• ACE plans encore event with “Kids Night on Broadway” for “Beauty and the Beast”

The City of Detroit Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship’s Family Night at the Fisher to see the legendary musical “The Wiz” resulted in the highest ticket sales to City of Detroit residents for a Broadway show at the Fisher Theatre in more than 20 years.

ACE partnered with the Fisher to offer discount tickets for the ground-breaking show as well as pre-show activities for children and families that included a free ice cream pop-up, games & prizes, craft-making for kids with Arts & Scraps and an ACE activities table where kids contributed with crayons to a community mural.

“What a fantastic night that was,” said City Director of Arts and Culture Rochelle Riley. “I want all children to grow up loving theatre, attending theatre shows and having a ball with their family.”

ACE plans to join the Fisher again with “Kids Night on Broadway” for the October 1 performance of the Disney classic “Beauty and the Beast.” Parents can get half-price tickets online at BroadwayInDetroit.com/kidsnight and use the code KIDS. For all information about tickets, call (313) 887-1256 or visit BroadwayInDetroit.com.

Detroit ACE will once again host a table and invite children to contribute their coloring talents to a community mural to be displayed at Dream Makers, the city-sponsored children’s art gallery at the Butzel Family Center. There also will be offerings from Arts & Scraps and sweet treats from Good Cakes and Bakes!

The Fisher partnership is a part of ACE’s efforts to encourage Detroiters to embrace Detroit’s iconic venues and enjoy offerings not only at the Fisher, but also the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Opera House and Orchestra Hall, home to one of the world’s greatest symphonies. Director of Arts and Culture Rochelle Riley made a point of highlight the work that the DSO does with 45,000 children whom the symphony engages through educational programming, music lessons and partnerships.

“We have some of the best venues in America in the Fisher Theatre, the DIA, the Detroit Opera and Orchestra Hall, as well as our legacy theatres like the Detroit Repertory Theatre and the Detroit Public Theatre,” Riley said. “I hope everyone will spend more family time at all of these treasures.”

“The Wiz” is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) in the context of contemporary African American culture. It opened on October 21, 1974, at the Morris A. Mechanic Theatre in Baltimore, stopped at the Fisher Theatre in November & December that year, and moved to Broadway's Majestic Theatre with a new cast on January 5, 1975. The 1975 Broadway production won seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. It was an early example of Broadway's mainstream acceptance of works with all-Black casts. The show spawned a big-budget film starring Diana Ross and Michael Jackson and a live television production on NBC.

“Beauty and the Beast” is the classic fairy tale that was adapted into a 1991 animated Disney film and the 1994 Broadway musical. The show, Disney’s first foray into Broadway, ran for 13 years, closing on July 29, 2007. The story centers on Belle, a young woman who takes her father's place as prisoner in the castle of a cursed prince, known as the Beast. Belle sees beyond the Beast's monstrous features and discovers that he has a kind heart, The show teaches children – and adults not to judge others based on their outward appearance.

Broadway in Detroit continues a long tradition a theatre excellence in Deroit. The Fisher Theatre was built in 1928 and was renovated into a legitimate Broadway touring house in 1961. It is one of Detroit's oldest live theatre venues. Owned & Operated by ATG Entertainment, it features traveling productions of Broadway shows. For more than 60 years, the Fisher has been a favorite venue of many of Broadway’s brightest stars and the launch bad for many African American stars. In 1962, the late legendary actress Diahann Carroll became the first African American woman to win the prestigious Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role in "No Strings,” a play about an interracial romance that originated at the Fisher.

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About Detroit ACE The Office of Arts, Culture and Entrepreneurship (Detroit ACE) partners with organizations across the region to enhance and grow investment in fine and performing arts, culture and history with a special focus on artistic entrepreneurship and support for Detroit’s creative workforce. Follow ACE @detroitcityarts on Twitter,  Instagram  and Facebook.