Heralded as the “crown jewel of children’s theatre in New York”  by the legendary James Earl Jones, for over 23 years, the Children’s Theatre Company (CTC) has been harnessing the power of theater as a tool for moral reasoning and capacity building. Our critically acclaimed musicals, choral catalog and curriculum (New York Times; Times of London; British Theatre Guide; BBC and more) alongside our robust community building model, has been selected as the Top 12 Children’s Theatre Companies Across the U.S. by Backstage Magazine. 

Will you consider continuing your partnership as we embark on our first ever capital-campaign to ensure our company’s impact and legacy and to serve many more generations to come?  We want to take this opportunity to thank you for your partnership in our movement, empowering children and youth to elevate the purpose of the arts in their lives by viewing themselves as the voices of positive change and agents of healing in their communities.After a successful 5 city tour of Henry Box Brown: A Musical Journey, CTC’s Creative Team, led by Co-Founders Mehr Mansuri and Eric Dozier, Frank Sanchez and Jack Lenz were approached by four-time Tony Award-winning Broadway producers who have optioned the show from CTC and have been guiding the commercial development of the show to open on Broadway in 2024-25!

(Click here) Cast of Henry Box Brown on the BBC!

This year, we aim to raise $1.3M to :

• Sustain four existing CTC chapters
• To help expand and build capacity alongside parents and local community-builders 
• Empower artists  and educators to redefine the purpose of the arts as a catalyst for social action and positive social change.

The revenue generated from our grants only covers just 15% of our operational costs. We must raise the remaining 85% with contributions from individuals like you as well as corporate, foundation, and government sources.

While creating transformative experiences in personal development, CTC has a proven track record of:

• Creating a nucleus that empowers families with the art at the heart and the child at the center.
• Partners with educators by offering a new model of musical theater that is both socially, and academically relevant, challenging, and which addresses powerful themes while cultivating empathy and compassion within a world embracing vision.

​Your gift makes it possible for us to continue providing young people with CTC’s:

• Award-winning musicals (New York Times, Times of London, British Theatre Guide) –
  click to read more
• Critically acclaimed Choral Catalog
• Innovative character and spiritual empowerment curriculum (accredited program) 

By supporting our Capital Campaign, you become a vital part of our journey to empower youth, build character, and foster positive change through theater.

Join us in making a lasting impact by contributing to our mission of spreading the magic of theatre to communities across America!

Whether to:

• Support student scholarships in underserved communities;
• Produce, record and publish new musicals, choral songs or character education curriculum
• Professional development for artists and educators 
• or costumes; recording-studio session for a cast-album or bus transportation for kids,

Together, we can ensure that all children can be engaged, empowered and their lives enhanced through the transformative power of theatre as a tool for moral reasoning and social action.

Our accredited multi-disciplinary theater arts programs; trained teaching-artists and unique character-education curriculum has been integrated into academic school-hours as well as after-school and weekend residencies – resulting in:

• Over 14 public and private-school partnerships
• Over 49 artistic and production collaborators
• 11,000 new audience members just in ONE YEAR (2022-2023)

Our young performers have performed CTC’s award-winning social-action musicals and peacemaker speeches at the United Nations General Assembly; United Nations Women’s Summit; UNICEF promo reels; Sesame Street; Good Morning America; and UNICEF concerts with Nelson Mandela, Harry Belafonte, Wynton Marsalis, Anjelique Kidjo and more.Utilizing the power of theater as a tool for moral reasoning, the Children’s Theater Company is rooted in the belief that through the magic of theater youth can become the voices of positive change and agents of healing in their communities. We believe that the highest form of artistic expression is to be a force for social good. 

We envision children becoming the protagonists of their communities, the future artists, writing and singing their community’s stories of hope and justice. Informed by a social-justice imperative at its core, CTC’s award-winning musical and choral catalog seeks to explore the power of children and youth to transform community, develop empathy and through that communion, to learn from lives we’ve never lived.

Our programs combine theater with moral capacity-building, cultivating in children and youth an understanding of the personal, cultural and spiritual forces that shape society. Young people learn to channel their talents towards noble aims of service to their community. They learn that the highest expression of the arts is to be a force for social good. In this light, theater itself, indeed the arts, takes on new meaning, as a means to uplift communities and explore our human oneness. As such, CTC partners fully with parents, schools and community-builders, in raising the next generation of protagonists to write new stories of hope and resilience.

In 2022-23, by establishing a LOCAL ADVISORY BOARD in each city, we ensured the aspirations of the community at a local level of ownership – subsequently, we were able to swiftly establish our signature “Kids with a Cause” Theater Camps for a 2nd consecutive year: in Pensacola, FL (93 students); Jackson, TN (68 students); Flint, MI (106 students) and New York City (PS10 – Brooklyn – 800 students).

ACADEMIC & SCHOOL STATS: 

Thanks to our innovative theater-based educational programs, CTC students have consistently out-performed their peers in literacy skills. 

• An independent study led by Columbia University teachers college & NYU Dept of governance showed that CTC participants outperformed their peers on 87% of 23 literacy skills tested.
• The study also showed that after participating in just one year of CTC residency, CTC participants from “Title 1 Public Schools” had the HIGHEST ATTENDANCE and zero school drop-out rates resulting in a 95% increase in student retention. 

Mehr Mansuri, an NEA-awarded writer and co-composer, specializes in socially impactful musicals for young audiences. Her recent work, “Henry Box Brown: A Musical Journey,” received consecutive Best Musical nominations at the Fringe International Theatre Festival in the UK. Mehr has coached young actors for Broadway and films, including the Oscar-winning Lee Daniels’ film “Precious.” 

Eric Dozier, co-founder of Oneness Lab, is a music educator and cultural activist. As the historian and co-composer of “Henry ‘Box’ Brown: A Musical Journey,” he’s the musical director at the award-winning Children’s Theatre Company of NYC. Both Mr. Dozier and Ms. Mansuri are instrumental in expanding the Children’s Theater Company across various cities, including Flint, MI; Jackson, TN; Pensacola, FL; Savannah, GA, and soon, Chicago, IL.

We realize that some people just can’t contribute financially, but that doesn’t mean you can’t help!

Thank you for all of the support that you have given us over the years. 

The Children’s Theater Company is supported in part by generous contributions from the following supporters: National Endowment for the Arts; New York Council on the Arts; Baha’i Office of Education & Schools; Wayfarer Foundation; Fraydun Foundation; Amir & Rosita Manocherian Foundation; Navid & Marjan Yavari; One Planet Ops; Posner-Wallace Foundation; Renee & Theodore Weiller Foundation; Andrew & Dana Stone Family Foundation;
NYU Office of Governance and Community Affairs; Escambia Children’s Trust; Innisfree Hotels; Florida Power & Light and the Andrew Sabin Family Foundation.
 

VITAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY:

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CTC Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/childrenstheaterco
HBB Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/henryboxbrownmusical
CTC IG – @childrenstheaterco
HBB IG – @henryboxbrown_themusical
CTC Twitter – @childrentheater
HBB Twitter – @Henry_Box_Brown
Promo Reel: Henry Box Brown BCC
Children’s Theater Co. (CTC) Official website: https://www.childrenstheatercompany.org/
Henry Box Brown (HBB) Official website: https://www.henryboxbrownthemusical.com/
Eric Dozier Official Website: ericdozier.com