"Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."

Magic. We use that word a lot around here. We don’t just throw it around casually. We really mean it, every single time we say it. And it isn’t like we think that’s how this theatre thing works.....that it magically just happens. In fact, we often remind our actors that the Show Fairy isn’t going to just arrive, wave a wand, and POOF! there's your show! No, PGT actors know all about the hours of dedication, hard work, sweat and tears that make each moment a moment.

And, there, I guess, is the real magic. Kids – joyfully working hard, making friends, making art....together. The first seventeen years in the life of PGT have been filled with enough magical moments to fill a gazillion blogs. But how can any of those moments compare to, on our fifteen year anniversary, arriving in our own home? Those intense, crazy, exhilarating, exhausting months as our entire community worked together – painting, installing seats, packing and unpacking, moving furniture, hanging curtains and lights.....sharing a vision for what this place could be....would be. Students, Parents, Alumni, Siblings, Staff, Friends – all working together. We got the keys on Labor Day. We cut the ribbon the day after New Years. We turned a gym into a theatre in four months. Truly like Dorothy landing somewhere over the rainbow. "I don’t think we’re at the White Plains Mall anymore, Steven!" Pure magic.

So....now, we’ve got this place. This place we affectionately call NoBro (because we gave nicknames to every building we looked at during our fifteen year search and this one happens to be on North Broadway....and it stuck!) So, what do we do here? What is so magical about what happens within our brightly painted walls when the audience isn’t watching? I often sit in the theatre during performances and think how lucky I am because I get to see it all. The audience thinks they are seeing the magic....but they only see a glimpse of it. Some of the best stuff goes on long before the audience ever walks in the door. And this feels like a good season to begin to share those moments....this really is a season like no other – filled with its own unique and special magic.

What kind of magic? You’ll find out, as we take you behind the scenes at NoBro, to meet the students, staff, parents and volunteers of PGT. You won’t want to miss any of it – so be sure to check back in with our blog. You know why? Because there really is No Place Like NoBro!

Jill Abusch, Artistic Director

My daughters posing “center stage” on the old gym floor as building NoBro began … and then - after some construction, painting, rigging and a little PGT Magic - PGT's new MainStage Theatre!