CenterStage Theatre
Covid-19 Safety Policy for Hart Theater
Masks are required at all times.
Now Playing
CenterStage 2022–23 Subscription Series
Subscription packages available now for our 46th Season! Click below for details and to subscribe today!
Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage
SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW…
For the first time in our history, we are producing
TWO SummerStage shows this year!
Tickets available now!
JCC Hart Theater
Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage at the JCC
About Us
CenterStage Theatre has been delivering spectacular performances that touch and inspire audiences for more than 40 seasons, including original plays and Broadway hits. We continue to open minds, start conversations, and delight theatre lovers, thanks to the support of patrons, volunteers, and sponsors.
The mission of CenterStage Theatre at the JCC is to entertain, enlighten and educate the Greater Rochester community by providing quality theatre that is relevant to the Jewish experience and has universal appeal.
Our focus is developing new works, presenting world and area premieres of America’s hottest new plays and musicals and re-imagining beloved classics. We love plays and musicals that spark conversations, celebrate world-changing people and events and bring the world closer together.
Covid-19 Safety Policy:
For all future indoor events:
All patrons welcome regardless of vaccination status. Masks encouraged, and may be required depending on Covid conditions at the time of the event.
Covid-19 vaccination and masks not required.
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To know where we are going, we must know where we have been.
Our 46th season explores groundbreaking music, theatre, and comedy of the past with fresh new works and an epic classic musical that all show their impact on America today.
Subscription packages available now for our 46th Season! Click below for details and to subscribe today!
Get discounted tickets when you buy a 4 or 5-show package. Plus, free unlimited exchanges and no ticketing fees!
Subscribe + Save
All patrons welcome regardless of vaccination status. Masks encouraged, and may be required depending on Covid conditions at the time of the event.
Non-Member: $160
Includes access to Lipson Lounge during CenterStage performances!
4-Show Package
JCC Member: $120
Non-Member: $136
Auditions
SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW…
For the first time in our history, we are producing TWO SummerStage shows this year! Double the opportunities for high school and college students…and the first time ever to participate in a WORLD PREMIERE MUSICAL!
Details and audition info below…
Rise: A New Musical
By Joshua Daniel Hershfield
July 9–17, 2022
Past and present collide in this world premiere inspired by true stories of young women resistance fighters during the Nazi regime. A modern rock score highlights the ultimate acts of resistance with the ultimate music of rebellion. Winner of the Bela Zarhi Prize from the Ghetto Fighters’ House in Israel.
Rehearsals begin May 31, 2022
Directed by Madeleine Snow
Music Direction by Ellice Amendolare
Choreography by Mandi Lynn Griffith
Location: JCC Hart Theatre
Gilbert and Sullivan’s
The Pirates of Penzance
August 11–14, 2022
Gilbert and Sullivan’s beloved musical comedy about a roguish Pirate King, his adventurous young charge, a bevy of clever maidens and a “Modern Major General” is as wildly entertaining as when it premiered in 1879. A reimagined Tony Award-Winning Broadway Revival in 1981 and subsequent film prove the enduring appeal G&S’s most popular musical.
Rehearsals begin July 10, 2022
Directed by Brynn Tyszka
Music Direction by Julie Covach
Choreography by Katie Keller Groat
Location: Dawn Lipson Canalside Stage at the JCC
AUDITION DETAILS
Auditions for RISE and PIRATES OF PENZANCE:
Tuesday, May 24 at 6pm
Callbacks:
RISE, Wednesday, May 25 at 6pm
PIRATES OF PENZANCE, Thursday, May 26 at 6pm
Audition candidates can submit for either or both shows. Please prepare a 32-bar cut that best displays your vocal ability, style and range. Be prepared to provide a second 32-bar cut in a contrasting style if requested. Sheet music must be printed in the correct key with cuts clearly marked. If you have one show you are more interested in, we suggest you select piece(s) that best match the style of that show. For RISE we suggest music from a pop/rock Broadway show. For PIRATES bring your legit or classic/Golden Age Broadway style material. The auditions will start with a basic dance audition to assess movement ability.
Rehearsals will be Sundays (times vary) and Mondays–Thursdays (evenings). Please bring a list of all conflicts. No conflicts allowed the two weeks before opening night.
Roles open for all genders and all races ages 14–24. Must be enrolled in school or a recent graduate. You must be fully vaccinated to participate in any JCC production. This is an audition only program, not a camp. There is no fee to participate.
Online submission welcomed if you are not able to attend. Please email a link to an uploaded video to centerstage@jccrochester.org. A video uploaded to an unlisted Youtube address usually works best. Please include contact information, resume, or performance experience and specify which show(s) you are auditioning for. Please also include a list of potential rehearsal conflicts.
History
Theatre has also always been an important component of JY/JCC cultural arts offerings. Many shows were produced in the JY auditorium on Andrews Street. these shows were able to be produced in the newly built JCC Hart Theater. With superb acoustics and audience views from every seat in the house, the theater created an opportunity for an expanded focus on the arts.
In 1977 a committee of JCC volunteers launched a national search for a professional theater director. The committee selected Philadelphia-based actor/producer Herb Katz and JCC CenterStage was born.
Volunteer
All CenterStage volunteers must be fully vaccinated.
To learn more about volunteer opportunities, including backstage, front of house, and ushers, contact us.
Contact Us
Ralph Meranto, Director of CenterStage Theatre,
JCC Associate Executive Director
Marc Cataldi, Administrative Assistant, Box Office Manager
Support the Arts
Actor: $100+
Friend: $250+
Patron: $500+
Supporter: $1,000+
Bronze: $2,500+
Silver: $5,000+
Gold: $10,000+
E-mail centerstage@jccrochester.org with any questions, or click below to give today!
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.
2021–22 CenterStage Season Sponsors:
