Today I got to sit with Brooke Noble from the Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater. I’ve attended their movie screenings before but I was unaware of all the awesome productions and other performing arts projects they put together at the Miracle Theater. Now, I am happy to share them all with you!
First of all, we are lucky to still have such a beautiful historic building in our city. Back in 1995, developers wanted to level the building and build a Ross on top of it. Luckily, Actor’s Playhouse founders proposed to renovate the gorgeous building and convert it from a movie theater to a performing arts center. In a collaboration with the City of Coral Gables the initiative went through and now we have an impressive instigator of the arts within our midst.
Mainstage Season
We are about to kick of the 28th season of the Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater as a regional theatre company and its 20th year at the Miracle Theatre. The Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater has different programs: the Mainstage, the Children’s Theater, theater classes, and more. The Mainstage programming has the big musical productions; and let me tell you – I am impressed of how they put them together.
Before the season starts the Director, David Arisco, picks the cast for the mainstage productions. For every production the cast gets together to rehearse for only three weeks. (I wouldn’t be able to memorize my lines in that time.) The actors don’t even get to rehearse on stage with props until a couple of days before the show opens. During those same three weeks the stage, costumes and props are being built or tailored for the production. The actors finally get to rehearse on stage with props a few days before opening night. Every production is a whirlwind of chaos until the premiere. I am amazed they pull off show after show the entire season in this type of tight schedule. I’ll definitely be attending all their productions this year! Grab your tickets now.
The company is starting off the Mainstage season with The Toxic Avenger (October 14 – November 8, 2015):
Based on the classic cult film of the same name, this new rock-pop musical is a charming, exhilarating and hysterical love story that has it all – an unlikely hero, his beautiful girlfriend, a corrupt New Jersey Mayor, and two guys who play EVERY other character in the play; including bullies, monsters, old ladies and stiletto-wearing back up singers. “Toxie” is an unconventional contemporary love story with an environmental twist that will rock the house and leave audiences laughing out loud.
Children’s Theater Season
All the Children’s Theater shows are performed by professional adult actors and showtimes are on Saturdays at 2pm. A couple times a year they have the opportunity to cast young performers (ages 8 – 17) alongside the adult actors. This year’s Children’s Theater is starting off with Charlotte’s Web (September 25 – October 31, 2015); NARNIA: the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (November 20 – December 20, 2015); The Jungle Book (January 15 – March 18, 2015); Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (May 7 – May 21, 2015); and Pippi Longstocking (June 30 – July 30, 2016).
Young Talent Big Dreams
The Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater holds an annual competition: Young Talent Big Dreams. Kids from all over South Florida enter to compete in different performing arts categories: music, dance, voice, original composition, and spoken word. The grand prize winner gets to attend the American Idol finale LIVE in Los Angeles. They get air far, hotel and two passes paid to attend the finale. There are many other prizes including a cash prize of $500 or scholarships for winners of different categories. All participants will receive masters classes from local professionals throughout the competition. The Young Talent Big Dreams competition is open to kids ages 8-17. Register at actorsplayhouse.org for the 2016 auditions.
Free Movie Screenings
The Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater is bringing the Miracle Theater’s cinema past back to life. Back in the 1940s the Miracle Theater would deck out the venue to match the theme of the movie being screened in an effort to make it a more interactive experience. The Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater is bringing this tradition back to life by screening movies for FREE. The screening of The Rocky Horror Show on Halloween night includes a list of props. The audience will interact with the movie during specific scenes – throwing rice during the wedding scene, taking cover under a newspaper during a rainy scene or throwing toilet paper. All the props are provided by the Actor’s Playhouse!
The movies to look forward to include The Rocky Horror Picture Show (October 2015), Gremlins (November 2015), On The Town (January 2016), Into the Woods (March 2016), The Goonies (May 2016), and Grease (July 2015).
With so many amazing events going on you definitely have to stop by the Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater. See you there!