It's finally here - The Color Purple opens TONIGHT on The Umbrella Mainstage!

"An exuberant celebration of community and female empowerment" - The Guardian

This glorious musical adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel spotlights Celie, a young woman whose personal awakening over the course of 40 years forms the arc of an epic story.

With a joyous Tony Award-winning score featuring jazz, ragtime, gospel, African music and blues, The Color Purple is a story of hope, an intensely moving American classic, and a triumphant theatrical treasure.

Join us for opening weekend with a special offer on tickets - laugh, sing, celebrate sisterhood and the women in your life!

Or, want to see the show for free? Contact boxoffice@theumbrellaarts.org to be a volunteer usher (and see the show for free!). 

The Umbrella Visual Arts program, in partnership with A La Luz and The Thoreau Society, present American Literature Before, Through and After the Climate Emergency

On Saturday May 13 from 3-4pm, take a guided tour with exhibition curators A La Luz, followed by a talk with Dr. Joseph Donica (CUNY).

In this talk, Donica takes us on a wild, strange trip through how American literature has consistently centered our fundamental humanity in the natural world—just as the artists in Points of Return do today.
FREE and open to the public, but RSVP required.

New Summer Camp Slots Open! 

Attention, families of creative kids! The Umbrella Arts Education has announced there are a limited number of new spots available in select weeks of our Summer Arts Under The Umbrella camps!

Camp weeks were previously sold-out with long waitlists, so don't delay -- register today!

photo credits: Stanley Rowin

Youth Volunteer opportunities

We are looking for teen volunteers (ages 15-17) to assist with summer camp. In these roles, volunteers work alongside our Lead Teachers and directly assist younger students with their daily art lessons. These volunteers are a huge support in the classroom and develop a sense of responsibility through observation, participation, planning and implementation - all while having fun! 

Interested in being a Classroom Volunteer?

Fill out your application by May 26!

Deadline for art ramble 2023 

Calling all artists! This is your last chance to submit to the 2023 Art Ramble – our annual public art exhibition in Concord’s historic Hapgood Wright Town Forest.

Submissions for this year's theme, Geo-Metric, are due by Monday, May 15. Click the button below for submission details and guidelines. 

Need some inspiration? Check out video from last year’s Ramble! 

The Umbrella Ceramics Studio seeks applicants for the Ceramics Artist Residency program from September 15, 2023 - August 15, 2024. 

Active ceramic artists and educators looking to join a fully equipped ceramics program with a large and growing community are encouraged to apply by July 1. The residency awards an 80 square foot studio space as well as access to and use of the resources of the ceramic program, plus teaching, workshop, artwork sales and exhibition opportunities.

In the community

The Umbrella is a proud Distribution Partner of the Cultural Equity Learning Community (CELC), a self-paced intersectional anti-racism course open to arts and culture leaders committed to building intersectional racial equity. Registration is open starting May 15 through July 19 for the 2023 cohort, running from August 2023 - January 2024. 

The CELC offers affinity tracks for BIPOC and white arts leaders, both featuring lectures and guided reflections, guest speakers and featured artists, office hours and peer-to-peer learning, and additional resources. The CELC was filmed and edited by Boston-based digital media production company, HipStory, made possible by the generous support of the Mass Cultural Council, and is presented by Arts Connect International.