Thanks to recent grant funding, about 12,000 Central Coast-based students will get to attend multiple upcoming events at the Performing Arts Center (PAC) in San Luis Obispo free of charge.
In mid-October, the Foundation for the PAC announced that it received its first-ever grant from the Western States Arts Federation in support of the 2023-24 School Matinee Program. The multi-month season includes a handful of upcoming performances, which thousands of students grades K-12 and their teachers will be able to attend at no cost.
Students and teachers based in both Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties are eligible to benefit from the School Matinee Program. Additional sponsors of the program include Bank of America San Luis Obispo Region, the California Arts Council, the Hoag Family Foundation, Mechanics Bank, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, and other individual donors and business partners, according to press materials.
“Live performances give children the opportunity to see professional artistry as they tap into their own creativity,” Greg Bland, president of Bank of America San Luis Obispo Region, said in press materials. “When children experience live arts events, they see the benefit of communities coming together to share in enjoyment. This is true for children and adults alike.”
Info on the full list of event offerings to be held in conjunction with the School Matinee Program is available at pacslo.org. Upcoming shows in the lineup include North: The Musical, slated to run at the PAC in January 2024 as part of the production’s spring 2024 West Coast Tour.
Created by musician, writer, and arts educator Ashli St. Armant, North: The Musical is set during the antebellum period and follows the journey of a Black teenager and his young mother who escape the Deep South by traveling north through the Underground Railroad.
“This is such an important and impactful story, and we are looking forward to sharing it with the SLO community,” Andrea Castillo, the PAC’s outreach coordinator, said in press materials.
As of mid-October, about 2,000 local students already registered to attend the School Matinee Program performance of North: The Musical, scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024.
According to the PAC’s website, student matinee reservation requests for all events included in the 2023-24 School Matinee Season have closed, but there is a waiting list available for those who would like to be notified if additional seats become available.
For more details, call (805) 756-4849. The PAC is located at 1 Grand Ave., San Luis Obispo.
File photo courtesy of Kristin Hoover” class=”uk-display-block uk-position-relative uk-visible-toggle”>
File photo courtesy of Kristin Hoover
SLO’s Performing Arts Center at night.