When the leaders of DNA Productions presented the city of Winter Garden with their plans for the Garden Theatre, city officials were shocked at the breadth and scope.
“We were beyond surprised,” said Marc O. Hutchinson, economic development director for Winter Garden. “We were thoroughly impressed. … We appreciated their assertiveness and thoughtful intentionality to do the necessary background work to assemble such a plan so quickly and, of this scale, in year one of our partnership.”
But for DNA founders Dennis Morgan and Alina Williams, the robust schedule for year one — with more than a dozen plays, musicals, concerts and special events — is just the beginning. They are already mapping out seasons two and three in their minds.
“We’re super excited,” Morgan said. “We want to honor the space, honor the town and welcome people back.”
DNA was chosen in April to revive the theater, in the heart of Winter Garden’s downtown. It had been used only sporadically since the nonprofit that previously ran it for the city abruptly went out of business in 2024, leaving some residents with worthless tickets to future shows. That nonprofit, Garden Theatre Inc., had struggled for years in a public dispute with some in the theater community over the theater’s direction and the treatment of those who worked there.
“I know people were hurt, I can tell. People were disenfranchised, and I hate that,” Morgan said. “We want everyone to feel welcome here.”
Both the city and the DNA leaders are focused on the future.
The city has rebranded the venue as the Garden Theatre on Plant, to distinguish it from the failed nonprofit. Morgan and Williams point out that they were not involved with the previous company that ran the theater, that none of those who were connected with their firm are, and that, as a for-profit company, they have a completely different business model and strategy.
Part of that is engaging the community through partnerships with restaurants, shops and other downtown businesses.
“Everything we do, we want to reach out,” Williams said. “That’s the ‘events’ part of us. The experience isn’t just when you scan your ticket at the door. It’s before and after, too.”
Partnership plans
The city was particularly impressed by DNA’s emphasis on strategic partnerships, Hutchinson said.
“DNA is acutely aware of what a theater means to a community in terms of the quality of life, sense of local pride and the economic spillover impacts on surrounding stakeholders,” he said. “Lifting every boat in the harbor is a good cliché at the heart of their programming proposition.”
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The pair said community involvement matters to them because Winter Garden is their home, too.
“We live here, we walk by the theater,” Morgan said. “This is our community.”
Williams was born and raised in Orlando. In a true Central Florida fairy-tale romance, her parents met and fell in love while working at Disney’s Polynesian resort. She graduated from Dr. Phillips High, an arts magnet school where drama teacher Karen Ruggiero gently pushed her from performance to backstage leadership: “I think you would be really good at telling people what to do,” was the advice Williams remembers.
She later graduated from the University of Central Florida with a bachelor’s degree in stage management and worked on the business side of the touring Broadway series and at Orlando Shakes before moving into the world of corporate and special events programming.
That’s where she met Morgan. A California native and graduate of the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts, he had spent years on the touring theater circuit, including a stint at Orlando’s old Mark II Dinner Theatre. He made Central Florida his home when he was hired to star in the live musicals based on “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” and the “Doug” TV show at Walt Disney World.
After working as a show director for Disney, he moved into event production. He and Williams formed DNA Event Creative in 2020. The business partners are also life partners, each bringing two children to their blended family.
Business changes
To emphasize their commitment to the Garden, the pair is branding their work for the theater as DNA Productions — separate from their corporate work on conventions, conferences, and other happenings in the business world.
Running the Garden will require them to hire some contract workers around each show, they said.
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Already on their staff is someone who knows the venue inside and out: Alauna Friskics, who, as executive director of the now-defunct nonprofit, helped get the theater off the ground nearly 20 years ago. Friskics, who departed before the organization’s troubles began, has worked part-time for DNA in operations management for the past two years; her job isn’t changing, Williams said.
A lot of what theatergoers experience will be familiar: Concessions, including a bar, will be offered, the upstairs restrooms will remain available and volunteers who will be compensated with tickets to shows will help usher patrons to their seats.
All-ages appeal
DNA’s philosophy for programming the theater is to appeal to multiple generations by creating a sense of wonder through live entertainment and elevated experiences.
“We want a lot of variety,” Morgan said. “We want it to be entertainment for every age.”
They’ve built in kid-friendly offerings, such as two animal shows
“The line-up of ‘Mutts Gone Nuts,’ showcasing hilarious canine stunts, and the live onstage feature of ‘Wide World of Animals’ come to mind, which I believe might be a first for Garden Theatre on Plant,” said Hutchinson from the city, in praising the lineup.
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The plan is to avoid recorded music and instead employ musicians for every show. The theater has an orchestra pit built into the front of its stage. The concerts on the schedule will feature high-end costumes and often include dancers to make them more theatrical experiences, the pair said.
“There’s something about a conductor, about seeing musicians play,” Morgan said. “That’s what this theater needs. We want to bring in working actors, working musicians, working dancers.”
Morgan and Williams are also looking for shows that haven’t been seen before in Central Florida: They point to a touring Elton John tribute, for example, that hails from the U.K. and stars a friend of John’s who wears his actual costumes. It will be DNA’s first show of the season, on Aug. 1.
The idea for this first season was to honor the theater’s heritage as a moviehouse, dating back to 1935, with all the theatrical titles having a connection to the cinema.
The four-show theatrical series will open Sept. 24 with “Footloose,” staged by TheatreWorks Florida, a Polk County-based company with a proven track record. Other shows will be produced directly by DNA, with local directors at the helm.
Holiday show announced
Finishing touches are still being put on the schedule, with a holiday show just finalized. “It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play,” based on the beloved movie and presented in an imaginative and nostalgic format, will take the stage in December.
A new website, gardentheatreonplant.com, has launched with season and ticket information. A four-show concert series package is available, as well as four- and six-show theatrical packages. Prices start at $212. Individual show tickets go on sale closer to performance dates, starting July 1.
City officials are involved in the programming choices.
Dennis Morgan and Alina Williams say programming the Garden Theatre on Plant is important to them because Winter Garden is their community. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)
“Garden Theatre on Plant is the property of the residents and citizens of Winter Garden. It is, therefore, the fiduciary responsibility of the city to ensure that the collective will and interest of our residents are honored and reflect the spirit of this community,” Hutchinson said. “The city will have oversight and a voice at the table regarding the entertainment quality and economic impact of all theater programming.”
Shows will be “reviewed on the merits of entertainment quality and local economic impact, including synergistic opportunities for community engagement,” he added.
Working with the city so far “has been a pleasurable experience,” Morgan said. “To me, it’s no different than a theater that has a board. I don’t know any business that doesn’t have oversight.”
The DNA-Winter Garden partnership is good for two years, with an option for an additional two five-year extensions.
“Consistently delivering desirable performances with positive economic return for our Winter Garden community” will determine whether the deal will be renewed, Hutchinson said.
Morgan and Williams are looking to a future with an even wider range of fare, such as serious plays designed for adult audiences: “You will see G, PG, PG-13 and R” content, Morgan said. “Something for everyone.”
They say they are keenly aware of the theater’s importance to the lives of Winter Garden residents. As an example, Morgan recounts an encounter he had with two patrons eager to see the venue back in business.
“They talked about their first kiss happening in the theater,” he said. “It was beautiful to hear.”
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