Community Report

Together we connect, inspire and belong

During the last year and a half, the PAC has been committed to connecting with community. Times like these are a great chance to be creative – and we are! Read on to learn more about the PAC’s most recent community events.

Anchorage Summer Arts in the Park (ASAP)

Live Performances • Local Artists • Downtown Anchorage • Free

Partnering with Anchorage Museum, Anchorage Downtown Partnership and AKIMI (Alaska Independent Musicians Initiative), Anchorage Summer Arts in the Park (ASAP) brought local Alaskan artists to the Anchorage Museum and Town Square Park/PAC during six weekends in June and July.

These free, outdoor performances featured regional and local Alaskan soloists, bands, dancers and theatre performers and were generously sponsored by the Atwood Foundation and by an Adaptation and Innovation grant funded by Rasmuson Foundation and administered by the Alaska State Council on the Arts.

PACFlix – Movies at the PAC

Alaska Center for the Performing Arts presented PACFlix – an all-new “Monday Night at the Movies” event series in August. Four films were shown on Monday evenings: Dirty Dancing, Enchanted, Roman Holiday and Labyrinth. For each movie, event goers were encouraged to come early and enjoy amazing food with themed drinks available for purchase from Crush Bistro & Bottle Shops, take selfies at the #PACFlix photo station with fun props and partake in other fun activities. Food and drink (non-alcoholic) were allowed in the theatres during these events.

TUBACHRISTMAS

2020’s Annual TUBACHRISTMAS event went virtual!

The PAC brought TUBACHRISTMAS 2020 to the comfort of your home. This annual, free event was filmed in November in the Atwood Concert Hall with 7 artists following strict mitigation procedures. We aired the performance in snippets on our Facebook page and the full performance was available to watch on our website during December. TUBACHRISTMAS is presented in 200 cities throughout the United States, Canada and Switzerland. Join us in December 2021 for this annual community event!

Thanks to support from the CARES Act, PPP Loan Program, Shuttered Venue Operator Grant and other federal, state and local COVID-19 funding, we were able to keep critical staff employed and make some facility upgrades for the safety of our patrons, staff, crew, volunteers and performers. The PAC follows CDC, industry and Municipal guidelines for all our mitigation protocols.

The team at the PAC continually reassesses procedures based on current recommendations and the needs of our clients and artists. We also worked with venue managers from across the state to share our mitigation plan and develop a venue guidebook to share with other venues for successful reopening.

Curious what to expect when attending an event? Find out here: centertix.com/plan-ahead/.

Restrooms

The PAC’s public restroom facilities have not been upgraded since opening in 1988. To provide a safer environment for the public, we have upgraded to touchless water faucets, hand soap dispensers, paper towel dispensers and auto-flush toilets.

Hand Sanitizing Stations

A total of 32 hand sanitizer stations are now located throughout the building between lobby spaces, backstage and the administrative offices.

Electro-static Sprayers – for Disinfecting High Touch Surfaces

The PAC has purchased two electro-static sprayers to help clean and disinfect high-touch areas throughout the facility. These devices work by applying a small electrical charge to aerosols when passing through the nozzle. These charged droplets adhere easier and stick to environmental surfaces.

PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) & Other Cleaning Supplies

We purchased touchless temperature scanners, gloves and cleaning and disinfecting supplies. In addition, we were provided with plenty of masks as a backup for patrons, crew and artists that did not bring their own or request one.

Wayfinding Signage

We have added several signs and floor stickers to assist with social distancing, remind patrons of mitigation procedures and help guide traffic flow throughout public areas.

Additionally, we have added reflective row labels on the floors in all theatres. These highly reflective labels are not distracting, like materials that glow or are illuminated, but are easy to see when an usher flashlight shines over them. We hope that this will help our patrons find their seats more easily.

Livestream - Thanks to ConocoPhillips Alaska

Thanks to ConocoPhillips Alaska, the PAC was able to purchase livestream equipment and software for use by our clients. This new capability will allow us to share performing arts and community events digitally in addition to, or instead of, having an audience in the theatre. Clients will be able to share their performances at the PAC with audiences that normally could not be reached – such as rural Alaska, and around the world! This will never replace the magic of experiencing a performance live, in-person, but it will make performances more widely accessible – and that’s exciting!

“Having livestream capability from all our performance spaces will allow us to offer new options to patrons, artists and our wider community. During the current circumstances, it is imperative that we [ACPA] evolve, and with ConocoPhillips’ support, we can establish new ways to provide connection through the transformative arts experiences we all love and miss dearly,” Codie Costello, Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, President & COO.

Followspots

Thanks to a grant from the Atwood Foundation, we were able to upgrade our followspots. Followspots are theatrical lights operated by a stagehand and moved to follow an artist on stage. The PAC’s followspot lights were original to the building, and replacement parts were no longer available. A total of seven new, world-class lights, including an LED version in the Sydney Laurence Theatre, were purchased and installed in all theatres.

Projector

Thanks to funding by PAC’s Board of Directors, we were able to upgrade our in-house projector with the purchase of a new EIKE- 836DU, 16,000 lumen projector for use in our theatres. This was a much-needed upgrade as projectors are used for a wide variety of performances and needs at the PAC. Several of our local resident companies, including Anchorage Opera, Anchorage Symphony Orchestra and Anchorage Concert Association require projections for logos, videos and scenery, in addition to most national Broadway touring companies.

Recognition Wall Upgrade

We are excited to recognize our supporters in a brand new way thanks to a grant from the Atwood Foundation. Our recognition wall in the Lorene Harrison lobby has been upgraded to a digital format, allowing us to continually update member names and levels, share information on community events, upcoming performances and much more. Special thanks to SALT Design for their original concept and to SICO Design for the design.

LED Upgrades

We are continuing to upgrade lighting throughout our lobby areas to LED for increased illumination and energy savings.

Join the PAC family by becoming a member! Your support helps to cover the cost of day-to-day operations and maintenance of this four-theatre complex that hosts over 240,000 visitors annually. Operating costs include everything from the electric bill to janitorial services. Your contributions reach every corner of the facility!

Your contribution, big or small, through an annual or planned gift, will help us continue:

• To support our resident performing arts companies;

• To welcome the world’s finest performing artists into our community;

• To provide invaluable arts education programming for our children; and

• To ensure Alaskans have a cultural center and a rich quality of life for years to come.

The PAC is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, which means your gift is fully tax-deductible, as allowed by law.

Learn more about member benefits here: https://donate.alaskapac.org