The DPTV Experience

The DPTV Experience: Bringing your favorite shows to life, one experience at a time

Detroit Public TV is bringing your favorite shows to a location near you, with a series of quarterly events that transform the latest PBS programs into real-life experiences.

The series blasted off in July with Summer of Space at the Cranbrook Institute of Science. From there it was Ken Burns’ Country Music at Pontiac’s Crofoot in September, culinary craft with America’s Test Kitchen in January and a virtual festival celebrating Asian-American culture in May.

Each DPTV Experience offers enlightened commentary from knowledgeable panelists, unique hands-on activities and exclusive sneak peeks of upcoming PBS specials. In addition, every event features a reception to give DPTV community members a chance to meet and mingle!

PAST EVENTS

4) Asian-Americans: The Detroit Story 

May 11, 2020

Detroit Public TV and APIAVote Michigan held an interactive, multimedia celebration of Metro Detroit’s Asian American communities. Learn about the contributions Asian Americans have made to our region and the challenges they faced. We featured previews of the PBS series, Asian Americans, a report from our One Detroit team; a panel discussion with key community leaders and questions from the audience. Watch the presentation >

3) Culinary Indulgence with America’s Test Kitchen – Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital Demonstration Kitchen

January 30, 2020

Detroit Public TV’s most popular cooking show brought its culinary magic to Detroit on January 30. Its celebrated hosts, Julia Collin DavisonBridget Lancaster and Elle Simone, demonstrated some of their favorite recipes, letting our guests sample the tasty results, while also exploring the very best food. Like their recipes, this event was an appetizing experience.

View photos from the event here >

2) Detroit Country Music at The Crofoot in Pontiac

September 11, 2019

We celebrated “Detroit Country City” for one night only! Featuring a live performance by Detroit’s own Dan John Miller and his band, Blanche, and many other musicians. There were also interviews and discussions about Detroit’s history and the city’s country music roots, as well as clips from the Ken Burns documentary.

Performances by:

  • Dan John Miller
  • Blanche
  • Frontier Ruckus
  • The Volebeats
  • Saline Fiddlers Philharmonic
  • Craig ‘Bones’ Maki
  • Candy Miller
  • Aaron Jonah Lewis
  • Libby Decamp
  • Ethan Daniel Davidson
  • Behind the Times
  • The Tri-County Squares
  • The CommonWealth Cloggers

View photos from the event here >

1) Summer of Space at the Cranbrook Institute of Science

July 18, 2019 

The series achieved liftoff with Summer of Space at the Cranbrook Institute of Science on Thursday, July 18.  Activies and guest included:

  • A talk from special guest Charles Fishman, author of the New York Times Best-Seller One Giant Leap: The Impossible Mission That Flew Us to the Moon​ (Simon and Schuster).
  • A talk and Q&A with:
    • Dr. Fred Adams, University of Michigan Professor of Theoretical Cosmology and Astrophysics
    • Dr. James Cutler, Director of University of Michigan eXploration Lab
    • Dr. Susan T. Lepri, University of Michigan, Associate Professor Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering
    • Michael Narlock, Head of Astronomy and Exhibits and Web Coordinator at Cranbrook Institute of Science
  • Highlights from American Experience’s Chasing the Moon documentary about the race to land on the moon
  • A demonstration from the student-run Michigan Mars Rover Team (MRover), whose mission is to design and build a rover for the exploration of extraterrestrial environments
  • Up-close and personal with the galaxy in Cranbrook’s museum, including the planetarium and observatory
  • A “space” reception with light snacks and the opportunity to speak with fellow DPTV adventurers

View photos from the event here >

More about the PBS programming that inspires these experiences:

Chasing the Moon

JULY 8, 2019

“Chasing the Moon,” a film by Robert Stone, reimagines the race to the moon for a new generation, upending much of the conventional mythology surrounding the effort. The series recasts the Space Age as a fascinating stew of scientific innovation, political calculation, media spectacle, visionary impulses and personal drama. Utilizing a visual feast of previously overlooked and lost archival material — much of which has never before been seen by the public — the film features a diverse cast of characters who played key roles in these historic events. Among those included are astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Frank Borman and Bill Anders; Sergei Khrushchev, son of the former Soviet premier and a leading Soviet rocket engineer; Poppy Northcutt, a 25-year old “mathematics whiz” who gained worldwide attention as the first woman to serve in the all-male bastion of NASA’s Mission Control; and Ed Dwight, the Air Force pilot selected by the Kennedy administration to train as America’s first black astronaut. LEARN MORE

Country Music – A film by Ken Burns

 SEPTEMBER 15, 2019

Explore the history of a uniquely American art form: country music. From its deep and tangled roots in ballads, blues and hymns performed in small settings, to its worldwide popularity, learn how country music evolved over the course of the 20th century, as it eventually emerged to become America’s music. “Country Music” features never-before-seen footage and photographs, plus interviews with more than 80 country music artists. The eight-part 16-hour series is directed and produced by Ken Burns; written and produced by Dayton Duncan; and produced by Julie Dunfey. LEARN MORE

America’s Test Kitchen

NEW SEASON JANUARY 2020

From pan-seared salmon to ultra-nutty pecan bars, the recipes in America’s Test Kitchen will work the first time you try them, thanks to the dozens of test cooks who develop, refine, and test recipes again and again until they arrive at the very best versions. We’ll bring the ATK crew in to share recipes, tool tips and more – Winter 2020. LEARN MORE

The Asian Americans

 MAY 2020

“The Asian Americans”, a sweeping, first-ever public media initiative that will chronicle the Asian story in the United States. The series explores bold, new perspectives that recalibrate the way we look at that experience, and reveals the vital role of Asian Americans in shaping American history and identity. Told through individual lives and personal histories, the series explores major epochs of the American journey through the context of immigration, diversity, and global connectedness. LEARN MORE

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