Centre Stage

Su Centre Stage

Brief history of Centre Stage:

back in the 80's before the Yumbo was born and the Nilo was the only gay centre in Gran Canaria, Tony & Suhail (Su) used to spend their holidays here. Their ancestry was far more exotic that the south Wales they hailed from, one being italian stock (Tony) and the other (Su) of Persian. Like all hot-blooded boys they found British winters increasingly uncomfortable, so in 1986 they decided to move to Gran Canaria and start a business.

Tony had experience of professional theatre and Su had studied drama in college, so they thought they might try their kuck with a theatre bar. The following March in 1987 saw huge excitement on the 1st floor of the newly built Yumbo as "Centre Stage" enjoyed it's "first night", accompanied by Danny LaRue, Maisie Trollette, Tom Springfield, the London cast of "La Cage aux Folles" and many others. "Centre Stage" was born to loud applause and enjoyed its first successful year as a "sing-a-long" bar. Then tragedy struck . Tony, who had always led the shows, fell fatally ill at around the time Su was toying with the idea of putting in a screen. With Tony gone, Su dropped out of soceity for a while and the screen had to take over. When he returned from seclusion, he discovered that "Centre Stage" had become more popular than ever and today emphasis is as much on Hollywood as it is on the theatre.

Down the years, one has seen many early successes expand and then burst. One of the secrets of "Centre Stage's" longevity is that it's preserved the same atmosphere and intimacy as it had on its opening night twenty one years ago and with many of its original features.

And with it's state of the art equipment, ok Su and a DVD player!, this now unique and famous venue is soaring into the future as one of the longest and best loved traditions of the international gay scene