By Mark Baratelli, Owner
The June 23, 2011 groundbreaking ceremony for the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts took place in a giant tent erected in the middle of Magnolia Ave in downtown Orlando. Below are photos I took and a brief description of the event as it happened.
I cannot tell you what an impression this giant tent made on me. I expected this event to be outside in the sun with maybe a podium, some speakers and a sound system. This tent made my jaw drop.
After signing in at the Media table, I wandered around inspecting the place.
Here and there were sitting niches with funky furniture.
All the chairs had a "reserved" sign on them.
Giant banners hung from the ceiling.
These folks had their photo taken with the ceremonial shovels.
The sticker on each shovel
A model of the center
Several monitors looped a 2007 video featuring yours truly and others speaking about the impact the center would have on the arts community. I had no idea they'd be using this video, so when I saw it, I flipped. Blast from the past!
The place was soon packed.
The reserved chairs were filled and media perched on their perch. Luckily we stayed off the perch. We would have missed the actual grounbreaking. Scroll down for those photos.
I could not figure out what this was. I chatted about what it could be with those around me. We all ended up being wrong.
Whatever it would be, it got damaged when someone walked on it. Techs tried to repair it.
Kathy Ramsburger
Jim Pugh
The ceremony included a show with performances by the national tour of HAIR, Orlando Ballet, Orlando Philharmonic, The Rep (a childrens theatre) and a hip hop dance group.
The Rep was tasked with listing off names of people the center wanted to thank.
Mayor Buddy Dyer and the entire tent watched a jaw-dropping video fly-through of the center.
Mayor Dyer addresses the crowd.
The groundbreaking was about to start. We figured out what that orange strip was: a shallow pit of sand all the dignitaries would dig their shovels into.
The groundbreaking
Streamers shot out of cannons
The back wall of the tent fell away to reveal several construction trucks lit up on the construction site.
