Ever find yourself overcome by the urge to stand up and dance when an orchestra is in full swing? Central Florida Community Arts (CFCArts) wants you to give in freely to that impulse.
The sprawling organization’s Valentine’s Day series of big-band concerts is being presented in two different formats, one of which will turn the Alexis & Jim Pugh Theater at Dr. Phillips Center into an ersatz jazz club where cutting a rug is not only allowed but encouraged.
For the first two of its five My Funny Valentine shows (Thursday and Friday, February 5 and 6, at 7:30 p.m.), CFCArts will clear the intimate venue of seats so audience members who find themselves lost in the moment can get up and hoof to their hearts’ content.
Dance lessons will even be offered for those who don’t feel quite so sure of their steps. And drinks will be served, too, because not even expert instruction is as fortifying as a little liquid courage. (For true wallflowers, some seating will be retained along the perimeter of the floor and in the balcony.)
Floor seating will return for the final three shows of the weekend (Saturday, February 7, at 2 and 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, February 8, at 2 p.m.), which are designed to offer a more traditional concert experience. But even then, no one’s going to stop you from bopping in your seat. Just saying.
All five performances will largely follow the same musical template, with the 60-piece CFCArts Big Band playing a program of jazz classics from Basie to Bublé. Vocalist Katie Horvath, a member of the CFCArts Community Choir, will solo in a few tunes.
“You can experience a lot of CFCArts concerts in a traditional concert format,” says Artistic Director Justin Muchoney, who will conduct the band at all shows. “But the chance to flatten a dance floor and let people come out and move a bit and laugh and participate in a meaningful way just felt like something we wanted to try this time around.”
And as Muchoney points out, concert weekend is a full week before Valentine’s Day itself—so you can either take a date or get in a little dance practice to make sure you don’t step on anybody’s toes.
Dr. Phillips Center is located at 445 South Magnolia Avenue, Orlando. For more information, call or visit the website.
