ALICE COOPER's Rock Teen Center Grand Opening This Weekend
October 5, 2012, 11 years ago
According to AZcentral.com, this weekend is the grand opening of ALICE COOPER's Rock Teen Center, the building of which inspired him to launch his annual Christmas Pudding concerts in 2001.
"It's like being pregnant for 12 years," he says, with a laugh, "and finally giving birth to this place."The idea behind the Rock Teen Center is to offer teens an outlet for their creativity and get them off the streets.
When Cooper sees teens hanging on the corner, he says, "I sit there going, 'That same kid right there might be the best drummer in Arizona. And that kid over there might be the best guitarist. They just don't know it yet. Nobody's ever put a guitar or drumsticks in their hands.' We do that."
Located in the Rock at 32nd Street, on the southeastern corner of Thunderbird Road and 32nd Street, the 22,000-square-foot Rock Teen Center was built in partnership with Genesis Church and Cooper's Solid Rock Foundation. It's expected to expand to 60,000 square feet by the time it's finished.
The Grand Opening Block Party is being held on Saturday, October 6. Cooper is planning on joining his son, Dash Cooper, and Dash's band, RUNAWAY PHOENIX, on two or three songs. The event is also set to feature tours of the facility, snakes and alligators from Desert Gators, Sheryl Cooper's Solid Rock dancers and karate demonstrations.
Read more at AZcentral.com.