Center Stage
A true community theater, the Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse offers local residents the opportunity to take center stage in musicals such as Curtains. GOFORTH PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOS
Cocoa Village Playhouse turns 100, in the best shape of her life
The historical building that houses the playhouse has not changed much since it opened in 1924 as the Aladdin Theater, home to silent films.
A great lady of the theater marked her 100th birthday in Brevard County this August, and her legion of fans plans to celebrate her centenary well into 2025.
Cocoa was a very different city when the Aladdin Theatre — as the Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse was originally known — first welcomed audiences on Aug. 18, 1924. The town that fishermen founded didn’t even have a commercial building until 1882. In 1918, Cracker cowboys were still herding cattle through Delannoy Avenue and Harrison Street. The population in 1903 totaled 302.
Like its namesake hero of the Arabian Nights, the Aladdin offered the wonders of whole new worlds presented by a genie, which in this case were silent films. One of the must-see movies of 1924 was based on another story from the same book: The Thief of Baghdad, a Douglas Fairbanks swashbuckling flick.
Through ensuing decades, the Aladdin continued to fuel residents’ dreams of exploring far away locations and unique personalities. As silent films gained their voice, the Aladdin was Brevard’s first “talkie” movie house. After several owners and several decades, the building was purchased by the City of Cocoa and transformed into the Cocoa Village Playhouse. In 1984, Brevard Community College, the precursor to Eastern Florida State College, acquired the property from the city for a dollar, with the stipulation that the school would operate it to serve the community. College trustees wisely reshaped the playhouse into a nonprofit, with a board of directors tasked with raising the funds to restore the now faded building and operate it as a community theatre. The college would later return ownership of the playhouse to the City of Cocoa, with management by the nonprofit organization. The city and the playhouse joined forces in 2012 to renovate the auditorium, now one of Florida’s most beautiful.
While live theater is its current forte, the playhouse often offers audiences a chance to time travel to an era when ornately decorated movie theaters would present films such as It’s a Wonderful Life.
REBIRTH
Dr. Anastacia Hawkins-Smith, the playhouse’s resident ‘Drama Mama’ has been instrumental in the theater’s growth.
With the local debut of George M in 1990, the playhouse — at the age of 66 — energetically embarked upon her new career as a stage for musicals performed by volunteer actors. A large portion of credit for her success lies with another contribution from Brevard Community College, Dr. Anastacia “Staci” Hawkins-Smith, aka Drama Mama.
“I tell people I came with the building,” Hawkins-Smith said with a smile.
In truth, she joined the cast as chief executive officer in 1989, after serving as an outreach coordinator in financial aid at BCC and doing theater on the side. The decision to choose her, out of 50 applicants for the job, was an inspired one. Hawkins-Smith has devoted her heart and soul to the playhouse, kickstarting programs such as Stars of Tomorrow, Broadway on Brevard and the Spotlight Series of local community performing groups. Just two years after she took the helm, the playhouse was accepted into the National Register of Historic Places. She helped it to emerge, reenergized, after the dark days of the pandemic. In the early days, she directed. She choreographed. She did everything needed — including building a fiercely devoted team.
“It is a dream come true to work at the playhouse with Staci,” said Christopher Beavers, who grew up as part of the cast of many a playhouse show. After college, Beavers returned home and now serves as the playhouse’s development director. “I knew I was going to work for Staci one day,” he said.
“Staci is the playhouse,” Kathi Schillo added.
Schillo, secretary of the playhouse board, is leading the Aladdin Society’s elaborate 100th birthday celebration, which kicked off on Aug. 17 and will continue through Aug. 16, 2025. She started the Aladdin Society, the playhouse’s fundraising arm, a dozen years ago. While she has not been on stage, both her daughter and her late husband have performed in playhouse shows and she has provided backstage technical support. Like so many associated with the playhouse, Schillo considers the building a second home and the people who frequent it family. For the 100th celebration, Schillo and her Aladdin team are pulling out all the stops.
