In December 2016, the Greece Performing Arts Society (GPAS) appointed Eric Vaughn Johnson as the new President to bring new ideas, programs and partnerships to the organization. Over the last year, the 300-person performing membership has blossomed in an artistic and financial renaissance.
GPAS’s 2017 schedule included many new opportunities: The Next Chapter Media Event and Concert, the first annual Summer Soiree, the re-opening of the Greece Theatre Company with the upstate New York premiere of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” and most recently the resurrected Young Artists Competition.
Additionally, in 2017 the non-profit performing arts organization continued its on-going concerts throughout Greece and the greater Rochester area. GPAS was represented at downtown events including Corn Hill Arts Festival, M&T Clothesline Festival at the Memorial Art Gallery and the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival, as well as at several Rochester Red Wings games. The on-going GPAS Holiday Wrapping Booth fundraiser at the Mall at Greece Ridge made the largest profit since its inception in the past 20 years.
However, Johnson is not stopping here and he has several new plans for 2018.
Young Artists Recital
First up, the GPAS will be kicking off 2018 with the Young Artists Recital on Sunday, January 14 at 2 p.m. at St. John the Evangelist Church in Greece, located at 2400 W. Ridge Road (14626). Tickets for the recital are $10 and available online at GreecePerformingArts.org or at the door.
Featuring winners from the December 2017 competition, the recital will feature some of Rochester’s finest up and coming performers. The musical theatre, classical voice and instrumental performers range in ages from seven to 17 and include Sierra Bianchi of Hilton, Gregory Sekeres of Rochester, Julianna Tracey of Greece, J. Ian Reynolds of Greece, Mary Olivia Long of Brighton and Angela Gagnon of Greece.
GPAS Spring Concert
In March, GPAS will be grooving to a whole new beat with Good Vibrations Concert: Hits of the 1960s. The new themed-concert will highlight the Greece Jazz Band, directed by Gary J. Samulski, and the Greece Concert Band, directed by BJ Comer. Guest professional soloists include Jenna Owens, Alvis Green Jr. and Dylan DeGeorge, who recently played Quasimodo in GPAS’s production of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame.” Audience members will recognize popular hits from the Beach Boys, the Beatles, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, the Supremes and more.
The concert will be held Saturday, March 24 at 7 p.m. at Greece Arcadia High School Auditorium, 120 Island Cottage Road (14612). Tickets are $12 and available online at GreecePerformingArts.org or at the door.
GPAS Summer Soiree
On Saturday, June 2, the GPAS Summer Soiree will be held once again at Davinci’s of Greece with a 1930s Hooray for Hollywood theme. The new annual fundraiser will include a full buffet dinner, professional musical talent, a silent auction, and more. Tickets for this fundraiser are available at all area Wegmans and at GreecePerformingArts.org for $40 per person.
GPAS in the future
According to Eric Vaughn Johnson, the GPAS is currently developing the second Greece Theatre Company production to be mounted in late 2018. “We are not ready to announce any information, however the next show promises to be another big one like last fall’s ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame.’ ”
“GPAS will be rolling out a larger expanded version of the Young Artists Competition for December 2018. And then, in 2019 the GPAS will plan a year-long celebration for our 50th Anniversary,” reported Johnson. “We have a lot of additional plans and partnerships currently in the works, so the future for GPAS looks good.”
For more information on the Next Chapter of GPAS, visit www.GreecePerformingArts.org, email info@GreecePerformingArts.org or call 234-5636. Also, follow Greece Performing Arts by liking them on Facebook.
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