- November 27, 2024
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As the song ended, the masked dancers crouched together; they felt danger in the air. A cloaked man appeared from the darkness and snatched a girl. The others scattered, some fearful for their friend, some fearful for themselves.
Then, the cloaked man was revealed; he was no threat, just a surprise guest. The masquerade was just beginning.
This was Tony Award-winner Ben Vereen’s grand entrance Saturday, Nov. 5, at the Flagler Auditorium’s 20th-anniversary gala held at the club at Hammock Dunes.
“The arts — it is the one thing that through time and the beginning of time has kept the civilization going,” he said.
The Flagler Auditorium was born as a result of a cooperation between local leaders, including the School Board, the Homebuilders Association, Flagler County Chamber of Commerce & Affiliates, Flagler County, ITT Corp. and the citizens of Flagler County.
Through the years, the auditorium has played host to well-known performers Marvin Hamlisch, the St. Petersburg Ballet and the Ten Tenors, in addition to local music and dance groups.
“Not every one of these young people will go into the theater,” Vereen said, addressing gala attendees. “And that’s OK. But because they came this way, because they were part of the arts, one of them will be the person who finds the cure to AIDS. The person who is going to find the cure to cancer is standing or sitting in this room, because they have the ability to look at medicine from a different angle. In the arts, everything is possible.”
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