CenterStage Grand Opening September 4, 2009

The Richmond CenterStage Grand Opening will take place September 12 - 13, 2009 at the newly renovated and restored Carpenter Theatre at 600 E. Grace St.

New, comfortable seats, world-class acoustics, concierge stations, and brilliant lighting are some of the many amenities that audiences will enjoy in the nearly 1800-seat historic theater, now in its 81st year.

During the Grand Opening festivities, nine performing arts groups from the Richmond region will take the stage together for the first time to celebrate a project eight years in the making. The performance will include:

* African American Repertory Theatre: Poetry and readings celebrating the inspirational works of noted African American writer Langston Hughes;

* Elegba Folklore Society: "Excerpts from Marketplace Suite" from Manding, featuring performances of songs, music and dances celebrating the West African Manding rites of passage (choreography by Kadiatou Conte);

* Richmond Ballet: Stoner Winslett’s Windows IV, with 38 dancers and an original score by Virginia composer Jonathan Romeo;

* Richmond Jazz Society: “Generations of Jazz,” an ensemble of multi-generational musicians performing a medley of Jazz classics;

* Richmond Shakespeare: Songs and sonnets by William Shakespeare on the 400th anniversary year of their first publication, with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra;

* Richmond Symphony: Bernstein’s overture from Candide and Dimitri Shostakovich’s Festive Overture, and live accompaniment for five groups: Richmond Ballet, Virginia Opera, Richmond Shakespeare, Theatre IV - Barksdale and SPARC;

* SPARC (School of the Performing Arts in the Richmond Community): Excerpts from Les Misérables with SPARC students and alumni performing for the first time with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra;

* Theatre IV – Barksdale: Excerpts from High School Musical, Boleros for the Disenchanted (performed with the Latin Ballet of Virginia), Thoroughly Modern Millie and The Sound of Music;

* Virginia Opera: The cast of La Bohème performing selections from it's upcoming 35th anniversary production.



The acts include more than 200 performers from the nine producing resident companies, with nearly 50 additional crew members and performers who range in age from younger than 10 to nearly 90 years old.

The Grand Opening performance begins at 8:00pm on Saturday evening. Ticket prices range from $35 to $100, and are on sale now through Ticketmaster. On Sunday, from 1pm - 5pm there will be an open house with tours of CenterStage, free to the public. Group sales are available by calling (804) 343-0144.

Official Website: http://www.richmondcenterstage.com/