Updates

This year, Talia participated in the pilot year for the Broadway Bridges Program, presented by The Broadway League. The initiative of the program is to bring NYC public high school students to Broadway (specifically targeting 10th grade). The program provides participating schools with generously discounted tickets of $10 per ticket for a Broadway show. Through Broadway Bridges, Talia was able to take students of Renaissance High School for Musical Theater and Technology to see "Phantom of the Opera" on Broadway. For many, this was their first time attending a Broadway show.

Talia has completed her first year as a participating teacher with the TDF (Theater Development Fund) Open Doors Program. As a participating school, only eight scholars, from Renaissance High School for Musical Theater and Technology, are selected to join. As participants, TDF gives us access to Broadway and Off-Broadway shows throughout the school year. The program requires participants to attend a show, engage in a post-show discussion over pizza, and reflect through journaling. This year, we were even fortunate enough to have a backstage tour after our outing to see "Cats" on Broadway. The Open Doors program also provides each school with a mentor; a professional in the industry to join us on each outing and lead our post-show discussions. Luckily, we were blessed with two mentors this year, TONY Award-winning Clint Ramos (Costume and Set Designer) and Jessica Pabst (Costume Designer). The students, as well as myself, really valued our mentors' insight throughout

Talia recently directed the "Playwright's Showcase" at Renaissance High School for Musical Theater and Technology. In collaboration with the Writing Club, the showcase comprised of six short plays written by students themselves. The showcase was held on June 1, 2017 in the Theater Studio.