CenterStage Theatre

2024–25 Season Tickets Available Now!

October 9–20

December 7–22

February 1–16

March 2–16

May 3–18

CenterStage Theatre’s 2024–25 Season

 
CenterStage Theatre is excited to announce our epic 2024–25 Theatre Season filled with World/Regional Premieres and exciting community partnerships.
 
As our 47th Season is wrapping up, we are proud to announce that it has included our biggest selling play (Sisters In Law) and our biggest selling musical (Beautiful) of all time! Audiences are flocking to CenterStage at the JCC in record numbers thanks to positive word-of-mouth about our groundbreaking plays and musicals featuring many of Rochester’s finest performers! As your local professional theatre at the JCC, we strive to bring excellence to the stage with affordable prices. 

Our 48th Season will feature an expanded schedule to accommodate our growing audiences. Please subscribe to ensure you don’t miss any one of our amazing titles.

School of Rock

December 7–22, 2024

Directed by Karin Bowersock
Music Directed by Jason Tortorici
Vocal Directed by Jordan Bachmann
Choreography by Katie Keller Groat

Based on the hilarious film, this fish-out-of-water musical follows Dewey Finn, a failed rock star who decides to earn a few extra bucks by posing as a substitute teacher at a prestigious prep school. There, he turns a class of straight-A students into a mind-blowing rock band with roof-raising energy. A family show for all ages!

Sponsored by

Saturday, December 7, 7:30pm
Sunday, December 8, 2pm
Wednesday, December 11, 7pm
Thursday, December 12, 7pm
Saturday, December 14, 2pm
Saturday, December 14, 7:30pm
Sunday, December 15, 2pm [OC]
Wednesday, December 18, 7pm
Thursday, December 19, 7pm
Saturday, December 21, 7:30pm
Sunday, December 22, 2pm [OC]

Run Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes plus a 15-minute intermission

Presented in partnership with

Hitmakers: Superstars of the 70s

February 1–16, 2025

Written by Danny Kincaid-Kunz
Musical Direction & Arrangements by Casey Filiaci
Directed by Ralph Meranto
Choreography by Katie Keller Groat

In this 10th Edition of the Hitmakers we explore the vast and varied artists that defined the “Me Generation.” Singer-songwriters, pop music, R&B, soft rock, glam, and even a little country music will merge into an all new show highlighting the top-charting artists of the 1970s.

Sponsored by Debby Goldman

Saturday, February 1, 7:30pm
Sunday, February 2, 2pm
Wednesday, February 5, 7pm
Thursday, February 6, 7pm
Saturday, February 8, 2pm
Saturday, February 8, 7:30pm
Sunday, February 9, 2pm [OC]
Wednesday, February 12, 7pm
Thursday, February 13, 7pm
Saturday, February 15, 2pm
Saturday, February 15, 7:30pm
Sunday, February 16, 2pm

The Berlin Diaries

March 2–16, 2025

A World Premiere Play by Andrea Stolowitz
Directed by Lindsay Warren Baker

Hidden secrets are revealed when a great-grandfather’s Holocaust-era diary sends a young woman on a “Finding Your Roots” style journey of discovery across the globe on a quest to fill in the missing branches of her family tree. Two dynamic performers play dozens of roles in this contemporary play about the search for home and the family you never knew existed.

A National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere

Saturday, March 1, 7:30pm (Private performance)
Sunday, March 2, 2pm
Thursday, March 6, 7pm
Saturday, March 8, 7:30pm
Sunday, March 9, 2pm [OC]
Thursday, March 13, 7pm
Saturday, March 15, 7:30pm
Sunday, March 16, 2pm

Presented in Partnership with

JFS logo

Cornell/Weinstein Family Foundation presents

An American in Paris

May 3–18, 2025

Music and Lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin
Book by Craig Lucas
Directed by Ralph Meranto
Choreographed by Draper Artistic Director Jamey Leverett
Musical Direction by Andrew Cooke

 Inspired by the 1951 film of the same name, this Tony Award-Winning new musical is an epic song and dance extravaganza about an American soldier at the end of WWII.

Sponsored by 

Dawn Lipson

Nelson B. Delavan Foundation


Saturday, May 3, 7:30pm
Sunday, May 4, 2pm
Wednesday, May 7, 7pm
Thursday, May 8, 7pm
Saturday, May 10, 2pm
Saturday, May 10, 7:30pm
Sunday, May 11, 2pm [OC]
Wednesday, May 14, 7pm
Thursday, May 15, 7pm
Saturday, May 17, 2pm
Saturday, May 17, 7:30pm
Sunday, May 18, 2pm

Presented in Partnership with 

[OC] denotes live open captioned performances.
Ideal seating on right side of the audience.
Click here to learn more.

Support the Arts

It’s no secret that the arts were severely impacted by the pandemic. Even in normal years, ticket sales only cover around half of our total expenses. It’s our subscribers, sponsors, and donors that make it possible for us to present the high quality programming you have come to expect from CenterStage.
 
Gifts of $1,000 or more receive two subscription packages for all five season shows. Please contact us about show sponsorships and other underwriting opportunities. All donors over $100 receive listings in all season playbills and access to the Lipson Lounge for season performances. 
 

Donor: $100
Friend: $250
Patron: $500
Supporter: $1,000
Supporting Show Sponsors: $2,500
Lead Show Sponsor: $5,000
Supporting Season Sponsor: $10,000
Lead Season Sponsor $25,000

E-mail [email protected] with any questions, or click below to give today!

Click for a list of our supporters.

Crafted from the actual testimonies of Rochester-based Holocaust Survivors, CenterStage Theatre and the Louis S. Wolk Jewish Community Center of Greater Rochester commissioned this new play to put a human face on this important time in history. A cautionary tale on the risks of normalized hate, this inspirational and uplifting play ensures that the voices of our Survivors will never be silenced.

Season Sponsors:

Anonymous
Ames Amzalak Memorial Trust
Brighton Securities
Cornell/Weinstein Family Foundation
Jacqueline Davis
Christine and Donald Dear
Deborah G. Goldman
Humanities NY
Elaine Jacobsen
Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester
Kim and Richard Gray
Dr. Elaine Greene
William and Sheila Konar Foundation

Dr. Dawn Lipson
Judge Karen Morris
NYS Council on the Arts
Panache Consignment by Natalie Rae
Progressive Implantology and Periodontics
RBC Wealth Management
Samloff Family Fund
Elaine and Leonard Simon
Frumel Ureles Fund for Theater Arts
St. John’s
Theatre Development Fund
Donna Weinstein 
in Loving Memory of Min and Maynard Weinstein
Woods Oviatt Gilman LLP

CenterStage’s 2024–25 Season is presented in Memory of Min and Maynard Weinstein

Media Sponsors:


CenterStage Theatre at the JCC
is a proud member of TheatreRocs

Photos by Steve Levinson, Lou Schneider