Tortes and truffles for a cause

By Susie Davidson

CORRESPONDENT

Support youth arts programs while indulging in chocolate delicacies? The Cambridge Performance Project is hoping that this combo will be too enticing to resist for sweet-toothed do-gooders.

Over 25 of the region’s leading pastry chefs, hotels, restaurants and chocolatiers will be showing off their gooeyest, glossiest, most decadent creations at the Hyatt Regency, 575 Memorial Dr. this Sunday from 12:30 to 3 p.m. at the 14th Annual Chocolate Fools Day, the proceeds from which will help support the youth arts programs of the Cambridge Performance Project.

“Willie Wonka eat your heart out!” said CPP’s Executive Director Lisa Giuffre. “Chocolate Fools Day is one of the premier chocolate tasting events of the season, and has become an event that chocolate lovers of all ages look forward to annually.” She expects a cocoa-craving crowd of 600-800, and an anticipated $15,000 to aid the music, dance and theater programs the CPP has provided for city children since 1985. Top-notch instruction and performance experiences are part of the outreach the organization provides to youth of every race, ethnicity, economic background, neighborhood and school in Cambridge, with an aim of fostering life-long understanding and appreciation of the arts. In this budget-slicing era, the event is a creative and fun effort that is rewarding all around.

The event is sponsored by the Hyatt Regency, Starbucks Coffee, Nestle Waters and The Improper Bostonian magazine. “I participate in Chocolate Fools Day because I feel it is important to support our community,” said Hyatt Executive Chef Brad Ozerdem, who noted that while many Boston based organizations get strong support from the restaurant and hospitality industry, this is not so true for Cambridge. “The relationship is a perfect match,” he said. “It allows us to contribute by doing what we do best, food, and it helps raise funds and awareness for a very worthy cause that has a positive effect right here in Cambridge.”

Other Greater Boston confectionary contributors will include Gary’s Gourmet Chocolate, Trio, Legal Seafoods, Westin Copley Place and Starbucks. Live music, a Starbucks coffee bar and silent auction will also be part of the chocolate-frosted festivities. Judges, who will include Robin Young of WBUR’s Here and Now, Erik Sherman from the Patriot Ledger, restaurant critic Charles Mokriski, author Lise Stern, who wrote the best-selling The Boston Food Lover, and Clara Silverstein from the Boston Herald, will select the best chocolate treats. “Scrumptious Wonders from the Cookie Jar,” “From Soup to Nuts and Chocolate Too,” and “Baked by Popular Demand: Brownie” are some of the competition categories for the chocolatiers.

In addition, a mini performance will be given by students of the Amistad International Bilingual Drama Club, which meets at the Amigos/Kennedy Community School. The bilingual theater and movement course, taught in Spanish by Marilda Castro and Ariana Wohl for students who speak or are learning Spanish, is one of the CPP’s offerings.

“In these tough economic times, I can't think of a better (or more yummy) way to support the arts,” said Giuffre, who adds that the event is designed for the whole family. “The children that partake in our courses may not otherwise have arts in their lives,” she noted.

“We couldn't produce this event without the generous support of the Hyatt Regency Cambridge, Starbucks Coffee, Nestle Waters and The Improper Bostonian and all the folks who have donated their time and services. As a chocolate lover myself, I can't wait to indulge in the delicacies that await us on March 9."

Tickets are $30 in advance, $25 in advance for seniors and groups of 10 or more, $35 at the door. Call 617-233-5722 or visit www.chocolatefools.org for information or advance tickets.