Bravo (and Brava) to You!

By Jane Flieller, Development Director

Saturday, March 13, 2021 marked Next Act Theatre’s first virtual fundraising event: Bravo, Next Act 2021. While things went relatively smoothly (a bit of a false start until our connectivity improved made for a heart-stopping few minutes), we very much look forward to an in-person event next spring!

A big shout out and thank you to our wonderful emcee, Doug Jarecki; performers Bree Beelow, David Cecsarini, Marcee Doherty-Elst and Adam Qutaishat; Mohammad ElBsat and Rick Pendzich for the hilarious video, Mrs. Krinklerapper Goes To Next Act; technical support: Mike Van Dreser and Creativeland; the Next Act Theatre staff; our Board of Directors; and, my fantastic Bravo Committee: Terri Alioto, Libby Amato, Cathy Jakicic, Annie Jurczyk and A.J. Magoon. We are also very grateful to our Bravo Sponsors: CliftonLarsonAllen/Mike Burzynski, Lois Cecsarini, Annie Jurczyk Realtor, and Judy Keyes, who offered the $5,000 match for support of our new internship program. There are many moving parts to any event; virtual being no exception – so, many thanks to all who helped put it together and get it on the air!

But of course, there’d be no event if nobody came! So the biggest thank you goes to you: our patrons. From ordering meals from our Restaurant Partners (Amilinda, Bunzel’s and Firefly Tosa) and picking up cocktail pails from Next Act before the event, to navigating your way through registration, online auctions and entertainment, we have you to account for the event more than doubling its goal! So, give yourself a round of applause!!

From every auction item or wine pull purchased to donations toward our newly created Inclusion, Equality and Opportunity Internship Program, we did what we set out to do. We raised funds to produce four exciting productions next season, provide a performing home for other local companies such as Renaissance Theaterworks and offer tuition-free arts education programming for teens. Bravo and brava to all of you!

We hope you enjoyed Bravo, Next Act 2021, from the pre-event Happy Hour – a Q & A with Next Act favorites David Cecsarini, Michael Cotey Marti Gobel and Malkia Stampley – through the musical entertainment and Jarecki’s lively auctioneering, and finally, to the Last Call package. The list below recognizes those who generously donated goods and services to our auctions. It’s a particularly difficult time for many and we can’t thank everyone enough for their support. Be sure to check out these businesses and help them the way they helped us!