Arts & Culture

A mural by Ivan Roque at Spanish River Park

Boca & The Arts

Boca Raton’s growing cultural profile will only be enhanced by a new performing arts center now on the horizon.

The movement to display culturally relevant art in Boca Raton public space is gaining momentum—and has manifested itself on unique and colorful murals on the wall at Red Reef Park and on the six tunnel entrances at Spanish River Park, as well as the recent mural at the Mizner Park Amphitheater.

The murals throughout Boca began a year after the city empaneled a seven-member Art in Public Places Advisory Board in 2017. The board meets regularly and manages the city’s initiative to beautify parks and other common public areas. The board issued its first callout to artists in summer 2018. But Art in Public Spaces is only one beautiful brushstroke on the Boca Raton cultural canvas.

The Boca Raton Museum of Art plays a key role in enhancing the cultural, educational and economic vitality of Boca Raton and its surrounding communities, and has maintained the reputation of being one of South Florida’s leading cultural institutions, attracting more than 200,000 visitors annually to its galleries and programs. The museum offers national and international exhibits, along with monthly programming that features artists at work, gallery talks, jazz in the gallery and Saturday morning art. This fall the museum welcomes the world-premiere exhibit “Machu Picchu and the Golden Empires of Peru.”

The museum’s permanent collection includes works by Warhol, Degas, Picasso and Matisse. It continues to attract people of all ages with its permanent and traveling exhibitions, educational gallery and sculpture garden. Lectures, a film and video series, docent and cellphone tours, special events, and children’s and family programming expand the visitor experience throughout the year.

Another of Boca’s most culturally important events each year also takes place in Mizner Park. Festival of the Arts Boca is one of the premier annual events at the Mizner Park Amphitheater at the north end of the park. Now in its 16th year, this multiday showcase of music and literature has featured marquee appearances by the likes of Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell, Salman Rushdie, Renée Fleming, Jon Meacham, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Thomas Friedman, Fareed Zakaria, Béla Fleck, Bill Murray, Pat Metheny and Herb Alpert, plus screenings of “The Wizard of Oz” and “West Side Story” backed by full orchestra. The festival draws more than 15,000 visitors and generates more than $1 million for the area economy every year.

Festival of the Arts Boca is one of the

Lynn’s Wold Performing Arts Center

LYNN UNIVERSITY CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC

£ For more than 25 years, Lynn University’s high standard of musical training has welcomed a world-class artist faculty, producing highly talented and motivated students and delivering critically acclaimed performances.

£ Since 2014, the Conservatory of Music has been housed at the Count and Countess de Hoernle International Center on the university campus. This three-story facility provides spacious quarters for instruction and practice, as well as convenient proximity to the orchestra’s performance venues.

£ In February of 2017, Ben and Marilyn Heyward donated a 2005 Steinway concert grand piano to the Lynn Conservatory that had been played by Elton John, Billy Joel and Norah Jones. The Heywards chose Lynn because of its commitment to the preservation and teaching of classical music.

£ Lynn University’s Friends of the Conservatory of Music supports high-quality music education through fundraising and community outreach. Since 2003, the Friends have raised more than $2 million to support free tuition scholarships and room and board to all Conservatory of Music students. most significant annual events at Mizner Park Amphitheater, a hub of local culture, entertainment, education and even philanthropy. The state-of-the-art outdoor facility, capacity 4,200, plays host to more than 100,000 visitors per year for concerts, community festivals and events, and private rentals. It has entertained more than a million people since its debut more than a decade ago.

Since 2010, the City of Boca Raton has operated the amphitheater, offering cooperative programming opportunities in music, dance, theatre, film and fine arts. Some of the most popular events at the amphitheater, such as the Summer in the City Music Series, Cinema in the Park and holiday events, are presented by the city at no charge. Among other events, the Summer Series welcomes some of the top touring tribute acts. In addition to free music, the amphitheater has played host to such major recording acts

as Melissa Etheridge, Bonnie Raitt, the Alan Parsons Project, Jethro Tull by Ian Anderson, Morrissey, Blue Öyster Cult, Rob Thomas and more.

