Power Street Theatre’s Impact

Power Street Theatre (PST) is dedicated to art for social change by investing in creative thought leaders, multidisciplinary artists, and community voices through prioritizing representation, accessibility, education, arts advocacy, and joy.

Our long-term goal is to create art for social change, and that starts with us. We pride ourselves on creating access to the arts with our organization by prioritizing a pay-what-you-decide ticket model for our productions, offering free childcare for our productions, free arts education courses for adults, hosting community roundtable discussions and story circles where participants receive a stipend for their time and expertise, free open mic gatherings, and tons of digital arts programming on our social media. Our unique approach creates opportunities for representation, connection, and equity. We mobilize folks to value the power of the arts by inviting them to participate in our programs/projects in our community. We eliminate the barrier of transportation by offering free transit, thus removing the stigma that “excellent” art only happens downtown. Increasing access to the arts means intentionally centering the voices of people and communities historically excluded from the arts.

For over a decade, we have predominantly worked with North Philadelphia’s communities that are largely characterized by Latine cultures and diverse histories of migration. North Philadelphia is a community filled with rich history and culture. In the summer, fire hydrants spout waterfalls to play in, reggaeton, salsa, and rap slowly slide through streets flowing from car windows, and neighborhood elders and youth share lively exchanges across parks. We are a multicultural community that reflects the uniqueness of America - a community of innovation and resilience whose strengths shine through our art, businesses, food, cultures, and stories.

We have also worked with people throughout other parts of Philadelphia and the tri-state area, traveling to different locations to perform and attracting new audiences to North Philadelphia from throughout the city and beyond.

As a theater company, we have worked with marginalized staff and multidisciplinary artists since the beginning of PST. Our staff, advisory board, students, participants, and audiences are intergenerational, immigrants, refugees, artists, parents, caregivers, queer, survivors, community caretakers, leaders, activists, and educators. We intentionally work with and amplify individuals that reflect the community we work within.

PST has been committed to producing a minimum of one production each year since our founding with the exception of the pandemic. We amplify emerging and diverse playwrights that write contemporary works. All productions have embodied elements of social and transformational change within the stories and themes of the plays. Past productions themes have included gentrification, cultural preservation, health injustice/addiction, feminism, land sovereignty, political unrest, and more. We have partnered with social service organizations, like GALAEI, Women Organized Against Rape, and the Behavioral Health Coalition, to provide resources to our audiences and facilitate post-production talkbacks. Our yearly productions are in alignment with our priority to present and invest in art for social change.

Our programs have been a manifestation to meet the needs and desires of our beloved community. Education is a powerful tool that we have used to exchange knowledge, share resources, and connect through diverse lived experiences. Through our artistic courses (Land & Body), we use art to preserve culture and identity. We value everyone's creativity and offer opportunities to further their artistic exploration. We activate imagination and play for adults which has led to healing. Within our community story circles program, we facilitate conversions around the themes of our shows and inspire connections among neighbors. Through these value-driven programs, we have created a culture of accessibility, advocacy, and joy.

Our artistic programs amplify the voices of local North Philadelphia residents, and BIPOC, women and LGBTQ+ artists. These programs give people a platform to share their art in different community spaces, ranging from an intimate local venue and urban garden to a vast community field. As part of our mission towards creating equity, we are committed to paying artists and curators for their time and expertise. And to create accessibility, all of our programs have been free to the public or pay-what-you-decide. We pride ourselves on our programs being an inviting, safe space where people can celebrate the art of gathering and connecting.

In lieu of the pandemic, we discovered the power of virtual spaces and its ability to reach people, communities, and countries. Through our digital programs, we were able to keep our mission alive and even expand PST’s reach through a global crisis. Recognizing this power, we have continued to value digitally connecting with people and artists world-wide.

Over our decade-long run, we have produced many different projects that align with our values and mission. We have produced innovative projects alongside resident artists. Each project was created for the main reason of sparking joy and entertaining diverse audiences.