Periodical Supplement to Cleveland Jewish News, August 28, 2026
NORTHEAST OHIO | arts | music | performance
Fall 2026
BORIS LURIE
NOTHING TO DO BUT TO TRY
Holocaust Survivor • Witness • Artist
OCT. 18, 2026 JAN. 27, 2027 Boris Lurie: Nothing To Do But To Try is a first-of-its-kind exhibition on the 20th-century artist and Holocaust survivor Boris Lurie. Centered around his private, earliest work, the “War Series,” as well as neverbefore exhibited objects and ephemera from Lurie’s personal archive, the exhibition presents a portrait of an artist reckoning with devastating trauma, haunting memories, and an elusive, lifelong quest for freedom.
Organized by The Museum of Jewish Heritage—A Living Memorial to the Holocaust with the Boris Lurie Art Foundation.
2929 Richmond Road | Beachwood, OH 216-593-0575 | maltzmuseum.org Exhibition sponsorship opportunities are available. Contact Dayan Gross at dgross@mmjh.org to learn more. The Maltz Museum is generously funded by:
Celebrating Music&&Black BlackCulture Culture Celebratingthe theArt Art of of Sports, Sports, Music
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Images (from top): The Sugar Shack (detail), 1976. Ernie Barnes (American: 1938-2009). Acrylic on canvas. On loan from the Collection of William O. Perkins, III and Lara Perkins. The artist at work in his studio, 1996. Photo courtesy of the Ernie Barnes Estate. Sunday’s Gladiators (detail), 1994. Acrylic on canvas. On loan from a Private Collection. All artworks © ERNIE BARNES. Exhibition artworks courtesy of the Ernie Barnes Estate; Private Images (from top): The Sugar Shack 1976. Gallery, Ernie Barnes (American: 1938-2009). Acrylic on canvas. On loan from the Collection of William O. Perkins, III and Lara Perkins. The artist at work in his studio, 1996. Photo Collections; Ortuzar, New York; and (detail), Andrew Kreps New York. courtesy of the Ernie Barnes Estate. Sunday’s Gladiators (detail), 1994. Acrylic on canvas. On loan from a Private Collection. All artworks © ERNIE BARNES. Exhibition artworks courtesy of the Ernie Barnes Estate; Private Collections; Ortuzar, New York; and Andrew Kreps Gallery, New York.
24
Inside Waterloo
Exploring Waterloo’s vibrant creative community
6 Editor’s Note
The Stories That Shape Us
8 On Deck
Upcoming openings and current events from around Northeast Ohio
10 Living With Masterpieces
Oberlin’s beloved art rental program lets students live with masterpieces for $5 a semester A bicycle sits among remnants from past events in the former theater space at the rear of the Waterloo Arts building. Photo courtesy of Martha Sorohan.
INSIDE
14 Coming Home to Toni Morrison
Celebrating Toni Morrison’s Ohio roots and legacy
18 Books that Built Us The books that shaped Northeast Ohio’s literary voices
22 From Broadway to Playhouse Square
Tony-winning producer Robin Gorman Newman brings Broadway insights to Cleveland
On the cover
A hand-painted “ART” sign marks the entrance to artists’ studios inside the Waterloo Arts building. Our guide to Waterloo Road highlights where to see art, grab a bite, catch a show and spend some time exploring. Photo courtesy of Martha Sorohan.
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24 Inside Waterloo
Exploring Waterloo’s vibrant creative community
28 Off the Museum Map Northeast Ohio’s hidden art spaces
32 Listings
Local listings for museums, galleries and more
34 Curator Corner
Bonny Leibowitz’s The Sky Is Really Falling
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BlueWater Chamber Orchestra’s “Musical Metamorphosis” Like the life cycle of seasons, BlueWater’s 2026-27 concerts, led by Maestro Daniel Meyer, celebrate musical transformations and evolutions among generations and cultures. Early autumn awakens memory and imagination in Reena Esmail’s Testament from Vishwas with its dialogue between Eastern and Western musical traditions. Lukas Foss’s Renaissance Concerto––the postmodern masterpiece he called his “handshake across the centuries”––features acclaimed flutist Anthony Trionfo. BlueWater’s individual string players are showcased in Richard Strauss’s poignant, Goethe-inspired 1945 Metamorphosen. (Oct. 3, 2026) As autumn cools and leaves turn their true colors, BlueWater traces composers finding and redefining their artistic identities. World-renowned organist Jonathan Moyer is featured in Howard Hanson’s Concerto for Organ, Harp and Strings. Gabriel Fauré’s Masques et bergamasques adroitly revives the grace of the Baroque dance suite. A young Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1 honors the Classical tradition even as he begins to reshape it forever. (Nov. 7, 2026) As the promise of spring approaches, two youthful masterworks unveil extraordinary talent ascending to artistic greatness. Bizet’s Symphony in C and Brahms’s Violin Concerto each reveal remarkable confidence, craftsmanship, and emotional depth. Amy Lee, Professor at Oberlin Conservatory and former Associate Concertmaster of The Cleveland Orchestra, interprets the demanding, monumental Brahms. (Mar. 13, 2027) BlueWater celebrates music’s ability to renew itself across generations as spring color returns to Northeast Ohio. Garrop’s Penelope Waits gives fresh voice to the Odyssey’s enduring, longsuffering heroine. Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 22, with pianist Evren Ozel, is Classical elegance at its finest. Prokofiev’s Mozart-influenced and witty Classical Symphony culminates the season, carefully reimagining the past while looking unmistakably toward the future. (May 8, 2027) As Northeast Ohio’s premier chamber orchestra, BlueWater is “From Cleveland, For Cleveland.” Our PayWhat-You-Wish admission invites everyone to engage. All four concerts are at the historic Church of the Covenant in University Circle.
Daniel Daniel Meyer Meyer | Artistic | Artistic Director Director & Conductor & Conductor Daniel Meyer | Artistic Director & Conductor Daniel Meyer | Artistic Director & Conductor
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Editor’s Note M
The Stories That Shape Us
aybe it’s the return to routines after the looseness of summer. Maybe it’s the earlier darkness, the instinct to pick up a book, see a show or spend an afternoon somewhere that makes us look at the world a little differently. Whatever the reason, this time of year seems to invite us to pay closer attention – to what we’re reading, what we’re seeing and the stories we carry with us. That idea runs throughout this issue of Canvas. For our Books That Built Us feature, we asked some of Northeast Ohio’s writers, poets, booksellers and literary leaders to tell us about the books shaping them now, the ones they can’t stop thinking about and the titles they find themselves pressing into someone else’s hands. Their answers are as varied as the people themselves. Hillary Walker turns to James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time, a book whose message she finds as powerful today as ever. Poet Quartez Harris is reading Mary Oliver’s Upstream alongside his own observations of great blue herons and woodland wildlife, finding connections between nature and the act of writing. And Regina Brett returns to books that challenge and comfort her, with one increasingly important rule: At 70, she doesn’t waste time waiting for a book to get better. I love that. Because the books we remember rarely stay contained within their pages. They change the way we see something. They introduce us to lives far outside our own. They give language to something we’ve felt but haven’t quite known how to say. And, of course, stories don’t live only in books. Across Northeast Ohio, they unfold on gallery walls, inside working studios and in places we might walk past without ever realizing what’s behind the door. Along Waterloo Road in Cleveland’s North Collinwood neighborhood, we explore how a few blocks grew into one of the region’s most distinctive creative districts – a place shaped over decades by artists, musicians, entrepreneurs and people willing to build something before there was any guarantee others would come. Elsewhere, we take readers inside some of Cleveland’s lesser-known galleries and creative spaces,
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reminders that discovery is still one of the great pleasures of experiencing art. At Oberlin College, that relationship between people and art becomes even more personal. For more than 85 years, students have been able to rent museum-quality works from the Allen Memorial Art Museum for just $5 a semester, bringing pieces by artists such as Henri Matisse, Paul Klee and Joan Miró into their rooms. It’s hard to imagine a more literal example of art leaving its usual boundaries and becoming part of someone’s everyday life. We also travel from Cleveland to Broadway and back again through our conversation with Tony Award-winning producer Robin Gorman Newman, one of the producers behind Buena Vista Social Club. With the musical headed to Playhouse Square next summer, Newman talks about what draws her to a story, how productions move beyond New York and why cities like Cleveland are an essential part of Broadway’s larger ecosystem. A book passed from one reader to another. A masterpiece carried back to a dorm room. A gallery discovered behind an unassuming door. A neighborhood transformed by artists. A Broadway production finding new audiences hundreds of miles from where it began. They’re different kinds of stories, but perhaps that’s what I love most about putting together this particular issue of Canvas. Creativity rarely stays where it starts. It travels. It changes hands. It gathers meaning from the people who encounter it. So this fall, pick up the book someone keeps telling you to read. Walk into a gallery you’ve passed a dozen times but never entered. Buy the theater ticket. Take the long way through a neighborhood you thought you knew. You never know which story might stay with you. Warmly,
Rebecca (Becky) Meiser Editor
Becky is also the Director of Volunteers, Community and Program Development at Jewish Women in Action Cleveland.
