A Community Like No Other...
The Grass Roots community is just that, a community. We are a collection of people who travel from home and neighborhood to gather around music, art, friendship and a common cause. We are 2500 strong and growing every day. We are doctors, lawyers, carpenters and baristas. We are parents, teachers and social workers. We are laborers, assistants and community leaders -p
eople from all walks of life. We come from both success and struggle, living in the surrounding areas of Sharon, Norwood, Walpole, Wrentham, Canton, Foxboro, Westwood, Boston and beyond. We have members from Cape Cod, Cape Ann and Western Mass, and some who travel from Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Connecticut. Our community is as broad in age as in areas of interest, however whether in our 30's or somewhere past 60, we prefer and enjoy sharing the experience of new and live music among friends, a glass of wine and a few laughs in a relaxed environment rather than wrestling with the mania of a crowded bar scene with no place to sit and no place to park! Our place is a destination. The Extended Play Sessions, GRCPAC's foundational programming, offers a unique experience; the opportunity to see world class live music while witnessing the production of a televised program "up front and personal." Our productions provide a rare, inclusive experience. As a member of the studio audience, one participates as an insider; given time to talk with artists, ask questions, and learn about music, music making and it’s rich, diverse history. We provide a “listening room;" a forum where performers don't have to compete with the noise of background chatter, television sets or sports programming, where the audience is present to hear their songs and stories. A sense of connection and intimacy ensues between audience, artist, the music and our team of professionals facilitating the process, co-creating one of the most truly unique music experiences in all of New England. Learning from our experiences with the Extended Play Sessions and the community that formed around this magical phenomenon, The Grass Roots Cultural and Performing Arts Center recognizes the need we humans, of all ages and backgrounds have for up front exposure to the making of art, participation in the creative process, and more opportunities to come together in authentic connection with one another. We hear you and we are here for you. Building Blocks
The Grass Roots Cultural and Performing Arts Center, Inc. (GRCPAC), is the result of a decade long effort that began as The Alternate Root, a simple operation with modest goals. The Alternate Root was created with a mission to keep traditional American Roots music alive and thriving for future generations, and to advocate for the composers, producers and performers creating what we believe to be the most forward thinking and vital music offered in America and around the world. In 2007 we began to document our work on film, developing Alternate Root TV. We produced a weekly program distributed to over 275 Cable Access Channels around the country, in the UK and Canada. In the process of filming music and interviewing players, we were consistently exposed to and discovering a diverse group of artists who are creating and performing some of the most powerful and relevant music around; music we crave. So many of the artists we filmed are independent -under-served by the mainstream music business and under the radar of a public starved for authentic sound. We decided to expand our effort so as to share the "live" experience we were having as film-makers and documentarians, inviting a small studio audience of like-minded fans to attend the filming, creating The Extended Play Sessions experience. What has emerged out of our original mission is a community of people over 2500 strong; kindred spirits who have joined our mission and grown with us in appreciation of American Roots music. What began with the simple desire to create a shared musical and educational experience, has evolved into an unexpected, intentional community engaged in something much greater and more significant than we ever imagined. In March of 2017 the Grass Roots Cultural and Performing Arts Center non-profit corporation was formed. Our goal is to continue providing our home grown intentional community with The Extended Play Sessions experience, while bringing our collective passion and expertise to a wider community in order to foster creative partnerships, and advance a greater understanding and appreciation of traditional American Roots music.
