Expanding PFL’s Reach in 2012

Dear Friends of Plays For Living,

Doesn’t it seem like each year passes more quickly than the last? That was especially so in 2011 which was another year of growth for Plays for Living (PFL) as we brought the unspoken into the open for over 10,000 seniors, teachers, students and others.

If you, like many other PFL supporters, are caught up in the fast pace of yet another year end, please feel free to forego the reading of this years appeal letter (for now) take a tour of our newly re-designed website and make a donation in support of our work.

For those who want to hear a bit more about our year, we are proud to share some highlights from 2011:

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We conducted a 25 senior center, five borough tour of “The First Step,” a play about senior safety, sponsored by the NYC Departments of Transportation (DOT) and for the Aging. 10-week intensive theater workshops were conducted at three of the centers, which culminated in short plays performed as part of a DOT awards ceremony (the Selma Awards), held at the South Court Auditorium at the 42nd street New York Public Library. The tour reached several thousand NYC seniors who participated in facilitated conversations about senior safety. In 2012 we will tour an additional 25 centers, and will conduct intensive theater workshops at five of those centers.
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We partnered with Atria West 86th Street, a senior residence in Manhattan, to produce a performance of “Still Growing”, directed by Joan Vail Thorne and featuring Frances Sternhagen, Larry Pine, Kathryn Grody, Ana Reeder and Matthew Rauch. It was a wonderful performance and we are following up several new business prospects that have developed since the show.

• We collaborated with Sara Crosby and Rose Ann Kelly of the Dakota Academy of Performing Arts at the Pavilion (DAPA) in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, a PFL Affiliate, to produce two performances of our bullying play, “Where Does It End.” Teenagers who work with DAPA’s “Plays for Living” theatre company travelled to Washington DC to perform the play for the social workers from around the US attending the centennial conference of The Alliance for Children & Families. The teenage performers received rave reviews.

In 2012 (our 70th year!), we will build on these and other successes. For example, we are eager to grow our Affiliate Program. The purpose of PFL’s Affiliate Program is to build a national consortium that will make the transformative power of the PFL method available to communities throughout the country. We have met with groups in Portland, Maine; New London, Connecticut; Washington, DC; Atlanta, Georgia; and Oahu Hawaii who are already working for the good of their communities and who feel that PFL could provide a new tool for making a difference. We need your help to make this happen.

We understand you receive many appeals at this time of year. Your contribution to PFL of $1000 or more (Producer), $500 (Director), $250 (Actor) or $100 (Patron) means more theater workshops in schools and senior centers, and more performances and conversations for audiences struggling with some of the pressing social issues of our day. In 2012 we will be focusing on bullying amongst teenagers and issues facing seniors and their families. We so want to expand our reach!!

Thank you for your continued support. After 70 years, PFL intends to continue to bring the unspoken into the open. It is clearly more needed than ever.

All the best,

Keith E. McHenry

Executive Director