FORT LAUDERDALE — The Broward Center for the Performing Arts, 201 SW Fifth Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, has expanded its program offerings to include more than 125 shows featuring not-to-be missed superstars and unforgettable performances for its highly-anticipated 2014-15 season.

With the near-completion of its extensive $58 million expansion project, the Broward Center’s season also unveils a broad range of new experiences that transcend the ordinary. The expansion and renewal project has created a new destination in downtown Fort Lauderdale that includes Marti’s New River Bistro and the Mary N. Porter Riverview Ballroom in the Huizenga Pavilion, the new Rose Miniaci Arts Education Center and the updated Abdo New River Room.

 

SONG AND DANCE

Patti LaBelle — Nov. 15. The multi-talented Miss Patti most likely will kick off her heels in a high-energy show when she performs at the Au-Rene Theater.

Audra McDonald — Jan. 8. Broadway legend Audra McDonald starts the New Year. She made history when she won a record-breaking sixth Tony Award for her portrayal of Billie Holiday in Broadway’s Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill. Blessed with a luminous soprano voice, the Live from Lincoln Center host is also a two-time Grammy Award winner and a major concert and recording artist who regularly performs on the great stages of the world. From Broadway and the opera house to television and film, her versatility and breadth are virtually without compare.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater — Feb. 19-22. This performance is part of the Eclectic Mix of Dance series.

Roberta Flack — April 24. Internationally hailed as one of the greatest songstresses of our time, this Grammy Award winner Roberta Flack will take the stage in the Au-Rene Theater. With her unmistakable voice and

unforgettable string of chart-topping hits, including “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, Killing Me Softly with His Song and Tonight I Celebrate My Love, Flack remains unparalleled in her ability to tell a story through music.

 

CURTAIN CALLS

Annie — Oct. 7-19. Leapin’ Lizards!  One of the world’s best-loved musicals is back in time-honored form.  Directed by original lyricist Martin Charnin, this new production of Annie will be a classic incarnation of the beloved original. Other shows include The Phantom Of The Opera — Nov. 19-30; The Lion King, Jan. 7-Feb. 1; Motown The Musical, Feb. 24-March 8; Pippin, March 31-April 12. This production is back on Broadway for the first time since it thrilled audiences 40 years ago; Anything Goes, May 5-17.

For tickets visit www.browardcenter.org; by phone 954-462-0222.