The F.M. Kirby Center in downtown Wilkes-Barre is gearing up for its second annual "Kirby Fest."
The event takes place this Saturday, April 21, at the venue on Public Square from 5 p.m. - 8 p.m. Click here for specific event details and to buy tickets!
Newswatch 16's Ryan Leckey highlighted "Kirby Fest" on Thursday. WNEP-TV is a proud media sponsor of this event in Luzerne County.
Money raised at "Kirby Fest" helps the nonprofit underwrite its Arts & Education Programs. Event organizers say "these programs introduce children to the arts at a young age, something that is more important than ever as art and music classes continue to be cut from our schools."
Each year, the Kirby Center's Young People’s Theater Series (YPTS) hosts approximately 8,000 students FREE of charge.
YPTS features national touring stage adaptations of educational, but entertaining titles. Each performance comes with a study guide that the teachers use to bring the lesson from the stage back into the classroom. Among the upcoming shows, "The Greatest Pirates Story Never Told" which is FREE to the public on Saturday, May 19, at 2 p.m.
Additionally, Kirby Fest helps the center underwrite its annual "Signature Series," which allows the place to offer performances to the community for just $10 per ticket. The "Signature Series" includes the opera, dance, theater, etc.
Workers at The F.M. Kirby Center tell Newswatch 16 that "each year, the nonprofit invests more than $300,000 in this programming that speaks to its mission, and fundraisers like this one (Kirby Fest) make that possible."