The Rockaway Theatre Company is ending its 2026 season by putting itself on stage. The Big Beautiful 30ish Anniversary Spectacular, a song-and-dance revue marking roughly three decades of the company, opens Friday, November 20, at the John Gilleece Theater in Fort Tilden and runs for 10 performances through Sunday, December 6.

The company calls the show the grand finale of a season it billed as a season of classics. It brings back the format of the company's Rockaway Cafes, its earlier cabaret-style evenings, with about 25 musical numbers that run from Frank Sinatra standards to the recent pop hit Pink Pony Club. The company says the evening will also show the audience some of what goes into putting a production like this together.

Who is behind it

Frank Caiati and John Panepinto direct, with Jeffrey Arzberger as musical director. Caiati was named the company's artistic director in April 2024, and the company's theater in Building T-4 at Fort Tilden now carries the name of the late John Gilleece.

The Rockaway Theatre Company is a community theater that stages its season inside the old Army post at Fort Tilden, part of Gateway National Recreation Area on the Rockaway peninsula. It also runs a Young People's Theatre Workshop.

Dates and times

Evening performances are at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, November 20 and 21; Friday and Saturday, November 27 and 28; and Thursday through Saturday, December 3, 4 and 5. Matinees are at 2 p.m. on Sundays, November 22, November 29 and December 6.

Tickets

Musicals at the Rockaway Theatre Company are $25 for adults and $20 for seniors and children. Tickets are sold online through the company's website. The company recommends arriving 15 minutes before curtain to pick up snacks and drinks and get settled, and says late seating is at the discretion of the house manager.

Getting there

The theater is in Building T-4 at Fort Tilden. For Access-A-Ride, the company gives the address as 1 Murray Road, Breezy Point. The National Park Service parking-pass rule for the T-4 lot applies only from March 15 to September 15, so it does not affect these November and December dates. Without a car, the Q35 bus serves Fort Tilden, and the Q22 runs along the peninsula from the Rockaway Park-Beach 116 Street station on the A and S lines.

Season subscriptions and future productions are listed on the company's website, and questions go to info@rockawaytheatrecompany.org.

Sources