WUCF TV Celebrates 10th Anniversary With Star-Studded Events

Central Florida's public television station, WUCF TV, celebrates ten years of service with a star-studded anniversary extravaganza as part of UCF Celebrates the Arts at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Downtown Orlando.

The day-long celebration kicks off on Saturday, April 15 at 9 a.m. on the front lawn of the Dr. Phillips Center with Play! A WUCF Salute to Fred Rogers. Families will engage with yard games including the all-new Donkey Hodie: A Hee-Hawesome Adventure. The playscape is an unstructured, free experience and encourages families to engage with one another because, just like Fred Rogers said, "play is serious learning."

The afternoon celebrates some of the topics PBS is best known for:education, unbiased journalism and entertainment.

• Up first at 1 p.m. inside the Dr. Phillips Center, join WUCF for PBS Kids! A Conversation with Sonia Manzano. Manzano, a first-generation American of Latino descent, has impacted the lives of millions since the early 1970s when she was offered an opportunity to play "Maria" on Sesame Street. Her legacy continues, having created the new PBS Kids series, Alma's Way. Participants will glimpse behind-the-scenes on PBS KIDS favorites like Daniel's Tiger's Neighborhood and Alma's Way.

• At 2:30 p.m., veteran broadcast journalist Judy Woodruff takes the stage to share her successful career in broadcast and discuss how journalism has changed over the past few decades. Joining Woodruff are Orlando-area news directors to discuss and share inside perspectives.

• Wrapping up the afternoon at 4 p.m. is a Behind-The-Scenes look at MASTERPIECE. WUCF welcomes MASTERPIECE Executive Producer, Suzanne Simpson, to talk about the production process, visit with a few fan-favorite shows and give an exclusive sneak peek into what's ahead from this iconic PBS drama series.

Registration for all the above events is free, and pre-registration is required at wucf.org/anniversary.

The celebration continues at 7 p.m. in the Walt Disney Theatre with a show-stopping evening, Broadway's Brightest Lights. Curated and conducted by Luke Frazier, the evening features today's best and brightest talents and brand-new arrangements performed by The American Pops Orchestra.

Tony-Award winning Broadway star Megan Hilty (NBC's Smash, Wicked, Annie Live!) is joined by Michael Maliakel (Disney's Aladdin, The Phantom of the Opera, Monsoon Wedding), Nikki Renée Daniels (Company, Hamilton), and Tommy Sutter (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, White Christmas) to perform some of the greatest show tunes of all time.

This concert performance will be recorded for a national PBS broadcast in Fall 2023.

Tickets for this performance are available at a variety of levels. For details, visit wucf.org/broadway.

WUCF's mission is to serve as Central Florida's Storyteller, encouraging curiosity and learning through compelling content and community engagement. This happens by producing award-winning local content like Florida Road Trip, which explores Florida through history, people and culture. WUCF also serves Florida's youngest citizens, offering hours of PBS Kids content on-air, online and in the classroom, leading the state in usage for PBS LearningMedia. Throughout its ten year history, WUCF has engaged with over 1.5 million people across Central Florida at in-person events, and over 30 million people online through virtual events and streaming content.

"During my almost nine years with WUCF, I have seen the power of public media change lives throughout Central Florida," said WUCF executive director Jennifer Cook. "As we look to the future, we continue to look for the kind of immersive, interactive experiences with WUCF content that will engage audiences in new ways. We're always looking to combine new storytelling formats with our unmatched reach into communities, as only public television can do."

 

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