Editor Rebecca Meiser editor@canvascle.com Creative Director Stephen Valentine
President, Publisher & CEO Kevin S. Adelstein Vice President of Sales Adam Mandell Editor, Cleveland Jewish News Bob Jacob CFO Tracy Singer Custom Publishing Manager Paul Bram Sales & Marketing Manager Andy Isaacs Events Manager Gina Lloyd Events Coordinator Sam Spiegle Digital Marketing Manager Courtney Byrnes Columbus Bureau Chief Becky Raspe Operations Manager Abby Royer Editorial Kateryna Kopylchak, Jimmy Oswald, Martha Sorohan, Casey Swinarski Advertising Marilyn Evans, Adam Jacob, Nell V. Kirman, Sherry Tilson, Danielle Enger Senior Designer Jessica Simon Designers Hannah McConihe, Ricki Urban Digital Content Producers Stephanie Holmes, Daniel Newman Business & Circulation Alisa Guseynov, Amanda LaLonde Subscriber Services 216-342-5185/circulation@cjn.org Display Advertising 216-342-5204 advertising@jstylemagazine.com Canvas Contributors Shannon Mortland, Carlo Wolff Intern Shawna Polster Canvas is published by the Cleveland Jewish Publication Company, 23880 Commerce Park, Suite 1, Beachwood, OH 44122. For general questions, call 216-454-8300 or email info@cjn.org.
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CLEVELAND ISRAEL ARTS CONNECTION IS PROUD TO SUPPORT AND BRING HIGH-QUALITY ISRAELI ARTS AND CULTURE TO NORTHEAST OHIO THIS FALL
2026 AUTUMN HIGHLIGHTS MUTUAL REALITY: RONEN SHARABANI
Matthew Garson, curator August 16, 2026 - April 10, 2027 On display at the Jewish Federation’s Roe Green Gallery “MUTUAL REALITY” explores the point where two realities or sets of rules contradict each other. Ronen explores where one reality builds while the other collapses. There is a constant push and pull creating a sense of boundaries or borders.
CHAGRIN DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL October 6-16, 2026
Explore two Israeli documentaries: the World Premiere of “Alex’s Group” and the award-winning “Out at Six.”
CLEVELAND JEWISH FILMFEST October 8-18, 2026
Presented by the Mandel JCC Experience nine new Israeli fulllength films, documentaries, dramas, and short films.
YARON KOHLBERG PLAYS GERSHWIN
America@250: Rhapsody in Blue – Jewish and Black Musical Traditions in American Music Presented by CityMusic Cleveland October 15-18, 2026 Through Yaron Kohlberg’s performances of Rhapsody in Blue, audiences will encounter this iconic repertoire through the perspective of one of Israel’s most distinguished musicians.
THESE EVENTS, AND MORE, ARE PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Roe Green, Honorary Producer a program of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland
To learn more, scan this code.
For updates join the Cleveland Israel Arts Connection Facebook group or visit jewishcleveland.org/israelarts.
Roe Green Foundation
ON DECK
Upcoming openings and current events from around Northeast Ohio Canvas Staff Report
DEATH BECOMES HER Playhouse Square • Sept. 12–Oct. 3
Broadway’s most deliciously wicked comedy comes to Cleveland as the first national tour of the Tony Award-winning Death Becomes Her kicks off the 2026–2027 KeyBank Broadway Series at Playhouse Square. Based on the beloved 1992 film, the musical follows longtime rivals Madeline Ashton and Helen Sharp, whose pursuit of eternal youth spirals into outrageous chaos after they discover a mysterious potion promising immortality. Packed with dazzling costumes, sharp wit and showstopping musical numbers, it’s one of the most anticipated theatrical events of the season. Showtimes vary throughout the run. Tickets begin at $42. playhousesquare.org
Death Becomes Her launches its first national tour at Playhouse Square this fall. Photo courtesy of Playhouse Square
SPECTACULAR FREEDOM: ANDREW WYETH AND THE MODERN AMERICAN WATERCOLOR Cleveland Museum of Art • Sept. 20–Jan. 18, 2027
Andrew Wyeth’s watercolors take center stage in the special exhibition Spectacular Freedom at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the first exhibition to offer an in-depth exploration of Andrew Wyeth’s groundbreaking watercolor paintings. clevelandart.org
Andrew Wyeth’s watercolors take center stage in Spectacular Freedom at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the first exhibition to offer an in-depth exploration of the artist’s groundbreaking watercolor paintings. Photo courtesy of Cleveland Museum of Art. Photo courtesy of Cleveland Museum of Art NAUDLINE PIERRE: MAY THE LIGHT REACH YOU Akron Art Museum • Sept. 23–April 18, 2027
Contemporary artist Naudline Pierre creates luminous worlds where mythology, spirituality and imagination converge. Through richly layered paintings filled with radiant color and ethereal figures, May the Light Reach You explores themes of resilience, transformation and hope. Featuring new and recent works, the exhibition offers an immersive introduction to one of today’s distinctive voices in contemporary art. Included with museum admission. akronartmuseum.org Naudline Pierre’s richly layered paintings blend radiant color, ethereal figures and imagined worlds in May the Light Reach You at the Akron Art Museum. Photo courtesy of Akron Art Museum
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FASHION & FEATHER Cleveland Museum of Natural History • Through Oct. 11
Fashion and science come together in this unique exhibition created in collaboration with Kent State University. Fashion & Feather examines how birds have inspired designers for centuries, pairing feathered garments and contemporary fashion with natural history specimens that reveal the remarkable beauty and engineering of feathers themselves. Alongside stunning designs, the exhibition also explores the environmental and ethical questions surrounding feathers in fashion, creating a fascinating conversation between art, design and conservation. Regular museum hours: Tuesday–Sunday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; closed Mondays. cmnh.org Top: A dramatic feathered gown anchors Fashion & Feather, an exhibition exploring the centuries-long influence of birds and feathers on fashion and design at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Bottom: Feathered garments are displayed alongside natural history specimens in Fashion & Feather, connecting fashion, science and conservation. Photos by Matt Shiffler, courtesy of Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
LAKE EFFECT: ARTISTS FROM CLEVELAND NOW Transformer Station • Through Dec. 6
Celebrating the Cleveland Museum of Art’s 110th anniversary, Lake Effect: Artists from Cleveland Now showcases the depth and diversity of Northeast Ohio’s contemporary art scene. Inspired by the museum’s historic May Show, the juried exhibition features 66 works selected from more than 1,700 submissions by nearly 950 regional artists. Spanning painting, sculpture, photography, textiles, ceramics and installation, the exhibition offers a vibrant snapshot of the artists shaping Greater Cleveland today – and the future of its creative community. Admission is free. Open Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m., and Friday from noon to 8 p.m. clevelandart.org
Kristen Cliffel’s Homemaker (2022), made with low-fire clay, glaze, gold luster, kilncast glass and cast sterling silver, is featured in Lake Effect: Artists from Cleveland Now at Transformer Station. Photo courtesy of Cleveland Museum of Art.
