Two Teen Performers Align To Create "Raffles For Relief" To Help Hurricane Dorian Victims

High-school senior, Thea Belle Flanzer, and high-school sophomore, Avery Allen, are arranging a raffle to raise money for WC Kitchen's Hurricane Dorian relief project in the Bahamas. The prizes include: a 2 night stay at Gurney's Resort, 4 tickets to the opening night of Radio City Music Hall's Christmas Spectacular, and 4 tickets to the Gateway Playhouse's production of Elf the Musical.

This donation drive will be the second event for Thea's organization: The Artist Alignment. This May, Thea was able to raise over $8,000 for the Pediatric Orthopedic Research Fund at Columbia University through The Artist Alignment: Shine for the Spines, a cabaret fundraiser at the Vail-Leavitt Music Hall in Riverhead.

Avery and Thea met when they were performing in the 2015 production of Billy Elliot at the Gateway Playhouse. Since then, the friends have performed in Children's Theater shows together at the Gateway Playhouse like Wizard of Oz and Pinocchio Jr. The girls saw the devastation in the Bahamas on the news and wanted to find a way to help from Long Island.

Avery Allen is a member of the dance company at Stage Door School of Dance in East Patchogue. She has performed at many dance competitions throughout the East Coast and enjoys trips to NYC to take classes with her favorite teachers at Broadway Dance Center and Steps on Broadway. Avery is also a student of the Gateway School for the Performing Arts.

Thea Belle Flanzer has been training at the Gateway School of Performing Arts since she was five-years-old, and has performed in professional shows at The Gateway Playhouse and off-Broadway.

World Central Kitchen, commonly known as WC Kitchen, is a 501(c)3 started by chef José Andrés. The organization provides fresh, nutritious meals to survivors of disasters.

They will be selling 500 $10 tickets for the fundraiser and the drawing will be held on November 8th at 5 PM on The Artist Alignment's Instagram Livestream.

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