Any donations made to our 5K fundraising efforts directly support Blackfriars Theatre's artistic and community programming during the 2018-2019 Season!
Blackfriars has an exciting selection of theatre productions and programs coming up during the 2018-2019 Season. We began in July with a completely sold-out run of "A Chorus Line," which served as the capstone to the 2018 BTSI program. We kick off our subscription series in September with "Anna in the Tropics," produced in partnership with the Rochester Latino Theatre Company and featuring an all-Latinx cast from the Rochester community. In October, we’re producing the cult-hit "The Rocky Horror Show", starring "RuPaul’s Drag Race’s" (and Rochester resident) Mrs. Kasha Davis as Dr. Frank N. Furter. This production will travel to the Laurie Beechman Theatre in NYC in January 2019, a first for Blackfriars Theatre! Our holiday production is "The Last Night of Ballyhoo," followed by the musical "Ordinary Days" in February. In March, we’ll produce the regional premiere of Theresa Rebeck’s "Mauritus," and we close the Season in May with the regional premiere of Laura Eason’s "The Undeniable Sound of Right Now." We’ve partnered with Record Archive, Rohrbach Brewing Company, and Lovin’ Cup to make this final show a fully-immersive theatrical experience, turning the entire Theatre into a circa -1990s club (the show is set in a dive bar in 1992) with a line-up of local bands playing a live set an hour prior to each performance and a set that includes a working bar that patrons can order from before the show and during intermission. During the 2018-2019 Season, Blackfriars is increasing the number of Drag Story Hour events from six to twelve, offering families twice as many opportunities to come together and celebrate diversity, kindness and inclusion. We will once again host the American Red Cross for two blood drives in October 2018 and May 2019. In addition, The Blackfriars Comedy Series and Hourglass Play Reading Series will continue at Blackfriars through the 2018-2019 Season. All of our artistic programming will feature local artists, many of whom have professional stage experience and/or formal training but have chosen to make Rochester their home. With these powerhouse productions and engaging new partnerships and community events, the 2018-2019 Season promises to be Blackfriars Theatre’s biggest and most important Season yet.
Blackfriars Theatre is a mid-sized professional theatre that has entertained audiences for nearly 70 years in downtown Rochester, New York. Our mission is to enrich, entertain and inspire our community through exceptional theatrical arts while engaging local talent. We champion the ideals of diverse and challenging storytelling, and we passionately invest in the talent of local artists. Each year, Blackfriars Theatre reaches approximately 12,000 patrons through our productions and artistic programming. Blackfriars also serves roughly 120 Rochester-based artists each year with performing, designing, directing and technician opportunities on all of our productions.
