Providence Performing Arts Center in Potential Trouble...

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 10/24/06 at 8:28pm

Up here in RI, a Native American Reservation is attempting to build a casino in Warwick, a city outside of Providence. This would likely affect Providence PAC and other Providence organizations in an extremely negative way, especially because of the major traffic already caused by workers every night. Tourists are not going to want to drive through there...

Here is some information on this possibly terrible situation.
It would potentially destroy one of the most beautiful theatres in New England (it also happens to be the 2nd largest in New England).

This incredible theatre has hosted countless shows, most of which have sold out (or at least been near-capacity) its roughly 3,200 seats. Some of these shows have been: The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Les Mis, Miss Saigon, The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Fosse, Cabaret, Chicago, Aida, Thoroughly Modern Millie, and many, many others.

Article: http://www.ppacri.org/PR_releases/projo_oped.pdf

Letter from PPAC's President: http://www.ppacri.org/specialinfo/sos2.cfm

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 10/25/06 at 5:27pm

*bump*

In addition...what do you all think?

[inishmore]

Posted: 10/25/06 at 5:33pm

That's horrible to hear. I grew up in RI and my first several years of theater was from PPAC. (And one of the many things I remember was the already awful traffic in the area.) I hope that this doesn't end up happening.

[ShuQ]

Posted: 10/25/06 at 5:52pm

But could it not also help me Providence PAC by bringing in more tourists? Having to deal with traffic hasn't stopped anyone from going to the theatre in New York or any other major city

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 10/25/06 at 6:39pm

I visited this theater a number of times over the years. Pictures do not do it justice

[Joshua488]

Posted: 10/25/06 at 9:31pm

I love PPAC. It is such a gorgeous, enormous theatre. I think it will do fine.

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 10/25/06 at 9:34pm

damn Native americans.

or, as i like to call them, INJUNS

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 10/25/06 at 11:38pm

That has to be one of the lamest leaps in logic ever.

Disasterous tours like Thoroughly Modern Millie pose more of a threat to places like PPAC than casinos in another city would.

[timote316]

Posted: 10/26/06 at 12:12am

My thoughts exactly, Namo.

Altho, re: Millie... I saw Millie at PPAC, and theater was mostly full.

[nycdncr]

Posted: 10/26/06 at 1:43am

i just performed at the ppac on tour with 'beauty and the beast'. i have to say...although it is a lovely theatre from the audience's perspective...it's a dump backstage. the dressing rooms are teeny weeny....too small for any size show to come thru, and the stage deck was the worst surface to dance on. it's like they dumped all this money into the part the patrons see, but spent zero on anything to make the backstage nice for the people who actually perform.

[veryownplanetz]

Posted: 10/26/06 at 10:14am

Thats true NYCdncr...it is really really small backstage...I've performed there 5 or 6 times in my life and it is VERY VERY small.

I love this theater though. Looking out from the stage, it's just gorgeous and sitting in the audience looking up at the ceiling is gorgeous too.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 10/26/06 at 12:41pm

Well, they have Wicked.

[ThankstoPhantom]

Posted: 10/29/06 at 6:54pm

I've been away a few days...

Millie Tour was awful, but it did do well at PPAC.

PPAC's backstage is terribly small, I've performed there once as well...

But, somehow, shows like POTO and TLK have been able to perform there, full tour scale that they have.

Funny story about that, though...POTO is actually what caused one of the chorus dressing rooms to become significantly smaller than the other. PPAC spent a buttload to get POTO in there back in 1995.

Providence is NOT NYC, and Rhode Island is a state where the city down the street is pretty much fused to you behind, so touring shows going to the casino would affect PPAC's business.

This is PPAC who is against the casino...I don't think they'd be against it if such a thing would happen. They'd be ENCOURAGING it if it were to bring tourists to their shows.

Updated On: 10/29/06 at 06:54 PM

[Flaunt It]

Posted: 10/29/06 at 9:07pm

I saw that BEAUTY AND THE BEAST tour at PPAC.. trust me.. it was not so pretty from the audience perspective either! Did that set and costume pacage come from community theatre? The whole experience was not worth the price.
Updated On: 10/29/06 at 09:07 PM