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Living With
MASTERPIECES
For more than 85 years, Oberlin College students have had the rare opportunity to live with museum-quality works of art. Today, it costs just $5 a semester. by Carlo Wolff
G
reat museums are wonderful places for contemplation, cultural enrichment – a pause from the rest of your busy life. The best ones offer collections so absorbing, you’d happily spend days there, maybe even move in. The Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College doesn’t let you move in, but it does provide members of the college community a way to live with the art through a beloved program called Art Rental. For $5 a semester, they can rent works of art to enjoy in their homes. Ever since art history professor Ellen Johnson founded Art Rental in 1940, Kim the college has counted on students, as well as faculty and staff, to return, intact and undamaged, works by modernist trailblazers like Joan Miró, Paul Klee and Henri Matisse. It’s a matter of trust. “I’ve worked over 40 art rentals, and the fact that we’ve never had a work damaged or lost shows how much the program means to the students,” says Selina Bartlett, associate registrar at the Allen Museum. She and Jon L. Seydl, Lane
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G.W. Cowles Director of the Allen, administer the program. “Nearly a century later, Art Rental is still fulfilling its original mission of connecting students with significant works of art that they can actually live with,” says Seydl. “In this way, Art Rental demonstrates that being with art isn’t an elitist enterprise, and the transformational power of art is for everyone.” Art Rental has a dedicated collection of about 400 works, separate from the Allen’s permanent collection of some 15,000. The program has changed over the years. Early on, Art Rental was a highly anticipated campus event in which students competed for their place in the selection order, lining up outside the museum and navigating a complicated system of sign-ups and overnight check-ins. After the COVID-19 pandemic hit, college administrators changed the process and limited rentals to one work per student. “We decided that students could rent only one work, and we put out five random works for each student to choose from,” says Bartlett. “This ensures that each student has a chance to rent and has an equal chance at getting the most popular works.” “The Art Rental program was the first thing I learned about the Allen during my Admissions tour at Oberlin,” says Ellis Lane, a 2022 graduate who majored in art history. “The Allen was already my top reason for choosing Oberlin; I wanted to work in art museums after college, and I knew the Allen had a
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Thu, Nov 12, 2026
LeVar Burton
unforgettable nights
Tickets are available online at writerscenterstage.org or by calling 216.368.6062.
great writers
great writers Tickets are available online at writerscenterstage.org or by calling 216.368.6062.
Alexis Nikole Nelson
Virginia Evans
Tayari Jones
George Saunders
Jesmyn Ward
Thu, Mar 4, 2027
Thu, Oct 29, 2026
Mon, Apr 19, 2027
Mon, Sep 14, 2026
Mon, Sep 14, 2026
Jesmyn Ward
Thu, Oct 29, 2026
Alexis Nikole Nelson
unforgettable nights LeVar Burton Thu, Nov 12, 2026
Thu, May 6, 2027
“Art Rental demonstrates that being with art isn’t an elitist enterprise, and the transformational power of art is for everyone.” – Jon L . Seydl program for students to train and work at the Allen.” Because Lane was nervous about having a work from the Allen in his dorm, he didn’t take part in Art Rental until his junior year, when he secured Le Sagittaire, a color lithograph by the modernist Jean-Michel Atlan. He participated again in his senior year. “Getting an art rental was a thing,” says Driek Zirinsky, an emeritus professor of English at Boise State University in Idaho, who graduated from Oberlin in 1965 with an English major. “We started lining up the day before in teams to hold a place at the front of the line. At that time girls couldn’t be out overnight, so we needed guys on our teams to keep the place in line.” “Oberlin is a special place and Art Rental is one of those unique-to-the-college things you do as an ‘Obie.’” For Zirinsky – and for Lane – being an “Obie” also means paying it forward. Zirinsky began collecting as a young adult, building a collection of more than 1,000 works that she’s now giving away to institutions including Oberlin. She says she was influenced by her experience with Art Rental and living with art in her home and bedroom while growing up. Since graduating, Lane has purchased one artwork a year
from Accessible Expressions Ohio, a yearly, statewide touring exhibition of artwork by Ohio artists with disabilities, run by Art Possible Ohio. “I wouldn’t really consider myself a collector, but that annual practice is special to me,” he says. “I wanted to be a part of this program because it felt like something unique to Oberlin,” says Joanne Kim, a 2026 graduate who majored in art history and politics. “How many other times will I have the chance to have artwork in my home that’s been officially accessioned by a museum?” Kim participated in Art Rental three times during her four years at Oberlin, making sure to pick artwork that was made with different media. “I always chose works that looked very visually unique from the rest,” she says. Did she become accustomed to living with legendary art? “Like all things, once you get used to something being in a certain spot, it becomes normal,” Kim says. “I often didn’t think about the artwork I brought home with me. But there were moments when someone would come over and comment, and lots of interesting conversations about our aesthetic preferences would start from there.” Similar conversations likely took place in the suite-style dorm where Anka Chiorini lives with two other students. Chiorini, an art history major preparing to graduate in 2027,
“How many other times will I have the chance to have artwork in my home that’s been officially accessioned by a museum?” – Joanne Kim
Lead Picture: The Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin College has been home to the college’s Art Rental program since it began in 1940. Photo courtesy of Oberlin College. Above: Oberlin College students pose with works of art they have secured – for a whole semester– through Art Rental.
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and her dorm mates went to Art Rental this year and, together, rented two works for $10: L’estacade, a lithograph by Gustave Singier, and an untitled crayon-on-paper work by Peter Young. “Those works felt really colorful and lively, which was great in an otherwise very plain space. I felt especially drawn to the Singier – when they brought it out, my roommates and I immediately knew it felt right for the space,” Chiorini says. Dorm life can produce amusing juxtapositions. The Young hangs between a Where’s Waldo poster and a poster for a campus comedy show, while the Singier hangs under string lights. “I grew up going to art museums, but it really is a different experience to live with the work of art,” Lane says. “You see it at different times of day; when the ambient lighting affects how the colors pop, it makes the artwork feel alive. Just seeing it on different days in different moods was a different experience, and it made me understand why people are drawn to collect art.”
“You see it at different times of day; when the ambient lighting affects how the colors pop, it makes the artwork feel alive.” – Ellis Lane
Top: This trio cohabits nicely on an Allen Memorial Art Museum wall. Clockwise from left: Alexej von Jawlensky’s Head of a Woman, Henri Matisse’s Young Girl Seated (La Biche), and Amedeo Modigliani’s Nude with Coral Necklace. Bottom: Students line up for a shot at renting a masterpiece through Art Rental. The popular event is a signature of Oberlin College life. Photos courtesy of Oberlin College.
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Coming Home to Toni Morrison A statewide celebration honors the Nobel Prize-winning author by returning readers to the Ohio communities that shaped her imagination – and inviting a new generation to discover her work. by Kateryna Kopylchak
B
efore becoming the first Black woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, Toni Morrison was simply a girl growing up in Lorain, Ohio. Along the shores of Lake Erie, surrounded by immigrant families and working-class neighborhoods, she found the people, places and stories that would later shape some of America’s most celebrated novels. Now, decades after Morrison transformed American literature, communities across her home state are celebrating the writer whose connection to Ohio never faded. From Cleveland to Cincinnati, bookstores, libraries, museums and universities are participating in Beloved: Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison, a yearlong statewide initiative honoring Morrison’s life, literary achievements and Ohio roots. Through book discussions, educator workshops, public art, performances and community events, organizers hope not only to introduce new readers to Morrison’s work but also to encourage conversations about history, identity, belonging and the power of literature to bring people together. The idea began several years ago during a conversation between Literary Cleveland executive director Matt Weikam and Rebecca Asmo, executive director of Ohio Humanities Alliance. “It was really Matt’s idea to do a big celebration of Toni Morrison. He really had this vision of Ohio leading a national celebration of Toni Morrison,” Asmo says. Originally, organizers hoped to launch the initiative in 2031 to mark what would have been Morrison’s 100th birthday. But as plans developed, they recognized that 2026, the nation’s 250th anniversary, offered another meaningful opportunity. Rather than telling America’s story through presidents, wars and political milestones, Morrison’s novels
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explore the nation’s history through the lives of ordinary people. Arranged by the historical periods in which they are set, her 11 novels span more than three centuries, beginning in the late 1600s with A Mercy and continuing into the 21st century with God Help the Child. “It covers the entire breadth of American history,” Asmo says. Planning the celebration, however, quickly became more complicated than organizers expected. After federal funding for the project was eliminated, they suddenly faced the possibility that the initiative might never happen. Organizers kept meeting with partners across the state anyway, searching for new funding and inviting more organizations to help shape the project. Support ultimately came from organizations including the Gund Foundation, the Cleveland Foundation, the Columbus Foundation and the Ohio Humanities Alliance, while additional partners continued to join the effort. “People started showing up to Zoom meetings and were really excited by the idea of coming together around Toni Morrison,” Asmo says. “People felt really hopeful about the idea, especially during this moment of national division.” “It didn’t start off exactly how we had expected,” Asmo says, “but it’s actually become better and bigger than we had even hoped.” Although Morrison built an internationally celebrated career, organizers say Ohio remained central to her imagination. Born in Lorain in 1931, she frequently spoke about the state’s influence on both her creative process and her writing. Three of her novels — The Bluest Eye, Sula and Beloved — are set in Ohio, and references to Lake Erie and industrial neighborhoods run through much of her work.