West of the city, close to Osprey Point Golf Course, the Sunset Cove Amphitheater, operated by Palm Beach County, attracts its share of major musical acts as well. The Zac Brown Band, Willie Nelson, Darius Rucker, Barenaked Ladies, 311, Yes and many others have performed, not to mention top tribute acts. Sunset Cove also plays host to community events including free concerts, family movies, food truck nights and a July Fourth concert and fireworks spectacular.

In 1999, the Boca Raton Cultural Consortium was founded. What started as an ad-hoc group has grown into a formalized nonprofit organization comprising artistic leaders dedicated to creating synergy while demonstrating that Boca is truly a vibrant cultural destination. Its mission is simple: to raise the public’s awareness of the quality, diversity and impact of arts and cultural programs in the community. The cultural council includes the following member organizations:

XINHUA VIA ZUMA WIRE

Lantern Festival at Sunset Cove Amphitheater n Boca Ballet Theatre n Boca Raton Museum of Art n Boca Raton Historical Society and Museum n The Children’s Museum n FAU College of Arts and Letters n Festival of the Arts Boca n Friends of Gumbo Limbo Nature Center n The HARID Conservatory n Lynn University n Mizner Park Amphitheater n Sol Children Theatre n Spanish River Concerts n Sugar Sand Park Community Center n The SYMPHONIA n Youth Orchestra of Palm Beach County

OTHER ARTS ORGANIZATIONS

• Boca Ballet Theatre is currently the sixthlargest dance company in the state of Florida and one of the top civic companies in the United States, offering classical training for dancers and choreographers, along with 13 performances annually.

• Old Town Hall is home to the Boca Raton Historical Society, a nonprofit membership organization, founded in 1972, that is being transformed with a multimilliondollar museum renovation and a 50th anniversary in 2022. It showcases Boca’s unique history through exhibitions, historic photos, tours and programming. • The SYMPHONIA provides professional classical music featuring nationally and internationally acclaimed conductors and soloists, and is an integral part of the arts and culture community.

• Lynn University’s Keith C. and Elaine

Johnson Wold Performing Arts Center is among the newest state-of-the-art theaters in South Florida and was the site of a presidential debate in 2012.

• The Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters at Florida Atlantic University

offers more than 30 concerts, 10 plays and dance productions, and several local and national art exhibitions and events throughout the year. • The Boca Raton Museum of Art is one of the leading cultural institutions in South Florida, a world-class visual arts institution known for dynamic, changing exhibitions from acclaimed artists as well as a distinguished permanent collection. Its many public programs include artist presentations, family activities, art films, the annual Outdoor Juried Festival, and more than 100 classes per week at its studio Art School. Museum auxiliaries include The Artists’ Guild, Friends

Auxiliary and Collectors’ Forum.

• The Boca Raton Children’s Museum

is an interactive educational institution offering multiple family-oriented events.

Boca Raton Historical Society at Old Town Hall

For more information about these organizations, visit artsinboca.org. The SYMPHONIA

MIZNER PARK CULTURAL CENTER

Since its opening in 2008, the Mizner Park Cultural Center has become a focal point for live entertainment and theatre in South Palm Beach County. Recognized for its prime location at the south end of Mizner Park in Boca Raton, the theater features intimate sight lines and a state-of-the art sound and light system. The location in the upscale Mizner Park is perfect for grabbing a bite before the show, or just strolling the sidewalks to enjoy the many wonderful shops and boutiques surrounding the theater.

BOCA’S PERFORMING ARTS CENTER IS SO MUCH MORE!

The Center for Arts & Innovation, still in its early—but successful— stages of fundraising, will be a world-class performing arts venue in Mizner Park designed to offer a vibrant, flexible and forward-looking home for artists, businesses, students, creative entrepreneurs, and the public overall that is unmatched in the region. The center will offer a state-of-the-art event space and will be an iconic cultural landmark.

The center will provide not only a permanent home for our region’s local cultural organizations in dance, theater and music, but also be a place where seven different flexible and innovative spaces can curate experiences either indoors or out, public or private, free or ticketed; for the young or old, student or professional, or rich or underserved; either day or night, weekday or weekend, and all year long.