“This will be unlike any other celebrations you’ve ever seen,” she promised.
The Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse enjoys a devoted fan base that often snaps all seats for the shows.
Playhouse audiences were transported to the Argentina of the 1940s with the production of Evita.
COMING UP
The meticulously maintained playhouse retains its 1920s vibes.
Sally Kalarovich was 13 when she joined the cast of the very first playhouse production, George M. Except for college and grad school, she hasn’t strayed far from the playhouse since. The director of Stars of Tomorrow for 20 years, Kalarovich was among the first eight students when Hawkins-Smith launched the youth acting group in 1992.
Now numbering approximately 200 students, ages 7 through seniors in high school, the program not only develops skills necessary for success in the performing arts, it also nurtures academic achievement, teamwork, time management and more.
“They gain confidence in themselves and that opens the door to limitless possibilities,” Kalarovich said.
At age 7, John Dudley’s love affair with the playhouse commenced when he saw Meet Me in St. Louis.
The Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse’s Broadway on Brevard series features classics such as The King and I with its iconic Shall We Dance scene.
“I was amazed they could bring such a different world to the stage,” said Dudley, who at age 8 starred as Tiny Tim in the playhouse’s A Christmas Carol.
With a degree in musical theater, Dudley returned home to the playhouse, where he now directs and helps with production and promotion of shows.
“It’s the community and the quality of the productions that drew me back,” he said.
Sold-out shows, a patron base of 2,100 and 55,000 audience members a year allow the playhouse to garner up to 90 percent of its revenue from ticket sales.
The playhouse family has big plans for the theater’s second century. The adjacent Rembert Building, which the theater owns, will be refurbished and annexed to provide additional office and classroom space; a black box theater for smaller productions; and a mid-sized venue for meetings and weddings.
Weddings are not unusual at the playhouse. Often, they are for couples like Kalarovich and husband, Aaron, who first connected at the theater.
“We would never have met if it hadn’t been through the playhouse,” she said.
The couple’s 15-year-old triplets are now active with the Stars program. Perhaps the playhouse will also play matchmaker for them one day. She may be 100 years old, but the Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse is always up to something good.
“We’re about making dreams come true,” said Hawkins-Smith.
A very familiar foursome, along with canine buddy, Toto, venture down the Yellow Brick Road in the playhouse’s production of The Wizard of Oz.
Little Shop of Horrors is a plant-based delight at the Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse.
100th Anniversary Celebration Events
Friday, Oct. 18
1924 Golf Tournament at Rockledge Country Club
[also celebrating 100 years]
Players are encouraged to wear full 1924 golf regalia to compete for prizes. The fun round will feature specialty holes that include putting with a pool cue and a 7th hole choral rendition of Take Me Out to the Golf Course. The tournament will conclude with a cocktail party.
Saturday, March 22, 2025
1924 Speakeasy at a secret location
One hundred fortunate guests will time travel to the Jazz Age to listen to sultry singers, dance the night away and sip bathtub gin. The location will be secret, and burly bouncers will collect $50 from guests who dare show up out of costume. Antique cars and 1920s cigarette girls will create photo ops that prove time travel.
Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025
Blast Off into the Future at Kennedy Space Center
Having visited the past, patrons can prepare to be transported ahead in time — from the rocket garden at Kennedy Space Center. This unique evening will focus on the future of the playhouse and the important interaction of entertainment in society. The event features a dinner of futuristic cuisine and a silent auction of space memorabilia.
Visit cocoavillageplayhouse.com for more information.
Maria Sonnenberg
Maria is a prolific writer and proofer for Space Coast Living and an adjunct professor at Florida Institute of Technology’s Nathan M. Bisk College of Business. When not writing, teaching or traveling, she can be found waging a one-woman war against her lawn and futilely attempting to maintain order among the chaos of a pack of extremely clueless wirehair dachshunds and an angst-driven basset hound.