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GOOD TIMES The Artistic Journey of Ernie Barnes On View August 18 - November 1, 2026 “Throughout my five seasons in the NFL, I remained at the deepest level of my being an artist.” - Ernie Barnes The Canton Museum of Art is proud to present Good Times: The Artistic Journey of Ernie Barnes in collaboration with the Ernie Barnes Estate and Ortuzar, New York. Well known in both the sports and visual arts worlds, Ernie Barnes (1938 - 2009) was celebrated early in his career by New York City art critics, who in 1965 referred to him as “the most expressive painter of sports since George Bellows.” He was the first American professional athlete to become a noted painter, recognized for his unique style of movement, elongation, and energy portrayed in his art. His works are shown, collected and respected internationally. In pop culture Barnes’ artwork appears on album covers, television, and movies, especially his iconic dance hall scene, The Sugar Shack (1976). “Music, dancing, and art were an integral part of my identity throughout my life,” Barnes said. This new original exhibition, featuring impressive loans from galleries and private collections around the country, will be presented at the time of the 50th anniversary of The Sugar Shack painting — the artwork adapted for Marvin Gaye’s 1976 Album, I Want You, and Barnes’s work featured on the successful 1970s television show by Norman Lear, Good Times. Born in Durham, North Carolina, during the Jim Crow years, Barnes created some of the twentieth century’s most iconic images of African American life. Known for his unique “neo-mannerist” approach of elongated figures, he captured observations of life growing up in North Carolina; playing professional football in the NFL (1959–1964): Baltimore Colts (‘59 - ‘60), Titans of New York (‘60), San Diego Chargers (‘60 - 62), and Denver Broncos (‘63 ‘64), where he was called “Big Rembrandt” by teammates; and his later life in Los Angeles. Good Times includes his paintings of entertainment and music, but also highlights how Barnes, the official artist of the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, extensively represented athletes and sports – such as boxing, tennis, basketball, and gymnastics, including
The artist at work in his studio. Photograph© Ernie Barnes Family Trust
The Sugar Shack, 1976. Ernie Barnes (American: 1938-2009). Acrylic on canvas. On loan from the Collection of William O. Perkins, III and Lara Perkins.
works commissioned for the NBA, Carolina Panthers, LA Lakers, and many more. His decades chronicling athletes was honored twice, in 1984 and again in 2004, when he was selected as Sport Artist of the Year by the American Sport Art Museum and Archives. In his 1995 autobiography, From Pads to Palette, Barnes also documented his life as professional athlete turned artist. Good Times celebrates his life and career and examines his place in African American and popular culture storytelling.
Plan Your Visit at: CantonArt.org All artworks © ERNIE BARNES. Exhibition artworks courtesy of the Ernie Barnes Estate; Private Collections; Ortuzar, New York; and Andrew Kreps Gallery, New York.
Beyond her novels, Morrison served as an editor, professor and public intellectual whose work examined race, memory, history and the complexities of American life. “She was really one of the great thinkers of the 20th century,” Asmo says. “I look at her as a philosopher. She was a cultural critic. She wrote so much more than just her novels.” For Britt Lovett, project manager of Beloved: Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison, Morrison’s connection to Ohio feels personal. Lovett, who also grew up in Lorain County, recognizes pieces of her own community throughout Morrison’s writing. “Lorain is called the international city,” Lovett says. “There were groups of immigrant families from everywhere. Every time I read Toni Morrison, I can just feel Ohio throughout. When she talks about water, living on Lake Erie, it’s right in our backyard.” That connection to place is one reason organizers believe Morrison’s work still resonates decades after publication. Throughout the year, the initiative has encouraged people to read together, discuss difficult topics and build connections within their communities. For Lovett, that sense of community is one of the most meaningful parts of the project. Morrison’s novels often explore difficult subjects, but Lovett believes readers gain a deeper understanding when they experience the books alongside others. “If you’ve never read a Toni Morrison novel, then you might not know, but there’s a little bit of everything in there,” Lovett says. “Yes, you’ll be triggered and you’ll be challenged internally when you read Toni Morrison, but when you read in a community, you’re different.” “Once the doors open and we tell you about this woman and her journey, where she’s from, it kind of does something to people,” Lovett says. Instead of asking people to travel to one central location, organizers intentionally spread programming throughout the state. “We wanted people to experience Toni Morrison where they live,” Lovett says. “Every community can celebrate her in its own way.” Asmo hopes that approach will inspire younger generations to see themselves in Morrison’s story. “We want them to be introduced to Toni Morrison,” Asmo says. “We want them to have events in their community where
Above: Readers celebrate Toni Morrison’s literary legacy at an event in her honor. Lead picture: A yearlong statewide celebration of Toni Morrison organized by Literary Cleveland. Photos courtesy of Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison. literature is a focus. We want to celebrate literacy, reading and community togetherness.” Lovett agreed, adding that she hopes Morrison’s life reminds young people that extraordinary accomplishments can begin in ordinary places. “We hope young people will be inspired to know that they can do what Toni Morrison did too,” Lovett says. Organizers already see the celebration as the beginning of something larger than a single year. “I keep saying this is a marathon, not a sprint,” Lovett says. “What we’ve done in this short period of time is build something that can continue to grow. How do we continue to foster this love of reading and use Toni Morrison as the catalyst for what’s next?” “If you’ve never picked up a Toni Morrison novel, it’s time,” Lovett says. “Reading Toni Morrison in community will change you because it will enlighten your perspective.” KEY DATES AND EVENTS Beloved: Ohio Celebrates Toni Morrison runs through Feb. 18, 2027.
Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye takes center stage in a celebration of literacy and liberation.
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Sept. 9, 11–12, 2026 — Cleveland: Literary Cleveland’s free Inkubator Writing Conference features more than 40 workshops and craft talks, author panels and a virtual discussion of Toni Morrison’s legacy. Free; registration required. Sept. 17, 2026 — Cleveland: Award-winning author Andrea Pinkney visits Cleveland Public Library to discuss her children’s biography, And She Was Loved: Toni Morrison’s Life in Stories, followed by a book signing. Free. Sept. 19, 2026 — Lorain: FireFish Festival, Freedom Lifts Us, brings public art, music and performances to Broadway Avenue in a free celebration of Toni Morrison’s legacy. Free; no registration required. Additional events will be announced throughout the year. Visit OhioCelebratesToniMorrison.org for the latest schedule.
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arts 2026-2027 THEATER SEASON
Beck Center
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FOR THE
Books That
Canvas asked Northeast Ohio’s writers, poets, booksellers and literary leaders to share the books shaping their thinking right now, the titles that have stayed with them for years and what they believe every great book should do.
Built Us Compiled b y
Rebecca M e
iser
QUARTEZ HARRIS Poet, teaching artist and author of Go Tell It: How James Baldwin Became a Writer
Currently Reading As of lately, I’ve been visiting a lake, observing all sorts of waterbirds and woodland wildlife. I wanted a companion book to help me make sense of my sight in the woods, and figured it could help me along with my novel in progress. While plucking books at random from my bookcase, Upstream by Mary Oliver came to me, bearing wonders. The essays in this collection are lush and lyrical and seem to be a guide towards writing – Mary lives within the everyday wonders of nature, which leads her back to writing, where she meditates on the landscapes of language. Upstream has convinced me that writing and nature are inseparable. There are moments in the book that remind me of my own deeply felt connection with nature, like observing a great blue heron stalking the shallow lake for fish, which she chronicles in one of the selected essays. A Book That Stayed With You Go Tell It on the Mountain, James Baldwin’s first, semiautobiographical novel. That book continues to live in my ear. When I first read it in college, it felt as though I was revisiting a Sunday church service during my early childhood. Baldwin’s poetic prose transported me back to the red pews of the House of Prayer. Growing up in that church, I experienced so many points of tension I couldn’t possibly articulate as a teenager. But when I read Go Tell It on the Mountain, a language barrier had been broken. It gave me the words I didn’t have at the time. It gave me back my voice. It made me
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feel as though my complicated relationship to religion was not unprecedented – that weight was all part of the human experience. A Book You Recommend Often Dear Memory: Letters on Writing, Silence, and Grief by Victoria Chang is usually my go-to book that I refer to students and fellow writers. I am always pulling quotes from it. One of my favorites is, “the more you read, the more you realize how difficult it is to write, but the more you want to write well.” Paying Attention To Books rooted in intergenerational remembrance – that is, books about memory. Dear Memory by Victoria Chang remarkably delves into the memories that are passed through generations. “A great book should…” make you feel as though you’ve disappeared with it.
HILLARY WALKER Special Events Senior Coordinator for the Cuyahoga County Public Library and Bookstagrammer (@hillysreads)
Currently Reading I am a huge mood reader, so I currently have three very different books I am switching between depending on the day. First is A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn – it’s heavy but important, and it’s scratching an itch I’ve had to learn something new about our history. To balance that out, I’m slowly re-reading George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, which has been fascinating to compare to the new season of House of the Dragon. Finally, I’m reading Score by Kennedy Ryan.
