First ‘Future is Bright’ all-student cabaret raised $8,200 for The Denver Actors Fund
Today (July 12), the Denver Actors Fund announced that it is initiating an annual service award to acknowledge a member of the Colorado theater community who has gone out of their way to support The Denver Actors Fund. This new honor is inspired by the work of young Eli Testa, the first-ever recipient of the Denver Actors Fund Service Award.
WATCH THE LIVE AWARD ANNOUNCEMENT HERE
In eight years, the Denver Actors Fund has distributed $1 million to help Colorado theater artists pay their medical bills. And as an all-volunteer organization, it has greatly relied on caring members of the Colorado theater community to proactively step up and help the non-profit raise funds.
MORE ABOUT ELI TESTA AND FIRST ‘FUTURE IS BRIGHT’
Eli Testa, a rising junior at Highlands Ranch High School, is one of those special people – and he is special for all sorts of reasons. At age 15, with the world shut down by the pandemic, Eli envisioned a way he might both create a performance opportunity for his peers and also raise money for The Denver Actors Fund. At one of the darkest times in our collective history, Eli imagined a brighter future … and he willed one into existence.
Eli organized the first “Future is Bright” cabaret as an event that would be entirely produced and presented by theater artists under age 18. No adults allowed. What they all created together, over many months, was more than just a show. It was a monumental creative and philanthropic achievement that raised more than $8,200 for the Denver Actors Fund – money that has profoundly and positively impacted the lives of Colorado theater artists at their most vulnerable.
“We are grateful to all of the hundreds of people who have donated their time and talents for the good of The Denver Actors Fund over the years. But what Eli did was special,” said Denver Actors Fund Founder and Executive Director John Moore. “So, we wanted to do something special to acknowledge not only what Eli already has done, but what he hopefully will inspire in others.”
The 2023 “Future is Bright” cabaret will be held Jan. 6-8, 2023 at the Parker Performing Arts School. For more information, or to sign up to audition, go to this link.
For more information on The Denver Actors Fund, go to denveractorsfund.org.
