CULTURE SHOCK

Mary Poppins pre-sale

2009-11-02T13:10:00.001-05:00

Tampa's premiere engagement of Disney & Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins is coming to the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, May 20-June 6, 2010. Starting today Culture Shock readers have priority access to some of the best seats before they go on sale to the public! And if you order by Nov. 5 you can save more than $15 on select performances and locations. Use promo code SHOCK when ordering. For discount details and to purchase tickets, click here http://bit.ly/ZxGH4

*Not applicable to prior sales. Cannot be combined with any other offer. Subject to availability. Other restrictions may apply.

Wonderland essay contest - Winners to receive Patel Conservatory class, tickets to Wonderland and dinner at Maestro’s !

2009-10-30T11:24:00.000-04:00

Students in grades five, six, seven and eight throughout Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties are invited to participate in the “Find your Wonderland: what makes your family wonderful?” essay contest, held by the Patel Conservatory at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

One winner in each grade level will receive four tickets to the Broadway Family Night performance of Wonderland: Alice’s New Musical Adventure on Wednesday, Dec. 2, complimentary valet parking, dinner for four at Maestro’s Restaurant, tuition to a Patel Conservatory class (restrictions apply) and a Wonderland prize pack. Additionally, award-winning students each will pick one teacher to receive two tickets to Wonderland.

To enter, students must submit a written essay answering the question “What makes your family wonderful?” in 500 words or less to the Patel Conservatory between Monday, Oct. 5 and Friday, Nov. 6. An impartial panel of judges will select the winners.

“The topic of our contest, ‘What makes your family wonderful,’ explores the tendency for each of us to drift in our own wonderland—unaware of those around us. We need to take the time to appreciate the wonderful people and joyful experiences in our lives, and share them with others,” said Wendy Leigh, TBPAC’s vice-president of education.

Performances of Wonderland will begin Nov. 24 in TBPAC’s Ferguson Hall and run through Jan. 3, 2010. “Wonderland will be a tremendous Broadway-quality show and for these contest winners to study the performing arts right here at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, where Wonderland will premiere, will be an incredible and unprecedented opportunity,” Leigh said.

The story of Wonderland, set in modern Manhattan, tells the story of author Alice Cornwinkle, a descendent of Lewis Carroll’s muse Alice Liddell, who is struggling with her career, her husband and her daughter. Audiences will journey with Alice to Wonderland and the Looking-Glass World, strange-yet-familiar places where she must reclaim her daughter, defeat the Queen and learn to follow her own heart.

Essays must be typed or printed clearly on 8 ½ x 11 inch paper and include contestant’s name, age, school, grade level, name of parent/guardian, mailing address and phone number. Essays must be mailed to Patel Conservatory, Attn: Essay Contest, P.O. Box 518, Tampa, Fl 33601-0518 or delivered to Patel Conservatory, 1010 North W.C. MacInnes Pl., Tampa, FL 33602-3720.

As part of the non-profit Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, the Patel Conservatory offers classes for children and adults of all experience levels in all kinds of dance, music and theater. More information is available by calling 813.222.1002, and by visiting www.patelconservatory.org.

The Broadway Season Begins! (And a public service announcement).

2009-10-28T11:04:00.003-04:00

Last night we celebrated the beginning of the Bank of America America Best of Broadway Tampa Bay series and the premiere of the touring company of In the Heights.

Lin-Manuel Miranda, who conceived In the Heights and wrote the music and lyrics, said a few words before a packed house in Carol Morsani Hall.

I googled "In The Heights Tampa" today to see if any of the papers wrote about opening night.

I found what I was looking for, but I also found several ticket brokers selling In The Heights tickets. As we begin the Broadway season, we cannot be more clear about this: Purchasing tickets from a third party vendor not only ensures that you will pay too much for your ticket, but also puts you at risk for a bogus ticket.

Under Florida Statutes 817.36 Resale of Tickets, which took effect July 1, 2009, it is illegal for any person or entity to offer or resell a ticket to any performance at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center for more than $1 over this nonprofit institution’s originally assigned price. Substantial penalties are in place for violators. All TBPAC tickets are covered by the statute and contain a notice that they cannot be resold for more than their originally assigned face value. To keep our tickets affordable and accessible, violators will be prosecuted.

Call 813.229.STAR to purchase safe, affordable and accessible tickets from TBPAC, or visit our website 24/7 at www.tbpac.org to purchase tickets online, or stop by and see our new ticket office and meet our friendly staff and maybe even take a tour of the facility.

Keep reading Culture Shock and following us on twitter and friend us on facebook and myspace. We promise to always keep you informed and give you plenty of notice when tickets go on sale, so you'll never be left out and you'll always pay a fair price.

Congratulations to In The Heights! Don't miss this great show! Ticket brokers - knock it off!

- Kari G.