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AROUND HERE,
ITʼS ALWAYS ETERNITY Bonny Leibowitz - Alice Pixley Young Deborah Wasserman - Etty Yaniv
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EAST AND WEST Sept. 15 | 7:30 | Cinematheque With live original music composed and performed by renowned klezmer violinist Alicia Svigals and celebrated silent film pianist Donald Sosin bit.ly/CSFFEastandWest / ClevelandSilentFilmFestival.org
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Four women artists from diverse locations grappling with the here and now, bookended between the fossil age and the nuclear age explore the genre of landscape as a metaphor for our social, ecological and political upheaval.
August 25 - October 24 Reception: Friday, August 28, 5-7pm
ADAM PASCAL & ANTHONY RAPP CELEBRATING 30 YEARS HIP & MUSIC FRIENDS OF
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*Artwork By Deborah Wasserman*
Fall 2026 | Canvas | 19
When I’m deep in a heavy nonfiction book, a cozy romance like Score is the perfect lighthearted escape. A Book That Stayed With You One book that has stayed with me and is etched into my brain is Honor by Thrity Umrigar – it is truly one of the best novels I have ever read. Thrity draws you in within the first few pages and never lets go. It’s a story layered with deep emotions, multi-dimensional characters and exquisite writing. It’s also one of the few books that has actually moved me to tears, and that emotional resonance is exactly why it has stayed with me for so long. A Book You Recommend Often It’s so hard to pick just one, but the one I find myself always recommending is The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin. He’s one of my all-time favorite authors, and while his entire catalog is brilliant, this is his most powerful and impactful book, in my opinion. It delivers an incredible, timeless message in just about 120 pages. Baldwin’s writing is so eloquent and influential that it will absolutely rock your world. Favorite Place to Read I am a total homebody, so my favorite spot is my own bed or curled up on the couch with a warm blanket and a hot cup of tea. But if I’m in the mood to venture out, I love Edgewater Park – there’s nothing better than settling into a good book by the beach when Northeast Ohio blesses us with warm weather. Paying Attention To I am deeply passionate about the ongoing conversation around intentionality in reading – specifically reading books by BIPOC and underrepresented authors. As a Black woman who grew up in rural Ohio, I rarely saw myself reflected on the shelves, nor did I see stories highlighting diverse cultures and ethnicities. As an adult, I’ve made diversifying my reading a strict priority. It’s actually why I started my Bookstagram account: I wanted a platform to recommend stories that challenge people to step outside their own lived experiences. Reading is the ultimate empathy tool – it allows us to connect with perspectives different from our own, and it helps those of us who are underrepresented to be seen and validated. “A great book should…” shape and mold the way you look at the world. It should leave you with a nugget of new information, a shift in perspective, or a jolt of empathy you didn’t have before you read the first page.
SUZANNE DEGAETANO Co-owner, Mac’s Backs–Books on Coventry in Cleveland Heights
Currently Reading Right now I am reading two books: Beginning Middle End by Valeria Luiselli and The Brittle Age by Donatella De Pietrantonio. The settings for both are near where my grandparents were from in Italy and Sicily, and I’ve been drawn to reading about those locales lately. A Book That Stayed With You Radiance of Tomorrow by Ishmael Beah. Twenty years ago he published A Long Way Gone, a memoir about being a child soldier in Sierra Leone. Radiance of Tomorrow is a novel about a village in Africa emptied by civil war, and
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what happens when a few elders return and reestablish community. A Book You Recommend Often Doc and Epitaph by Mary Doria Russell. In these two linked novels, Russell did an incredible amount of research to uncover the real stories of Doc Holliday, the Earp brothers, the shootout at the O.K. Corral and American culture during western expansion. These are gripping historical fictions that reanimate this era and correct some misconceptions. Favorite Place to Read My favorite place to read is in my driveway in the summertime, and at the Cleveland Metroparks CanalWay Center in the winter. The Visitor Center has tables, chairs and rockers in a large room with huge windows that look out at active bird feeders, foliage and the high-level railroad bridge. Paying Attention To Publishers have been reprinting classics in beautiful new editions that appeal to readers who want to collect their favorite reads this way. Our staff also notes the “trad wife” theme has been explored in many recent novels. “A great book should…” make us look up from our reading to think about what we just read.
REGINA BRETT Inspirational author, speaker and columnist for the Cleveland Jewish News, Columbus Jewish News and Akron Jewish News
Currently Reading The world is too full of people who don’t quite fit in but would bless our lives if we were less afraid to know them. That’s why I picked up Sometimes Amazing Things Happen: Heartbreak and Hope on the Bellevue Hospital Psychiatric Prison Ward by Elizabeth Ford, M.D. It will crack open your heart and let compassion flow in. A Book That Stayed With You Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s Wind, Sand, and Stars. Most people have read his book The Little Prince, but his autobiographical memoir still haunts me. He shares harrowing adventures and deep spiritual reflections about human resilience and the awe of flying. He vanished during a World War II reconnaissance mission in 1944, the year my dad was a tail gunner flying reconnaissance missions. A Book You Recommend Often Man’s Search for Meaning by Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl. Everything you need to know about surviving the worst of life is in that book. It’s all about choosing your response. Favorite Place to Read Sitting on my front porch with my golden doodle, McIntyre, ranks first. Next is taking a book on a date to The Stone Oven in Cleveland Heights. I sit at the front window in the back corner, order hot chocolate with whipped cream, crack open a good book and I’m in heaven. Paying Attention To I’m drawn to books that both challenge and comfort my soul. Fiction that heals by authors like Elizabeth Strout, Fredrik Backman, Elizabeth Berg, Jesmyn Ward and Monica Wood, and poems by Mary Oliver. Books like The Buddha in
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the Attic, Theo of Golden, Dear Edward, The Great Alone and There There. I’m 70, so I don’t waste time waiting for a book to get better. Every book must be worth those hours of my life. “A great book should…” leave you with the same soul ache you get when a violin concerto pierces your soul and makes your hand land on your heart to comfort you from all that unbearable beauty.
September 19
September 26
November 2
ANNIE ZALESKI New York Times bestselling author/editor
Loganberry Books Annex Gallery
13015 Larchmere Blvd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 www.loganberrybooks.com gallery@logan.com 216.795.9800
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July 31–September 26
So wool won’t shrink by Nora Gast
Alice, manager
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Publisher’s Note: Read Regina’s columns at cjn.org/regina.
Learn more at shakerhistory.org
October 15 – December 19
Currently Reading Barry Walters’ Mighty Real: A History of LGBTQ Music, 1969-2000. I’ll devour just about any book on music history, especially when it dovetails with cultural history. Barry is an accomplished journalist, and this researchheavy book pairs his deep knowledge with perceptive insights. A Book That Stayed With You Blake Nelson’s 1994 novel Girl. It’s a fictional story about a high schooler who leaves her boring suburban life behind in favor of a cooler existence revolving around 1990s rock stars. I read this in the 1990s, and the aspirational nature of the narrative’s protagonist really resonated with me: a nerdy teenager who longed to be cool. A Book You Recommend Often Kathy Valentine, All I Ever Wanted: A Rock ‘n’ Roll Memoir. Kathy is a fantastic writer who excels at writing vivid personal essays that resonate with universal truths. This book covers her life with the Go-Go’s and beyond with vulnerability and heart. Favorite Place to Read My cozy bed. Paying Attention To I’m loving the rise of the romance novel in all of its forms, and the way these books are bringing so many people back to reading. “A great book should…” make you lose track of time, because you are so immersed in the prose.
