Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer (C) holds the proclamation for the 100th anniversary of Orlando Family Stage on Feb. 3. (Photo by Juno Le)

ORLANDO | Orlando Family Stage celebrated its centennial with a commemorative breakfast Feb. 3, reuniting the theatre company’s current and former leaders, board members, artists, donors and community partners. 

“This organization, to get to 100 years, couldn’t get here without commitment from leaders, volunteers, public and private partnerships that exist,” says Dave Riccardi, President of Orlando Family Stage’s Board of Directors. “And there’s no greater partnership that we have in our history outside of what was talked about than the city of Orlando, and having leaders like Mayor Dyer, who’s here today, is critical for this organization’s success.”

Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orange County Administrator of Arts and Cultural Affairs Vicki Landon were in attendance and presented the theatre’s executive director, Chris Brown, and artistic director, Jeff Revels, with proclamations declaring Feb. 3, 2026, as the 100th anniversary of Orlando Family Stage in both the City of Orlando and Orange County. 

“We would not be here celebrating this milestone if it weren’t for every single face in this room,” Brown says. “This is how we make a real impact in the world. We can’t do it alone. It’s not about me, it’s not about Jeff [Moore]. It’s about the 40,000 kids who come through here on field trips every year, right? We’re making our community stronger and that’s why [Orlando Family Stage] survived.”

The theatre company has been known by different names over the last century, opening as the Orlando Little Players at its first performance on Feb. 3, 1926, then as the Central Florida Civic Theatre starting in 1968 and then as the Orlando Repertory Theatre in 2002, as its focus shifted to school programming and its young audience in partnership with the University of Central Florida. 

Leaders, including Revels, also reflected on the challenges members faced in the theatre company’s 100-year history.

“In 1999, it was a very uncertain time,” Revels shares. “The Civic Theatre was struggling and looked like it might be closing. But even in those uncertain moments, the one thing that remained clear was the strength of the children’s program. I had worked my way up to Education Director by that time, so I had a front row seat to see just how vital and how deeply that work mattered to the children, families and schools in this community.”

A century of performances and youth programs later, Orlando Family Stage and its partners continue to promote their support of youth involvement in the performing arts.

“Theatre is a reflection of ourselves,” Moore explains. “When you’re talking about theatre for young audiences, there are questions and challenges that young people go through in their development. Theatre gives it a chance to present some of those challenges in an inviting environment so that they can objectively observe these challenges and how people react to them, and maybe the best ways and not-so-good ways to address things.”

For more information, visit OrlandoFamilyStage.com. Watermark Out News attended the 100th anniversary of Orlando Family Stage and you can view our photos below.

Photos by Juno Le.

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