Beck Center Opens 12/13 Theater Season and Gallery Exhibits, 9/14

Beck Center for the Arts will be bustling this Friday, September 14 with opening night of the Broadway hit musical XANADU as it kicks off its 2012/2013 Professional Theater season, as well as opening receptions for two art gallery exhibits, Esperanza's Young Artists and Hispanic Heritage, Hispanic Art. Guests are invited to meet and greet the artists at opening receptions for these two gallery exhibits from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. before XANADU rolls onto the Mackey Main Stage at 8 p.m. Beck Center is located at 17801 Detroit Avenue in Lakewood, just minutes from downtown Cleveland. Free onsite parking is available. To purchase Xanadu tickets or for more information, visit beckcenter.org or call 216.521.2540, ext. 10.

Beck Center's Main Stage has been transformed into a 1980s roller disco as Xanadu skates in September 14 through October 14. This hilarious musical adventure about following your dreams despite the limitations others set for you is based on the 1980s cult classic film of the same name starring Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly. Winner of the 2008 Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Broadway Musical, Xanadu rolls along to the original hits score including legendary pop-rock songs such as Magic, Evil Woman, Have You Never Been Mellow, and Xanadu.

Esperanza's Young Artists is an exhibition that grew out of a series of summer workshops led by artists from American Greetings. Every Thursday afternoon for six weeks, they hosted a group of more than 20 youth-program participants from Esperanza, Inc., a Cleveland area non-profit that promotes Hispanic educational achievement. Guided by a different expert each week, the young artists explored a variety of artistic techniques, including mask making, collage and block printing. Exhibition hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday, through October 14 in Beck Center's Skylight Gallery, located on the second floor of Beck Center's Main Building.

Hispanic Heritage, Hispanic Art, an exhibit featuring the extraordinary talent of 13 Hispanic artists from Northeast Ohio will be on display in the Jean Bulicek Galleria at Beck Center and run concurrently with Esperanza's Young Artists exhibit in celebration of Hispanic Cultural Heritage Month. Artists include Augusto Bordelios, Bruno Casiano, Hector Castellanos, Maria Dejesus Paz, Gabriel Gonzalez, Angelica Pozo, Maria Pujana, Alejandro Rivera, Dante Rodriquez, Bess Rodriquez Richard, Will Sanchez, Jose Vasquez, and Hector Vega. Guests may meet the artists at the September 14 opening receptions which will include food, music and a cash bar.