SCHOOL MATINEES
The Suffolk Center is excited to announce our 2023 in-house matinee season that continues to provide quality, educational, and affordable experiences for students of all ages. We strive to select weekday matinees that help and support our local educators, whether public, private or at home. Many of the performances are also open to the general public. We believe that every child deserves the opportunity to experience the arts through live theater and we are committed to being a helpful resource to enhance every student’s learning. Students will also be able to experience these performances in a beautiful historical theater built in 1922.
We look forward to a fantastic season full of learning and growing in the arts!
Matinee Information:
- All School Matinees are located in the Birdsong Theater at the Suffolk Center
- Performances are 55-60 minutes in length
- Student matinees are open to public schools, private schools, homeschool groups, and individuals
- Seating is General Admission, however, large school groups will have assigned seating based on time of reservations
- All groups should arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the performance to insure a prompt start time of the performance
- Groups traveling in a bus should use our drop-off location at the front of the building near the fountain and use the front steps to enter the building.
Please contact LaFrancis McPherson, Performing Arts Manager, for questions and to reserve tickets for school groups.
757-923-0003 ext. 103, l.mcpherson@suffolkcenter.org
“Every Brilliant Thing”
by Duncan Macmillan
MAY 31, 2023, 10 AM and 6 PM ~ FREE
In cooperation with Virginia Stage Company, Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts is pleased to present “Every Brilliant Thing” on our stage, Wednesday, May 31st at 10 AM and 6 PM. “Every Brilliant Thing” is told from the perspective of a single performer. It is an immersive experience that blends comedy, improv, and audience interaction to tells one individual’s story of growing up in the shadow of their mother’s struggle with suicidal depression while also learning to grapple with their own journey and life experiences. Surprisingly charming and delightful, “Every Brilliant Thing” provides a life-affirming jolt of humanism, reminding us that hope comes from the miracles of life’s minutiae. The aim is to destigmatize the conversation around mental health and encourage the audience to see the many ways in which we all experience joy and hardship.
The performance is approximately 60 minutes in length and will provide afterwards an opportunity for students to speak privately and confidentiality with a healthcare professional, should they feel a need. “Every Brilliant Thing” speaks openly about depression, mental illness, and suicide. If you or someone you know is in crisis or thinking about self-harm or suicide, there is help available.
“Every Brilliant Thing” is recommended for children in grades 7 and higher only. Admission is FREE, but seats are limited and requests for tickets will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
ORISIRISI
Moonlight Stories
Sponsored in Part by Virginia African American Cultural Center,
Arts for Learning (The Virginia Affiliate of Young Audiences),
Virginia Tourism Commission, Virginia Commission for the Arts, and
The National Endowment for the Arts.
Wednesday, January 25, 2023
9:30 am – 10:20 am
Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts
110 West Finney Avenue | Suffolk, Virginia 23434
Celebrate Africa with Orisirisi drumming, dance, and call and response, inspiring
the audience by exploring traditional stories of African heritage. Participants meet “Dog and Turtle,” “The World and The Three Kids,” “Anansi and His Six Sons,” and many more entertaining stories tat impart life lessons.
Nigerian-born Adetutu “Tutu” Harrell and music scholar Don Harrell are spirited performers who have performed all over the world for DISNEY.
This program is great for all ages.
For questions or to register your group to attend, please contact LaFrancis McPherson, Performing Arts Manager,
at 757-923-0003, Ext. 103 or
l.mcpherson@suffolkcenter.org
Greenbeats Live!
Wednesday, March 1, 2023
10:30 am – 11:30 am
Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts
110 West Finney Avenue | Suffolk, Virginia 23434
Virginia Stage Company is pleased to announce their new educational touring production Greenbeats, Live!, a partnership with WHRO Public Media and Virginia Stage Company, featuring music written by Skye Zentz and Meredith Noel
that was originally produced for WHRO Public Media’s GreenBeats.In GreenBeats, Live! Our hero Malia learns to make small changes to protect her neighborhood and the environment with help from Skip the Stray, Scoop Dog Sam and her other friends.
Join her in earning your own Green Brigade Badge and get the green beat on your street!
Appropriate for students in Grades K – 5!
For your school to attend the performance at Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts,
please contact LaFrancis McPherson, Performing Arts Manager, l.mcpherson@suffolkcenter.org or by calling 757-923-0003, ext. 103.
Tickets for this performance will be made available on a first come first serve basis, as seating is limited.
CALL TODAY!
VALERIE DAVIS
Coretta: A Legacy of Love
Sponsored in Part by Virginia African American Cultural Center,
Arts for Learning (The Virginia Affiliate of Young Audiences),
Virginia Tourism Commission, Virginia Commission for the Arts, and
The National Endowment for the Arts.
Wednesday, March 15, 2023
10:00 am – 10:50 am
Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts
110 West Finney Avenue | Suffolk, Virginia 23434
Hailed at the “Frist Lady of the Civil Rights Movement,” Coretta Scott King comes to life in this
moving performance by Valerie Davis. From her marriage to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., to her life dedicated to political activism,
This program is great for individuals in Grades 3 – 12 as well as adults.
Teaching Information Packets along with a Teacher’s Guide is available for all grade levels 3 – 12.
For questions or to register your group to attend, please contact LaFrancis McPherson, Performing Arts Manager,
at 757-923-0003, Ext. 103 or
l.mcpherson@suffolkcenter.org