HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. – Hillsborough County will host a prelude and recognition ceremony on Saturday, March 25, for the New Tampa Performing Arts Center.
The center’s 20,000-square-foot building will provide a long-awaited venue for fostering community theater and other events for a wide range of residents and groups.
Saturday’s event, the first held at the new center, will begin with recognizing the efforts and people involved in bringing the center to New Tampa, particularly Doug Wall, co-founder of the New Tampa Players community theater group. Wall, who died in 2017, had worked for years to help bring a performing arts center to the area.
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The night’s performance will be 90 minutes of musical storytelling by a cast of 14 and a three-piece band. The story is a lively and fun journey through the process of producing a musical, with featured solos and choreographed group numbers accompanied by live piano, bass, and drums.
“The opening of the long-awaited New Tampa Performing Arts Center marks a great day for both the community and Hillsborough County. It’s been more than 20 years in the making and I couldn’t be prouder,” remarked Commissioner Ken Hagan. “But full gratification will be realized when we see the joyful faces of the thousands who will visit this extraordinary playhouse. They’ll be awestruck, for years to come, by the wonderful theatrical, dance, and musical performances this Center will host.”
Tickets to the one-time performance are free, but most have been allocated. For information on any remaining tickets, email infoNTPAC@Hillsboroughcounty.org or call (813) 829-2760. Future performances scheduled at the New Tampa Performing Arts Center this year include “Beauty and the Beast’’ in April, “Grease’’ in July, and “Shrek the Musical’’ in October.
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The New Tampa Performing Arts Center, 8550 Hunters Village Rd., Tampa, FL 33647, includes a 350-seat theatre/multipurpose venue with a stage, catwalk, and orchestra pit. Additional amenities include four studios/multipurpose rooms, a catering/serving kitchen, concession area, box office, main lobby, and parking for 215 vehicles.
The building’s design allows for expansion to 30,000 square feet with a future second floor. The space provides flexibility for conducting theater, dance, and arts events, including educational programming for residents of all ages, as well as a facility rental for events and weddings.
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