Prison Performing Arts

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St. Louis, MO
Prison Performing Arts

Enriching the lives of incarcerated individuals through the performing arts.

06/07/2026

🎈 Happy Birthday to e.k. doolin! 🎈

Join us in wishing a happy birthday to PPA Artistic Collaborator, e.k. doolin! We are incredibly fortunate to collaborate with such a talented and inspiring artist. Thank you for your vital voice, your artistry, and your dedication to storytelling within our PPA community.

Help us show some birthday love in the comments below! Have a brilliant day! ✍️🎭🎉

06/05/2026

🎉 We are thrilled to announce that Prison Performing Arts has been awarded a $25,000 grant from Arts Midwest!

This funding will support arts education opportunities for system-impacted youth in the St. Louis region, helping us continue our year-round work in juvenile justice settings.

As part of this project, we're excited to partner with St. Louis Shakespeare Festival to bring their touring production of THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA directly to young people participating in our programs. The experience will include teaching artist-led workshops and a Living Study Guide designed to make Shakespeare accessible, engaging, and relevant to today's youth.

Each year, PPA serves approximately 220 young people across four juvenile justice facilities, creating opportunities for creativity, self-expression, skill-building, and connection through the arts.

We are deeply grateful to Arts Midwest for investing in this work and in the voices, stories, and potential of the young people we serve. 💖

[📸 by Phillip Hamer Photography]

06/03/2026

🎭 Congratulations to YoungLiars on WILD NIGHTS, written by PPA Teaching Artist Courtney Bailey and running now through June 13 at Greenfinch Theater & Dive.

We're especially excited to see so many members of the PPA community appearing in this production, including Managing Director Ashwini Kherdekar, Artistic Director Rachel Tibbetts, Co-Board President Cassidy Flynn, and longtime Artistic Collaborator Ellie Schwetye. 💖

If you're looking for a great night of theatre, check it out!

Learn more and get tickets: https://bit.ly/4uKD0ah

06/01/2026

Join us in celebrating the creativity, courage, and artistic voices of young people in our Learning Through the Arts program. The Summer Showcase will feature original work created by participants at St. Louis City Juvenile Detention Center, including drumming, creative writing, and more.

📅 Thursday, August 6, 2026
🕜 3:30 pm (3:00 pm check-in)
📍 St. Louis City Juvenile Detention Center
🛑 RSVP by Wednesday, August 5, 2026: https://bit.ly/37vLJYt

Experience the power of self-expression and help support PPA’s youth artists as they share their work with an audience of Family Court staff, family members, and PPA supporters. 💖

05/28/2026

🏆 Congratulations to Patty Prewitt! 🏆

We are incredibly proud to celebrate PPA Alum Patty Prewitt! She recently won First Place in the Adult Non-Fiction/Autobiography or Memoir category at the Missouri Professional Communicators 2026 Communications Contest for her book, TRYING TO CATCH LIGHTNING IN A JAR. ⚡️📖

Next up, Patty’s remarkable work will be competing for the national title!

Please join us in congratulating Patty in the comments below. We are so honored to celebrate this well-deserved achievement with you, Patty! 👏🎉

If you haven’t read TRYING TO CATCH LIGHTNING IN A JAR yet, it’s available on Amazon at https://amzn.to/4qVmenq

05/23/2026

✨ Happy Birthday, Bess Moynihan!
Thank you for the creativity, collaboration, and heart you bring to PPA. We celebrate you today! 💛

05/18/2026

It started as a house party… and became something much more. 🎉

In March, Prison Performing Arts brought BRONTË SISTER HOUSE PARTY: A PPA PARTY PLAY to life at Women’s Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center.

Written by Courtney Bailey and directed by Rachel Tibbetts, the play offered a bold, funny, and deeply human theatrical experience inspired by the Brontë sisters. 🎭

Take a look at what artists at WERDCC created!

📸🎥 See the full gallery and performance: https://bit.ly/4ubVLTQ

05/14/2026

A fresh take on a classic story. 💖

In February, Prison Performing Arts partnered with SATE to present FIRST IMPRESSIONS, a fully staged reading inspired by Pride and Prejudice.

Reimagined through new voices and lived experiences, the production brought humor, insight, and emotional depth to a story we thought we knew.

Didn’t get to see the show? Or want to experience it again?

📸 View the full photo gallery and performance video: https://bit.ly/4wvuLAg

Photos by Ray Bay Creates

05/08/2026

📚 Celebrating PPA Alum Patty Prewitt! 💛

We’re thrilled to share that Patty Prewitt’s new book, Catching Lightning: More Letters from Prison, is now available on Amazon.

In this powerful follow-up to Trying to Catch Lightning in a Jar, Patty reflects on the final twenty years of her incarceration with honesty, humor, and deep compassion—culminating in the moment she never expected: her release after thirty-eight years.

We’re so proud of Patty and the voice she continues to share with the world.

👉 Get your copy: https://amzn.to/3QIXCAT

05/07/2026

Stories Still Matter. 💖

Give STL Day is happening now.

Thank you to everyone who has already supported our work.

At Prison Performing Arts, storytelling isn’t just creative expression—it’s a pathway to connection, growth, and real change for system-impacted youth and adults.

There’s still time to be part of it.

💖 Give now: https://bit.ly/3Qd0Dq2

Address

3333 Washington Avenue Suite 203-B
St. Louis, MO
63103

Telephone

+13144108741

Website

http://www.prisonperformingarts.org/

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