a wider audience. Secondly, a survey will be conducted on each performance night. This survey will gather other useful information regarding why people attended this particular production, did we meet their expectations, what was learned as a result of this theatre experience, and how has this outing increased their knowledge regarding our local resources, in particular, the Women's Center. Finally, by partnering with the Saint Cloud State University Women's Center, we want to increase awareness in both the wider community and the Saint Cloud State University community for both Women's Issues, and how theatre can be such a useful tool in stimulating those conversations. By using successful cross-promotions between the Center and Pioneer Place Theatre Company, we hope to raise a leval of awareness surrounding these resources. This is also measured through in participation in the round table discussions.