I think of it as a global gathering rather than a local gathering.”

Robert Birman, Centrum Executive Director

Local art nonprofit Centrum has picked up international acclaim as a leading educational and program-centric arts organization, so much so that Seattle’s KING 5 TV station made the trek across the Sound for a special, 30-minute episode covering Centrum’s Prime Time Gala.

Centrum has hosted a gala for decades, but with COVID forcing the 2020 and 2021 galas to be exclusively online, this year’s event will be unprecedented.

Through NBC-affiliate KING 5’s “Evening” show, the Prime Time Gala, set to start at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 2, will be a mix of live and pre-recorded segments and interviews featuring artists and Centrum alumni such as Kenny G, Kim Kopp, Bill Ransom, Michelle Sandoval, Anat Cohen, and many more.

“The KING 5 Evening episode on June 2 will allow us to share our story with the entire world … we’ve never done this before so it will be a first,” said Robert Birman, executive director of Centrum.

“I think of it as a global gathering rather than a local gathering,” Birman said.

The art nonprofit will additionally use the spotlight to help fundraise for the Fund-a-Dream Scholarship Challenge, with the objective of raising $100,000.

Half of the $100,000 goal has been donated by Anne and Dick Schneider along with Berry and Sam Shoen, and Centrum hopes to match the funds on June 2.

“Our goal is to match that as a challenge and raise a total of $100,000 or more to support scholarships and programs at Centrum,” Birman said.

Leading the “Evening” special is KING 5 Producer Anne Erickson, a longtime resident of Sequim.

“Anne is based on the Olympic Peninsula … it’s really nice that we have a local producer doing a 30-minute feature on our programs at Centrum,” Birman said.

Responding on how it feels to highlight the Peninsula through the Evening special, Erickson said: “It feels great – I am always looking for new “Evening” stories on the Olympic Peninsula. I have a certain amount of regional pride since I grew up in Port Angeles and graduated from Port Angeles High School. The Peninsula has a lot to offer, and our viewers always tell us they love watching the show to get ideas for places to explore.”

When asked about her favorite moments from filmimg the Centrum feature, Erickson said, “shooting video at Explorations and absorbing the awesome enthusiasm of the middle school kids who were making new friends and learning new things. Also, getting an interview with Seattle’s Kenny G, who was a Centrum alum, and coaxing a couple of Centrum memories from him.”

“Viewers will see a wide array of testimonials of what centrum means to artists of all ages,” Birman said. “The KING 5 production team talked to a massive amount of our artists, including youth.”

“It’s really nice to have such a prominent feature in the Seattle market,” he added.

The upcoming Centrum special for the Prime Time Gala can be viewed on KING 5’s TV channel or on centrum.org.

The live and pre-recorded Evening episode is set to start at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 2, but Birman recommends checking in on the website broadcast  after the show for extra content.

After the special, Centrum will have a DVD extra featuring an interview with Erickson.

For extra details about the event, go to https://centrum.org/2022/05/join-us-for-our-first-ever-tv-special-june-2nd/.