The performing arts scene of Miami has regained one of its most established players: The Key Biscayne Music and Drama Club – KBMDC –, a non-profit organization founded in 1956 that has presented plenty of shows up until 1995 when its headquarters, the Calusa Playhouse Theatre, was destroyed by fire.
“KBMDC was a landmark for the performing arts in Miami. The club used to present musicals with actors and productions brought directly from Broadway, as well as concerts and plays of the highest level. They were an artistic reference of high quality in this city, and that is why we want to bring back to life this project in Key Biscayne; we want to present Miami with a second alternative in the community theatre arena”, explains Angelica Torres, vice president of the board of directors of KBMDC, in clear reference to the Actors Playhouse. “We have the support of the Key Biscayne Community Foundation and the Village of Key Biscayne”, she added. The new board of directors of KBMDC is comprised of Key Biscayne residents, among which Pat Weiman, former memeber of the village’s council, can be found.
Key Biscayne, where the Sony Ericsson Open tennis tournament was just held, is a small island located just 7 miles from Brickell Avenue.This is the financial center of Miami, where the headquarters of major international private banks from around the world are located one after another. These banks are the destination for much of the $250 billion coming from Latin America and that takes refuge in the United States. The proximity to Brickell, as well as the idyllic characteristics of the key, are the some of the reasons why so many investment professionals along with many of their clients, decide to establish their residence in this village, which is also one of the richest in the US due to the high collection of property taxes. Despite so much wealth, the sponsorship of the visual and performing arts has been pushed into the background for the last two decades. This situation has shifted significantly since the re-launch of KBMDC.
The Club’s first event will be a cocktail party presenting the project, which will take place in April 14th. This party will introduce the first production presented by de KBMDC: the Regional Premiere of Shrek. This musical, which will premiere in Miami during the last quarter of this year, is in an advanced pre-production process and features a cast of remarkable professional and semi-professional singers and dancers (watch video). The producer is Broadway Musical Theatre – BMT – a theater group led by Angelica Torres, who since 2006 has staged 20 productions with children and young performers from South Florida.
“With the release of Shrek, we want to plant the first seed of a professional project and a visual and performing arts program in South Florida, channeled through the sponsorship of the Key Biscayne Music and Drama Club”, added Angelica. “Shrek is a very complex show of the highest level in which the set, the costumes, the music and of course, the actors, have to be very good”, emphasizes the director and choreographer of the musical.
The cocktail party presentation will take place on April 14 in Key Biscayne, for a select group of art lovers, patrons and supporters of the new Club. During this event there will be a preview performance of Shrek The Musical, by some of the members of the same cast which will premiere the musical in December 2013.
The event, which is co-sponsored by the Village of Key Biscayne and by the Key Biscayne Community Foundation, wants to lay the foundations for KBMDC to become the new center for the promotion of culture and performing arts, from a municipality that has one of the highest per-capita incomes in the U.S.
If you are interested in obtaining more information regarding the re-launch of the Key Biscayne Music and Drama Club, as well as to confirm your assistance to the presentation cocktail, you can contact the organization through this email: kbmdclub@gmail.com
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