Through an initiative called New Victory Arts Break, New Victory Theater is inspiring families to learn performing arts skills from the comfort of their own home. A free online series, each week explores a particular art form and invites kids and parents to incorporate the arts into their homeschool learning through a series of videos and instructions. Featuring demonstrations by New Victory Teaching Artists, New Victory Arts Break is also a part of the theater’s effort to keep NYC artists employed.

With a season of more than a dozen shows from around the world, New Victory was one of the first cultural institutions to cancel upcoming productions as a result of COVID-19, but the theater quickly galvanized around New Victory Arts Break as a digital extension of the theater’s robust arts education offerings, which include free arts curriculum online and in the venue’s lobbies for every show in the season.

“Through New Victory Arts Break, we hope families connect with the performing arts and with each other, sparking their imaginations and seeing the spaces they live in differently,” says Russell Granet, President & CEO of New 42, the nonprofit that operates New Victory. New Victory Arts Break launched with Percussion as the first of ten weeks, and the series’ first video tutorial garnered 20,000 views and counting. Here’s a look at the weeks ahead.

Week 1: Percussion Week (March 16) This week, we’re exploring different forms of percussion. Let’s start with New Victory Teaching Artist Peter Mustante with a body percussion activity you can do at home, no drums required!

Visit Percussion Week to see the activities of the week.

Week 2: Just Move! Week (March 23) Viewers are prompted to follow along with some stretching before they dive into dance-centric activities that will make them move. You can make a dance inspired by your name and create choreography with family.

Visit Just Move! Week to see the activities of the week.

Week 3: Puppetry Week (March 30) Create your very own puppet with household items and put on a show this week! Imagine the world your show would live in – how does your character move, who else is in this world? Work together to put on a puppet show written and produced by you.

Visit Puppetry Week to see the activities of the week.

Week 4: Something Magical Week (April 6) There is a magician in all of us. Take the magician’s code and start your journey into your new magic profession with everyday household items. Amaze your family! Video chat and impress your friends! When this week is done, you’ll have your persona, and a few acts up your sleeve to show off.

Week 5: Juggling Week (April 13) Don’t have juggling balls you say? No problem! We can teach you some basic juggling skills with things you have around your home. Get your skills down and by the end of the week you can perform as your very own juggling acts in a circus.

For more information about New Victory Arts Break, visit their Event listing on CircusTalk.

About New Victory
New Victory opens new worlds to young people and families through extraordinary performances, education and engagement programs. Bringing kids to the arts and the arts to kids since 1995, this nonprofit theater has become a standard-bearer of quality performing arts for young audiences in the United States. Reflecting and serving the multicultural city it calls home, New Victory is committed to arts access for all communities of New York to experience and engage with the exemplary international shows on its stages. A global leader in arts education, youth development and audience engagement, New Victory has been honored by the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities with the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award, by Americans for the Arts with a national Arts Education Award, and by the Drama Desk for “providing enchanting, sophisticated children’s theater that appeals to the child in all of us, and for nurturing a love of theater in young people.”

About New 42
Under the leadership of President & CEO Russell Granet, New 42 is a cultural nonprofit whose mission is to make extraordinary performing arts a vital part of everyone’s life from the earliest years onward. Driven by a deep commitment to performing arts access, we connect people to world-class performances, essential education and employment programs, and creative communities that push culture forward. Through New Victory and New 42 Studios, we serve artists, educators and New Yorkers of all ages with invaluable arts engagement and resources in and beyond the performing arts. Together with our supporters, New 42 opens new perspectives, incubates new works and creates new opportunities to move us all.