NEMPAC announces new hires and program expansion into the Charlestown Working Theater (CWT) as part of its renewed commitment to finding performance space in Boston. The recent expansion included improvements to the building located at 442 Bunker Hill Street in Charlestown, Mass., investments in new equipment and instruments to support expanded arts programs, and the hiring of 11 new faculty members.
New classes and group lessons at the theater will launch this fall, including group keyboard for youth, dance and movement classes, and private music instruction in a variety of instruments, including guitar, percussion, saxophone, voice, and more. NEMPAC will work with Falcetti Pianos to move a new piano into the theater to support performances, concerts, and community events like sing-alongs, movie nights, and outreach performances.
The partnership between NEMPAC and CWT began nine years ago with NEMPAC’s desire to make high-quality arts programming more accessible to residents and community members of Charlestown and surrounding areas. There was a voiced need for more after-school enrichment opportunities for children and creative outlets, like musical theater, that have been proven to support youth development.
Kristin Johnson, founder and Executive Director of the Charlestown Working Theater, says, “The Charlestown Working Theater is delighted to expand the scope of our long-term partnership with NEMPAC. Since 2015, our organizations have worked together to ensure accessible arts education and production opportunities for residents of Charlestown, the North End, Greater Boston and beyond. This dynamic expansion will support and grow a thriving arts community that is open and welcoming to all.”
To date, NEMPAC and CWT have collaborated on their annual Holiday Youth Musical, performing renditions of musicals like Elf, Jr, A Christmas Carol, Twelfth Night, and The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, which casts between 35 to 40 children of all abilities in each annual production. NEMPAC also hosts private music instruction for all ages across multiple instruments with their expert faculty.
NEMPAC currently serves over 1,500 students per week through its community music school, and this year, it plans to host over 42 public community events and performances. Forty-two percent of students at NEMPAC receive free or discounted tuition to participate in high-quality arts programming that includes music lessons, music theater performance-based programs, youth dance and movement classes, and early childhood music and movement.
“We are excited to deepen our roots in the Charlestown neighborhood and continue building our partnership with the Working Theater. We heard the need from community members over the past year for more artistic programming – and we look forward to fulfilling this need in the future and in this creative, welcoming space that CWT has supported for so many years,” said Sherri Snow, Executive Director of NEMPAC.
NEMPAC will maintain its existing headquarters in the North End of Boston at 50 Tileston Street and several other locations, including Prado Studios and 9 Hull Street. The organization will also continue to partner with several local Boston Public Schools in the City of Boston, including the Eliot School, Warren Prescott School, Harvard Kent School, Umana School, and its newest partner, The Hurley School.
This expansion was made possible thanks to support from the Charlestown Community Impact Fund, the NEMPAC Annual Fund Donors, the Charlestown Working Theater, and the Charlestown Mothers Association.