Holy Mountain Blood Boiler by Ryan Cermak
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Fall 2026 | Canvas | 21
From Broadway to Playhouse Square As Buena Vista Social Club heads to Cleveland, producer Robin Gorman Newman takes us behind the Broadway curtain. by Rebecca Meiser
A
former journalist and publicist turned Tony Awardwinning producer, Robin Gorman Newman helped bring Buena Vista Social Club to Broadway. With the show set to close out Playhouse Square’s 2026-2027 KeyBank Broadway Series next summer, Newman talks about the role cities like Cleveland play in Broadway’s ecosystem, what draws her to a production and why live theater still matters. WHAT DO YOU HOPE CLEVELAND AUDIENCES TAKE AWAY FROM BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB? Buena Vista is so gorgeous. We won five Tonys in New York and were nominated for Best Musical. Buena Vista is based on an inspiring true story, and at the heart of it, it’s about a woman who makes difficult choices to follow her passion. For me, it’s a very Door A versus Door B thing because we all make choices in life, and I think it’s so relatable. The show is so heartfelt, so moving, so joyous. Ultimately, I’ve seen it multiple times, as you might imagine. I dance in my seat every time. It’s never the same twice, which is really cool because there is an element of improv with some of the musicality. The band is honestly the best I’ve ever seen on a Broadway show. The score is sung in Spanish. You don’t need to understand it at all because you will completely grasp the emotion of the moment. I think with everything going on in the world, it’s truly beautiful to be acknowledging and celebrating a culture that has brought so much arts to the world for people to enjoy. PEOPLE OFTEN THINK OF BROADWAY AS A NEW YORK INSTITUTION. WHAT ROLE DO CITIES LIKE CLEVELAND AND THEATERS LIKE PLAYHOUSE SQUARE PLAY IN THE LIFE OF BROADWAY? Regional theaters are vital for Broadway because you want to take a show out of town somewhere first to get it up on stage, to see how it lands, to see how the audience responds, to see if you feel like there’s more work that you would like to do on it. It’s really important in the developmental path of the show. In the case of Buena Vista, at this moment, we’re getting prepared to embark on a tour, and it’s thrilling to be able to take the show across the country for everybody to enjoy. Because not everyone can make it to Broadway, you know, for various reasons. While I’m in favor of anything that gives people an opportunity to see a show, I will say there is nothing like being in a live theater, and it’s a communal experience. Buena Vista, I can tell you, is unbelievably communal. I’ve seen people crying. I’ve seen people cheering. The emotion that comes out of the show — and for some also, it is the representation they see on stage too that has become so important, I think, and so moving to people. But even if that’s not you on stage, representative of who
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you are, the message is universal, which is anything is possible in life. WHAT FIRST DREW YOU TO BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB AND MADE YOU BELIEVE IT BELONGED ON BROADWAY? It started off-Broadway first. I fell in love with it. There’s just an unexpected beauty about it. Gorman Newman I didn’t expect to cry, and they got me. Not that I go into a theater aspiring to cry, but if a show does that for me, I’m there. I’m all in, and I love it because I didn’t see it coming. It’s the softer, quiet moments of it that are really profound. And then there’s the gorgeousness of the choreography. It won the Tony for choreography, and it’s a beautiful melding of ballet and salsa and some modern. It’s kind of a combo of a lot of different styles that you don’t typically see together, and it’s very escapist. The first time I saw it, I came out of the show and I’m like, oh, I’m in New York. I’m not in Cuba or some other more exotic place. You feel like you’ve been taken on this journey emotionally and physically. PEOPLE OFTEN IMAGINE BROADWAY PRODUCING AS GLAMOROUS. WHAT DOES THE JOB ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE? It’s not all glam. I’m not the lead producer, so I’m a co-producer, and I have my stresses. I can imagine the lead producer on any big show like Buena Vista or otherwise. It’s a huge undertaking. It takes a village to bring a show to the stage, and it’s not all gowns and Tony Awards and opening nights. Every producer has to raise money. That’s always part of it. And I say to my investors, without investors, there simply wouldn’t be theater. Then there’s the uncertainty of how is the audience going to respond? Is this landing how I hope? Until you see something on stage, it’s very different than on paper and in a rehearsal room. Producing theater is a crapshoot, but if you believe in the project and if your heart is in the right place, I do believe that the results can be fantastic. For me, one of the reasons why I do what I do is I honestly believe that theater has the power to change lives, and theater is my happy place. I think it’s also a way to inspire important conversation. YOU’VE PRODUCED A WIDE RANGE OF SHOWS. WHAT MAKES YOU SAY YES TO A PROJECT? My projects are all different, which I love because I’m totally open to anything. I do gravitate toward musicals, although I did throw one play in there, which was Fat Ham by James Ijames So you never know.
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The cast of Buena Vista Social Club performs in the Tony Award-winning musical, which blends Afro-Cuban music with choreography drawing from salsa, ballet and other dance traditions. Photo courtesy of Matthew Murphy. For me initially, it’s a gut feel. I go to workshops a lot. I try to go to regionals when I can, but I can’t travel constantly. So if I’m keeping my eye on something, I ask to see a recording of it. If it’s something that’s new and in development, then it really is important for me to see it. For me, it’s also important who’s steering the ship. Who’s leading it. I really love working with Orin Wolf, who’s the lead producer on Buena Vista Social Club. I enjoy working with people who recognize that having co-producers in the room like me, who can bring a lot to the table and really want to help, can support shows. I have a background in marketing and public relations, and I roll up my sleeves when I get involved with a show. And I like to work with people who allow me to do that. I obviously look at numbers, the financials, and the other thing that I think hard about is who is the audience for this show, and how may they be reached? Because it’s never one size fits all in terms of marketing. At the end of the day, you can have an amazing show, but if the marketing doesn’t quite land or convey in the way that it needs to, then shows might not succeed. YOUR PATH INTO PRODUCING WASN’T CONVENTIONAL. DID YOU EVER IMAGINE JOURNALISM AND PUBLIC RELATIONS WOULD EVENTUALLY LEAD YOU TO BROADWAY? No, in a million years I didn’t imagine any of it. I began as an investor off-Broadway in theater, and then I segued to Broadway as an investor. So that was how I got my start, and then I made the decision I wanted my name in a Playbill. I’ve always been someone who puts out the word to the universe. I feel like if my gut is telling me to pursue something, I’m just gonna do it, even if I don’t know why. In that moment, I’m taking action, whether it’s to make a phone call or attend an event or just put myself in a room that I don’t expect to be in. If you ever told me I would become a Tony-winning producer, which I am, one day I honestly would have thought they were crazy. What I love about my story is that my hope is
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always that it will inspire other people to aim high and just not be afraid to try new things. THAT IDEA OF UNEXPECTED SUCCESS IS ALSO PART OF THE STORY OF BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB. DOES THEIR JOURNEY RESONATE WITH YOUR OWN? Oh, absolutely. The success that the Buena Vista Social Club had as a group was completely unexpected for them. They won the Grammy, and they played at Carnegie Hall. I don’t think they in a million years thought that would ever be their reality, and the same holds true for me. When I was blessed to win the Tony for Parade a few years ago, which was the revival of that musical, and when I was standing on stage along with my colleagues, it was surreal.
