J.L. ‘Lynn’ Singleton | President, Providence Performing Arts Center
1. “Hamilton” at the Providence Performing Arts Center drew 73,000 people into Providence during the summer when downtown is usually slow. Is there pressure to try to match or top that next summer with something else? Fortunately, PPAC will open the national tour next summer of one of the hottest new commercial musical productions playing in the Theater District in New York, “Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of The Temptations.” This show should give a big boost to the city next summer.
2. Will the success of “Hamilton” give PPAC a better chance of landing shows that typically target bigger cities? PPAC has always been at the top of the list of national markets for all touring Broadway productions; “Ain’t Too Proud” is our 20th national tour launch here since 2008.
3. Did the more than $7 million in economic impact that “Hamilton” generated locally surprise you? Can you compare that with what other shows have generated? The $7 million of direct economic impact did not surprise me, especially given that half of the patrons came from outside of Rhode Island. The only other economic impact study that we have previously done was in 2014 when we opened three national tours of “Once,” “The Phantom of the Opera” and “Evita,” and that economic impact was $12.7 million. Because “Hamilton” was in the dead of summer in downtown Providence, it became obvious what a huge impact occurred since there was nothing else competing with it.
4. “Hamilton” is returning to PPAC during the 2021-2022 season. Were there any lessons learned that might help you and the city do even better to maximize its economic impact next time? I would think the local businesses will have realized what a phenomenon “Hamilton” is and will staff and gear up to handle the activity.
5. Does PPAC collaborate with any hotels or restaurants in the city? Hotel Providence, Hampton Inn and Suites, the Graduate Providence and the Homewood Suites by Hilton all work with PPAC. We also work with Backstage Kitchen & Bar, Siena Restaurant, Circe Restaurant & Bar, Blake’s Tavern, Bravo Brasserie Restaurant, Davenport’s, Hemenway’s Seafood Grill & Oyster Bar, The Capital Grille, Parkside Rotisserie and Bar, Malted Barley, Providence Coal-Fired Pizza, Barnaby’s, Rosalina, Kleos, Constantino’s Venda Ravioli, and Saki’s. We also work with the following caterers: Just Ellen’s Inc., Cozy Caterers, Fire Works Catering, Local Hero Deli & Catering, Pranzi Catering & Events and Tom’s Market Catering.
Elizabeth Graham is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Graham@PBN.com.