Amiallana Justus
Artists, educators, and community members come together to celebrate a century of theatre at Orlando Family Stage on Tuesday, Feb. 3 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Guests reminisce on the 100 years of impact theatre has had of performing arts and gives all generations of theatre time to reconnect.
On Feb. 3, 1926, the Beacham theatre had welcomed its very first production that consisted of four one-act plays; “Everybody’s Husband”, “The Camberley Triangle”, “The Valiant”, and “Thank You, Doctor”- directed by Orpha Pope Grey.
Throughout the welcoming ceremony, there will be costume sketches, photographs, programs, and artifacts that go through every decade of theatre. This also gives past performers the chance to find their names in cast lists and remember what truly inspired them to get involved in the arts.
There will be food and beverages for guests to snack on as they explore the theatre, listen to theatre prodigies, and learn more from each other.
Originally, the name of Orlando Family Stage theatre was known as the Central Florida Civic Theatres and the Orlando Repertory Theatre. The name change came from Board members wanting a more “identifying name” for the theatre.
Orlando Family Stage is the seventh iteration of the theater company and for the past 20 years worked as Florida’s only professional theatre for young students.
One century later, families of performers will come together to celebrate the anniversary of theatre as it has paved the way for performers in Orlando.
Behind the Scenes of Creativity and Expression
Theatre has been around for thousands of years. While technology has evolved in theatre, the expression to be creative and yourself has not.
“Theatre is such a great artistic avenue to have important conversations, to teach kids about compassion and empathy,” said Chris Brown, executive director of Orlando Family Stage. “It’s an amazing human nature art form that we have to figure out how to carry on.”
Brown said that the stage may not be for everyone, but the confidence that theatre teaches will last a lifetime in a young artist’s life.
“Theatre builds tremendous amounts of confidence,” said Brown. “The process of building a show, whether you’re performing in it or backstage, you have to collaborate with others, you all have to be on the same road to get to that opening night. It’s so important and teaches kids so many life skills in a really fun way.”
“It’s interesting that very little has changed in terms of the storytelling in theatre,” said Brown. “The change has been the technology where we used to light the stage with candles and now, we have lights. The art form itself is pretty consistent, and it comes down to storytelling and that is something humans are always going to need.”
Mary Sienko, costume shop manager of Orlando Family Stage, said “Theatre has brought us together as a community. It’s something where people can come together and find common ground through the stories or even through the creation of theatre and that’s something that is so deeply ingrained in theatre is the community.”
Seasoned professionals and young artists came together at this event to create a new outlet for those who are trying to get more involved in the arts and entertainment industry.
“Every year when we get to work with our youth academy students where I have seen them grow from their first show here at Orlando Family Stage to the Broadway Stage,” said Sienko. “I think that’s the most exciting part is seeing these young artists journey.”
“Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. There’s going to be missteps and mess-ups, but all those moments where you feel like you’ve maybe failed, are just extra tools in your toolbox to keep moving forward in your theatrical journey,” said Sienko.
Orlando Family Stage plays a larger role in giving future artists an opportunity to show their talent to an audience.
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