JCC CenterStage

OUR MISSION: "CenterStage at the Jewish Community Center exists to entertain, enlighten and educate the Greater Rochester community by providing quality theatre that is relevant to the Jewish experience and has universal appeal."
--Ralph Meranto, Artistic Director

Announcing our 35th subscription Series!

The Lady with All the Answers
by David Rambo
September 10 – 25. 2011
Regional Debut!
For over 50 years, twin sister rivals Dear Abby and Ann Landers (AKA Eppie Lederer) ruled the advice column world, answering countless letters about love, sex, religion and the proper way to hang toilet paper. On a life-changing night in 1975, Ann Landers shares insight into the wise, funny, no-nonsense "Jewish Joan of Arc" whose daily dialogue with America helped shape the social and sexual landscapes of the last half-century...

Stories from the Fringe... Women Rabbis Revealed
by Ronda Spinak and Rabbi Lynne A. Kern
October 27 – 30, 2011
Based on oral interviews with 18 women rabbis, Stories from the Fringe is a humorous and heartfelt look at the lives of these extraordinary women and their searches for God, love... and a fabulous pair of shoes.
From the struggles of the first ordained women rabbis 40 years ago trying to find their place in a traditionally male dominated role, to funny and touching revelations on such universal topics as dating, infertility, tattoos, gay rights, and even homicide, hear these women's stories in their own words.
Developed by the Women's Jewish Theatre of Los Angeles and presented by special arrangement with the authors.

I Do, I Do!
Music by Harvey Schmidt, Book and Lyrics by Tom Jones
Based on The Fourposter by Jan de Hartog
December 3 – 18, 2011
Plus a special performance New Year's Eve at 9 p.m.
You'll fall in love with I DO, I DO! The classic musical about love and marriage. Written by the authors of The Fantasticks, songs include "My Cup Runneth Over," "Love Isn't Everything," "When the Kids Get Married" and a beautiful and timeless score that will make you laugh, cry and nod in knowing agreement. For better and for worse... it's the perfect show for anyone that's ever been in love.

Hollywood Sings!
Written and Conceived by Linda and Sandy Foster
January 1 – 15, 2012
Special opening night performance New Year's Eve at 6 p.m.
From "Over the Rainbow" to "Under the Sea," enjoy your favorite songs from the American cinema as the 9th installment of our beloved American Songbook series goes Hollywood. We'll explore the history of motion pictures through the popular songs that have come to define every generation of movie-goer. Lead by Linda Foster and featuring Laura Jean Smillie-Diekmann and a talented ensemble of musical theatre performers, this series gets bigger and better every year. With an added weekend to accommodate its growing popularity and a special opening night performance on New Years Eve, Hollywood Sings! will have you dancing in the aisles.

Imagining Madoff
by Deborah Margolin
March 10 – 25, 2012
Ripped from the headlines!
Did Bernie Madoff really imagine he could get away with orchestrating the biggest ponzi-scheme in history?
How much did his family and employees know about the deceit? How were some of the best and brightest minds in the world blind to his actions?
This shocking new play by Obie Award-winning dramatist, Deborah Margolin explores imagined conversations with the quietly bold and privately crass Madoff, his executive secretary and a renowned author/Holocaust survivor who becomes one of his most notable victims. Imagining Madoff is a poetic examination of the meaning of morality and the power of blind trust.

Parade
Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Book by Alfred Uhry
May 5 – 20, 2012
1998 Tony Award Winner for
Best Musical Score and Best Book
Parade, the true story of Leo Frank, a Jewish factory manager accused of murdering 13-year old Mary Phagan in 1913 Atlanta, at last comes to Rochester. With a beautiful, evocative score by Broadway composer Jason Robert Brown (The Last Five Years, 13, Songs for a New World) and a powerful book by Alfred Uhry (Driving Miss Daisy) this highly acclaimed musical is at once a riveting murder mystery, a gripping courtroom drama, a moving love story, a profile in courage and a searing social commentary.

Confessions of a Cockeyed Optimist
Written and Conceived by Laura Jean Smillie-Diekmann
May 31 – June 3, 2012
For the past nine years Laura Jean Smillie-Diekmann has been singing songs and telling musical stories from the American Songbook on the JCC stage. This season, she returns with the world premiere of her one-woman show. Using a tapestry of popular songs and Broadway classics, she'll tell some charming, insightful and surprising personal stories. An entertaining look at the meaning of "happily ever after."

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