STAR-PRODUCING DRAMA PROGRAM MAY SHUT
One of the city's top performing arts schools — which counts “The Bear” actor Jeremy Allen White, the singer Alicia Keys and Jesse Eisenberg of “The Social Network” among its alumni — is at risk of losing its longstanding theater program.
Professional Performing Arts School in Hell's Kitchen has worked with the professional theater company Waterwell for 13 years to offer drama classes for up to two hours during the regular school day. Students can also participate in after-school training through the program.
But Waterwell is facing a 20% budget cut for the remainder of this school year at PPAS, prompting the company to cancel its classes after April 12, according to an email obtained by the Daily News.
“As you all know, the city budgets have been incredibly stretched since the pandemic,” read the memo, which students and families received at close to midnight on Sunday, “and the impacts on the school budgets continue to have ripple effects.”
“This is a devastating amount of money for our small organization, and because of this cut, we are left with no choice than to end the program early for this school year,” it said.
A spokesman for the city's public schools, however, disputed the version of the story circulating around the school. The loss of the Waterwell program was not the result of a budget cut, but an effort by the school to look for a new partner for next school year.
Waterwell — which was co-founded by “Succession” actor Arian Moayed, who still teaches classes today — employs many active theater professionals and connects students with people in the industry. Its training, described as “Artist as Citizen,” provides students with a conservatory-style theater education that focuses on the importance of changing society through their work.
“We're really challenging our students to think about the role their art plays in the world,” said Heather Lanza, education director at Waterwell. She was uncertain of what comes next for the program in September.
PPAS Principal Leah Dyer told families at a virtual meeting Tuesday night that the program would need $80,000 to $90,000 to continue through the end of the school year. Lanza, however, said Waterwell was shortchanged upward of $102,000.
An online fundraiser had already been pushed out by White (inset left) and reached close to $20,000 in donations by Wednesday evening.
“This is where I went to highschool [sic],” he said on Instagram, “it's an incredible program with some incredible teachers. Please help IF YOU ARE ABLE. I have donated.”
Some parents blamed Dyer for sitting on the budget shortfall since January, when they could have used the last couple of months to fundraise.
Dyer said Waterwell notified her Friday that the organization could not make do with the budget provided, though she has been working behind the scenes.
“The intention was never a crisis. The intention was to be able to get more money from the DOE, and they did not provide it,” said the principal. “Every person I turned to told me no, there is no money, there's no money available for your school.”
A spokeswoman for the city's public schools disputed that the loss of the Waterwell program was the result of a budget cut, saying the school is looking for a new partner for next school year.
“New York City is a national epicenter of arts and culture,” Jenna Lyle said in a statement, “and we are proud to be home to schools like the Professional Performing Arts School, which provides our students with unparalleled education in the arts and prepares them for future careers.”
“The school decision to move away from this provider was not related to budget cuts, and the school has been in communication over several months with the provider about the possibility of parting ways. A rigorous theater arts program continues to be a priority for PPAS, the school will host end of year performances, and dedicated staff will continue to support students in their drama education,” she said.
The school has two teachers on its own payroll who can step up over the next couple of months, Dyer said. Some activities, which receive nonschool funding through the nonprofit Manhattan Youth and the city's Department of Youth and Community Development, are expected to continue, according to the memo.
But the majority of programming is still at risk. The email said all final acting scenes will be canceled, though the principal committed to trying to restore them. The school's drama showcase and middle school spring concert are also on hold, it said.
“I was really excited to do my final acting scenes — they call it our ‘juries,'” said Johnny Hamilton-Janak, a senior at PPAS, who through theater has gotten scholarships to top arts colleges including Fordham, The New School and Marymount Manhattan. “Now I don't get that.”
“It's just so infuriating. That's the only reason why I go to PPAS,” he said.
Another student in the drama program wondered what she would do for the last two hours of every school day.
“We haven't heard anything. It's really absurd,” said Adolta, a sophomore. “It's really heartbreaking because I was really looking forward to juries. We didn't get to work on scenes yet.”