Purple Dreams

(Documentary, United States)  Following the talented and driven students of Charlotte’s Northwest School of the Arts, black youth stereotypes are turned upside-down. A three-year journey serves as an inspirational window into the lives of inner-city, at-risk students who succeed at their passion while embracing the transformative power of their arts education as they audition, rehearse and perform the first ever full-length high school production of The Color Purple.

With access to art education and academic mentors, at-risk youth have the potential to break the cycle of poverty in a single generation. Struggling with homelessness, low-income neighborhoods, gang-related violence and single parent households, these students broaden their education through participation in a triumphant musical production that ultimately propels them into a world of opportunity they never expected.