Two-day celebration will open Rosen JCC expansion

DR. PHILLIPS  The last several years have been busy for the Rosen Jewish Community Center, with frequent flux from opening its campus in 2009 to its independent incorporation last year.

Executive Director Bonnie Rayman is looking forward to an era of normalcy, which could begin in March after a two-day grand opening of the JCC’s auditorium, the Rosen Event Center.

Corresponding with the JCC’s second annual gala Feb. 27 is “Opening Night,” a performance by Theater South Orlando befitting the public’s first look at the Rosen Event Center among other state-of-the-art facilities in its Phase 2 expansion.

“They bring in lots of talent,” Rayman said of Theater South Orlando, which has offices at the JCC. “They have one of the main ballerinas from the Cirque shows — major, major talent … almost on par with that of a Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center. We’re really excited for the event.”

The community has matched Rayman’s enthusiasm for this event, having bought most of the tickets to this cocktail-attire event before the price increase deadline, she said. It will feature a walk-around sampling of various local eateries’ comestibles with festively themed booths to match, such as the Margaritaville station putting guests right in the middle of a Jimmy Buffett Key West paradise, Rayman said.

“It’s not your typical gala dinner,” she said. “It’s awesome, a lot of fun and all included — you’re getting this full open bar with unlimited drinks … all the different dinner stations and the show.”

There will be a babysitting service available, but Rayman encourages families to attend Broadway in Your Backyard Feb. 28. This second half of the grand opening weekend features a matinee performance of “Opening Night” with the opportunity to learn about improv, acting, dance and music from actors such as Broadway’s Grant Norman in three 20-minute stations.

“It’s going to be all of the best from Broadway,” Rayman said. “There will be things from ‘Beauty & the Beast,’ things from ‘Wicked,’ ‘Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better’ from ‘Annie.’”

For families seeking afternoon fun with children ages 2 to 13, this especially would be a great time, she said. Members of the audience will be selected to get on stage and take part in the show.

“Also, in this there will be a preview of the two youth musicals that are coming out in March,” Rayman said. “So you’ll actually see youth musical numbers, as well.”

Proceeds from these events — including those from a silent auction — will go toward furnishings for the new spaces of the expansion, Rayman said. This includes classrooms for its educational spaces, stations for exercising and a teen hangout.

For more information on the project, visit RosenJCC.org/expansion.

Contact Zak Kerr at [email protected].