SEE THE SHOW
Buena Vista Social Club plays Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace July 27 – Aug. 15, 2027, as part of the 2026-2027 KeyBank Broadway Series. For tickets and more information, visit PlayhouseSquare.org. Also on Tap for the 2026-2027 KeyBank Broadway Series at Playhouse Square: • Death Becomes Her — Sept. 12-Oct. 3, 2026, KeyBank State Theatre (national tour launch) • Mamma Mia! — Jan. 5-24, 2027, Connor Palace • Boop! The Musical — Feb. 2-21, 2027, Connor Palace • Maybe Happy Ending — March 2-21, 2027, Connor Palace • The Phantom of the Opera — April 14-May 9, 2027, KeyBank State Theatre • Buena Vista Social Club — July 27-Aug. 15, 2027, Connor Palace • Harry Potter and the Cursed Child — Aug. 24-Sept. 12, 2027, KeyBank State Theatre
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Inside Waterloo Cleveland’s under-the-radar arts district offers galleries, working studios, live music and a creative community built over more than two decades. by Martha Sorohan Tucked into Cleveland’s North Collinwood neighborhood, Waterloo Road is easy to miss if you aren’t looking for it. That’s also part of its appeal. Along a few compact blocks, galleries, artist studios, music venues and neighborhood businesses occupy historic storefronts, creating a creative district that feels more grassroots than polished. The colorful checkerboard façade of Pop Life, which offers yoga classes and a vegan café, is among its most recognizable landmarks, while just down the street, artists work on specialized digital looms, contemporary exhibitions fill small galleries and one of Cleveland’s tiniest art spaces occupies a former pay phone booth. And while Waterloo may still fly under the radar for some Clevelanders, its creative roots run deep. HOW WATERLOO BECAME AN ARTS DISTRICT The neighborhood’s transformation began more than 25 years ago. In 2000, the Beachland Ballroom & Tavern opened in a renovated Croatian Liberty Hall and quickly became an anchor for the emerging district. The Black Keys played their first show on its intimate Tavern stage, while early performances by The White Stripes helped establish the Beachland’s reputation as a place to catch musicians on their way up. Four years later, following a successful community art exhibition, Sarah Kennedy founded Waterloo Arts to bring
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artists together and build on the momentum taking shape around the Beachland. Today, Waterloo Arts operates a gallery and community arts center at 15605 Waterloo Road, with seven affordable artist studios upstairs. Other artists and organizations followed. Praxis Fiber Workshop opened in 2015 after the Cleveland Institute of Art closed its fiber arts department. Founder Jessica Pinsky has since turned the nonprofit into a destination for fiber artists, including those who travel internationally to use its specialized digital weaving equipment. “People come from all over the world – India, New Zealand, U.K., Germany, Canada, South America – to use my specific type of digital loom,” Pinsky says. “There’s no open access to this tool anywhere else in North America.” For Pinsky, though, Waterloo offered more than affordable space for an arts organization. She eventually bought a home in the neighborhood, too. “I fell in love with Waterloo for a lot of reasons, but it was very infectious,” she says. “It still is to me as an artist.” Part of that attraction, she says, is the overlap between the commercial district and the surrounding neighborhood. “It’s one of the few places in Cleveland where a lot of the merchants in the commercial corridor also live in the neighborhood, so you feel a lot of that kind of grassroots investment,” Pinsky says. “It’s made a really meaningful life for my family and I.” That connection remains central to Waterloo’s identity. Its
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evolution hasn’t been a straight line, and the district hasn’t lost the scrappy, independent character that helped create it in the first place. EXPLORING WATERLOO One of the best ways to experience the district is simply to walk it. The arts spaces are clustered close together, making it easy to stop into several galleries and studios in an afternoon. WATERLOO ARTS GALLERY Start at the organization that helped establish the district, where rotating exhibitions showcase regional and national artists alongside community programming. Located at 15605 Waterloo Road, gallery hours vary by exhibition but typically run Thursday – Saturday, noon – 4 p.m., plus 6 – 9 p.m. during First Fridays. Confirm current hours at waterlooarts.org or 216-692-9500. PRAXIS FIBER WORKSHOP Part gallery, part working studio and part international artist destination, Praxis offers a window into contemporary fiber art. Its specialized digital looms draw visiting artists from around the world. Located at 15301 Waterloo Road. Open studio and gallery hours: Monday, 4 – 8 p.m.; Wednesday and Sunday, noon – 4 p.m.; or by appointment at contact@praxisfiberworkshop.org. Lead picture: The Beachland Ballroom & Tavern has anchored Waterloo’s music scene since 2000. The Black Keys played their first live show on its Tavern stage in 2002. Photo courtesy of Matt Shiffler. Above: Timi Light’s The Seeds of Tomorrow is among the works featured in The Rebirth of Innocence, the Nigerian artist’s solo exhibition at Framed Gallery in Cleveland’s Waterloo Arts District. The exhibition opens Sept. 4. Photo courtesy of Framed Gallery. Bottom: Pop Life’s colorful façade has become a Waterloo Road landmark. The creative wellness space combines art, yoga and a vegan café under one roof. Photo courtesy of Matt Shiffler.
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FRAMED GALLERY Focused on contemporary art from Africa and the African diaspora, Framed Gallery brings a global perspective to Waterloo. Its newest exhibit, opening Sept. 4 from 5 – 8 p.m., The Rebirth of Innocence features 12 works by Timi Light exploring hope, healing and renewal. Located at 15813 Waterloo Road; call 216-832-5101 or visit framedgallery.net for additional viewing hours. BEACHLAND BALLROOM & TAVERN Waterloo’s live-music anchor pairs an intimate setting with a lineup of local musicians and touring acts. The storied venue has been drawing music fans to the neighborhood for more than two decades. Located at 15711 Waterloo Road, showtimes vary by event; check the venue’s current calendar for performances and tickets at beachlandballroom.com or call 216-383-1124. WHEN TO GO For the fullest version of the neighborhood, time a visit to Walk All Over Waterloo, held on the first Friday of each month. Beginning around 5 p.m., galleries open new exhibitions, musicians perform and visitors move between businesses and arts spaces along the street. “People come to our art walks from all over,” says Amy Callahan, executive director of Waterloo Arts. The district’s biggest annual event, Waterloo Arts Fest, returns Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026, from noon to 7 p.m. More than 100 artists and creative vendors, 40-plus bands on 10 stages, food trucks, family activities and open galleries fill
WATERLOO ARTS FEST SATURDAY, SEPT. 12, 2026, NOON TO 7 P.M Waterloo Road. Waterloo also gained another major arts event in 2026 when Brite Winter relocated to the neighborhood after years downtown and on Cleveland’s Near West Side. MAKE A FEW MORE STOPS Waterloo isn’t a sprawling entertainment district, and that’s part of what makes it manageable. A few hours is enough to explore the galleries, grab something to eat and, if the timing works, stay for a show. Six Shooter Coffee offers a place to grab coffee before or between stops. For dinner or drinks, options include Doink’s Burger Joint, Millie’s Cocktails and Roux. Citizen Pie is also a draw, helping introduce visitors to Waterloo with Neapolitan pizzas baked in imported Italian ovens. And there’s another reason to make the trip east: Lake Erie is just minutes away. Euclid Beach is about a five-minute drive from the arts district, making Waterloo an easy addition to an afternoon spent along Cleveland’s lakefront. Waterloo may not have the density of some of Cleveland’s better-known arts and entertainment districts. But that isn’t really the point. Its appeal is in what visitors can discover within those few blocks: an internationally recognized fiber studio, a gallery inside a phone booth, one of Cleveland’s most storied independent music venues and a community of artists and business owners who haven’t just invested in Waterloo – many of them have made it home.
Six Shooter Coffee offers a neighborhood gathering spot along Waterloo Road, steps from the district’s galleries, studios and music venues. Photo courtesy of Matt Shiffler.
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BE YOND T HE T H IR D DI MENSION: Superrealistic Wood Carvings by John T. Sharp Opening Friday, October 16 On view through Saturday, January 30
Parakeets, 2005 Black Walnut, 36 x 40 x 15 inches
BO TANIC AL V IRT UOSI T Y: The Remarkable Watercolors of George Mauersberger Opening Friday, November 13 On view through Saturday, January 30
Minnesota State Flower (for Renee and Alex), 2026 Watercolor, 12 × 9 inches
W W W.WOLFSGALLERY.COM • INFO@WOLFSGALLERY.COM • 216-721-6945 • CLE VEL AND, OH 44122
Offthe Museum Map Artist Del Davis working in her studio at Twist Drill. Photo courtesy of Twist Drill
The tucked-away art spaces giving Northeast Ohio its creative pulse by Shannon Mortland
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very Northeast Ohioan likely knows the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, but the region is also filled with lesser-known creative spaces that make fall in Greater Cleveland more colorful, playful and surprising. These aren’t the museums everyone already knows. They’re the places you stumble into and end up staying for hours — warehouse studios glowing with string lights, tucked-away galleries hosting jam sessions, former schoolhouses turned artist spaces and outdoor markets where live music drifts through the air.
78TH STREET STUDIOS
Ambient music, cocktails and mingling with Cleveland’s creative crowd — one could be excused for thinking they had wandered into a Brooklyn warehouse party. But it’s actually Third Friday at 78th Street Studios. Once a creative hub for American Greetings, the sprawling complex now houses more than 60 galleries, studios and creative businesses spread across multiple floors. During Third Fridays, the public is invited to wander through the maze-like building, discovering everything from jewelry
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and locally made furniture to immersive installations and live music. The building’s creative history runs deeper than visual art: bands including INXS, Papa Roach and The Pussycat Dolls once recorded music here. 1300 W. 78th St., Cleveland 78thstreetstudios.com
SCREW FACTORY ARTISTS
String lights, exposed brick and concrete floors make this former luxury car factory an ideal destination for discovering local artists. Tucked into Lakewood’s Birdtown neighborhood, Screw Factory Artists Lofts hosts artists working in everything from pottery to printmaking. Visitors can shop holiday markets, take classes or simply wander through the studios while chatting with resident artists. Afterward, stroll through Madison Park across the street, grab dinner along Madison Avenue or head to Mahall’s or Birdietown nearby. It’s the kind of place that can quietly turn into an entire afternoon. 13000 Athens Ave., Lakewood screwfactoryartists.org
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MURRAY HILL SCHOOLHOUSE
School has never been so cool. Inside Cleveland’s Little Italy neighborhood, former classrooms in this 1916 brick schoolhouse have been transformed into artist studios and galleries. Visitors can browse everything from ceramics and paintings to stationery and handmade gifts. For sewing enthusiasts, Bolt & Spool carries distinctive fabrics, ribbons, patterns and vintage-inspired notions. Hours vary, but the building is especially lively during events like the Little Italy Spring Art Walk and the neighborhood’s fall Meatball Crawl. 2026 Murray Hill Rd., Cleveland murrayhillgalleries.net
NEGATIVE SPACE GALLERY
Looking for a different kind of night out? Negative Space Gallery hosts jam sessions, sketch nights, open mics, concerts and performances in a space filled with artwork, photography and tapestries. The gallery describes itself as a “hidden oasis of art and people,” and that atmosphere carries through everything from its casual community gatherings to its live performances. 3820 Superior Ave., 2nd Floor, Cleveland
TWIST DRILL CLEVELAND
Nobody throws a better second act than Cleveland. The Twist Drill Building on Lakeside Avenue once hummed with industrial manufacturing. Today, its nearly 400,000 square feet of exposed brick and soaring ceilings house over 80 creative businesses — painters, dancers, photographers, furniture makers, set designers and even a coffee roastery sharing the same sprawling complex. The mix is what makes it. A dance studio might share a hallway with a modern furniture workshop. A pet photographer operates down the corridor from a wedding and events center. It’s the kind of creative collision that feels accidental but works beautifully.
Art covers nearly every surface inside Negative Space Gallery, a self-described “hidden oasis” on Superior Avenue. Photo courtesy of Negative Space Gallery Artists at the Twist, a collective of 15 resident artists, hosts open studios and sales that give visitors a rare chance to see working creative spaces up close — not just the finished product, but the process. With easy highway access and views that remind you exactly where you are in the city, Twist Drill is quietly becoming one of Cleveland’s most compelling creative addresses. 4700 Lakeside Ave. E., Cleveland twistdrillcleveland.com
Left: A small collection of vintage Templar motorcars pays homage to the Screw Factory’s past as a luxury car factory. Photo courtesy of Screw Factory. Right: Guests view a group exhibition at UNDERSTORY during 78th Street Studios’ monthly Third Fridays. Photo by Extraordinaire Photos, courtesy of 78th Street Studios.
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Visitors can get hands-on at Valley Art Center with classes in ceramics, painting and more. Photo courtesy of Valley Art Center.
ARTFUL
Creativity is a communal affair at ARTFUL, where resident artists, workshops and exhibitions bring people together in Cleveland Heights. Its quarterly Potluck Critiques invite artists of all skill levels and mediums to bring works in progress for feedback from fellow creatives — and, because it really is a potluck, a dish to share. In 2025, ARTFUL moved into the former St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, giving the organization a permanent home for studios, exhibitions and community events. 2555 Euclid Heights Blvd., Cleveland Heights artfulcleveland.org
VALLEY ART CENTER
Known for its annual Art by the Falls festival, Valley Art Center offers year-round opportunities to discover local artists and makers. Visitors can shop jewelry, pottery and wall art or sign up for classes in painting and ceramics taught by regional artists. In a town already known for charm, the center adds another reason to spend the day wandering through Chagrin Falls. 155 Bell St., Chagrin Falls valleyartcenter.org
A former Little Italy schoolhouse hides a thriving community of artists and makers inside. Photo courtesy of Murray Hill Galleries.
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A personalized art resource for individuals, collectors and businesses. We offer assistance in the selection and preservation of artwork in many media. Our archival custom framing services are complemented by our skill in the installation of 2D and 3D artwork in a variety of residential and corporate settings.
Exhibitions—Driving Forces: The Lincoln Highway
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CURATOR CORNER The Sky Is Really Falling by Bonny Leibowitz by Rebecca Meiser
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magine a gallery floor scattered with towering strips of photographed sky and forest, stitched together with welded wire, tangled tree branches and rocklike forms of painted foam. At a glance, it could be a landscape caught mid-collapse – Berlinski or mid-repair. The title says as much: The Sky Is Really Falling. Bonny Leibowitz combines photography and sculpture to explore how we shape our understanding of nature, layering photographs, found materials and fabricated forms into immersive environments that read as acts of restoration even as they hint at decay. At the McDonough Museum of Art, the installation takes on a new configuration, shaped by the contours of the space and encouraging viewers to navigate it in their own way. Below, Claudia Berlinski, director of the McDonough Museum of Art, reflects on the piece’s evolution, its timely themes and the questions it asks about our relationship with the natural world. Can you tell us the background of the piece? The artist has been using photography to question what our sense of being and reality is. She says, to some degree, we have replaced being in nature with pictures of nature. Inundated with images from social media, reality confusion occurs over time. Living in uncertain times has made it difficult to trust what we see and how to understand our environment. Leibowitz cites the lesson from the story of Chicken Little, in which the sky is falling, as a call that the environment is seriously degrading – the sky is really falling, and we are dealing with a crisis. Photos are printed 39 inches by various lengths, sometimes 20 or 26 feet, and treated with polymers. They are then hand-sewn together. It is like reattaching, stitching and healing actual pieces of nature – sometimes beautiful
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In The Sky Is Really Falling, Bonny Leibowitz combines photographs of forests and skies with tree branches, wire and painted foam to explore a natural world that appears to be breaking down and rebuilding itself at once. Photo courtesy of McDonough Museum of Art. and fantasy-like in their appearance and other times more deteriorated. We are fooled by the beautiful surface appearances into believing that nature is in good shape. What makes the piece noteworthy? The adaptability of the piece to differing exhibition spaces is remarkable. The core of the piece is the photographic work, which can be combined with various elements to create a sculptural floor piece or can hang by itself from a wall. The relationship of materials is masterfully attended to, creating a push-pull of ugly and resplendent while making for a cohesive work of art. In the sculptural floor piece depicted in the photograph, there is a wonderfully false green painted on the foam-based protrusion that both attempts to mimic the verdant forest floor and resembles a sickly green acid. What response does the piece create for the viewer? The play of real versus invented space is very interesting. The combination of manufactured materials against the flat imagery of natural environments in the photographs creates a powerful contrast. It draws
our attention to the struggle between humans and nature – and who is winning that struggle. In a very lovely way, there is a tension between the overlay of quilted photographs and the green protrusion that makes us wonder whether humans are on the road to ruining the environment or whether nature is reclaiming what was once hers. Without knowing any background, the viewer can decide which it represents. How do the materials used add to the overall feeling of the piece? The materials most certainly add to the overall feeling, particularly when the photographic work is combined with tree branches, wire mesh or large rocklike structures made of painted foam. The opposition of materials amplifies the meaning and the struggle between manufactured and natural elements. They provide a visually wonderful tactile experience. In one way they act as themselves and, in another way, they are transformed. What was happening at the time that might have influenced the artist? Leibowitz is addressing a subject she
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has been interested in for quite a while, but in 2024 she created an outdoor installation in Benjamin, Texas, at Jim Bob Art Park and Nature Trails titled Trees I Have Loved. The installation consists of a photograph of a cluster of trees from the park, printed onto a large sheet of aluminum and installed within the trees along with manipulated Tyvek, salvaged metals and plastics to create a tornadolike effect. The area has many dead, craggy mesquite trees that are visually quite beautiful. Her installation is inside one of these old trees. She sees more beauty in those than in healthy trees because she relates them to our lives as humans, aging with the beauty of weathering the storm and simply being alive. Recent political and cultural shifts also come into play, creating extra wear and tear on us. We and the trees are putting up a beautiful front and carrying on, but in the background there are all kinds of problems we face. The work speaks to degradation but does not appear apocalyptic. There is a sense of hope and rejuvenation.
This is an important piece that impacted the artist’s current approach to making art. What makes this a notable work from the artist? After completing the site-specific piece in Texas, the artist’s work transformed. Looking at images of Leibowitz’s earlier work, you can see the material exploration of separate components that seem to have solidified in her current body of work. The use of the site-specific material – mesquite trees – in her Benjamin, Texas, installation seems to have opened a new avenue that allows her to be more adventurous in both her materiality and the flexibility of her installations.
Perhaps this is because Leibowitz has said that, after decades of living in Texas, she finally felt connected to the landscape once she discovered the land and flora west of her home in Dallas. What else should we know about this piece? When you see this work – and Bonny Leibowitz’s other pieces – at the McDonough Museum of Art, they will not look exactly like the images on her website or the photograph provided. Leibowitz will be responding to the exhibition’s space, creating a site-specific installation that reflects both her response to the museum and the opportunity to create a unique environment there.
ON VIEW: AROUND HERE IT’S ALWAYS ETERNITY
Featured artist: Bonny Leibowitz (with Etty Yaniv, Alice Pixley Young and Deborah Wasserman) Details: This four-person exhibition examines landscape through themes of ecological and political instability. Find it: Opens Aug. 25 at the McDonough Museum of Art, 525 Wick Ave., Youngstown. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free.
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